Guest guest Posted August 26, 2009 Report Share Posted August 26, 2009 pairamblr wrote: I am very eager to see some data / history ref in support of the following statement. Though I have been asking for supportive info - from writers in different groups, not one has ventured to provide anything. All that they come up with is "this is all known and if you want to believe everything was nice, so be it ". > Hinduism's past downfall was directly attributed to its> discrimination of lower castes and rituals, which greatly contributed> to the rise of Buddhism and Jainism. Can we get some info please? -------From the desk of Veeraswamy KrishnarajBuddhism is a great religion as all religions are. Each religion has its ups and downs, merits and demerits. Almost all of India embraced Buddhism at the time of Mauryan Empire. In the world, it was the first religion to convert people. There were many reasons for such conversion including the oppressive Hindu practices. Once upon a time, our forefathers were Hindus and were converted to Buddhists for various reasons. Even kings converted to Buddhism. At the time of Ramanuja and Sankara, there was reconversion back to Hindusim. -------------------Here are some excerpts: Mauryan Empire (ca. 326-184 B.C.; see The Mauryan Empire, ch. 1). By the seventh century A.D., having spread throughout East Asia and Southeast Asia, Buddhism probably had the largest religious following in the world. New Dehli (Sunday, 04-Nov-2001) More than 30,000 lower-caste Hindus publicly converted to Buddhism on Sunday in the Indian capital, declaring their freedom from ill-treatment at the hands of the upper castes. In an outdoor ceremony denounced by Hindu hardliners, the low-caste Hindus, or Dalits, shaved their heads in ceremonial fashion and chanted Buddhist mantras to signal their conversion. Ram Raj, head of the All India Confederation of Scheduled Castes and Tribes, a lobby group for downtrodden castes, said the converts had "walked out" of India's 3,000-year-old caste system, under which millions of Indians are relegated to lower social status. The Dalit Buddhist movement (PÄli नवयान navayÄna as dubbed by certain Ambedkerites)[1] in India began with support of Sri Lankan Buddhist monks. It received an impetus with B. R. Ambedkar's call for conversion of Dalits to Buddhism in the context of a caste based society that considered them to be at the lower end of the hierarchy. -- Wikipedia------------------ B. R. Ambedkar At the Yeola conference in 1935, prominent Dalit leader B. R. Ambedkar declared that he would not die a Hindu, saying that it perpetuates caste injustices. Ambedkar was approached by various leaders of different denominations and faiths. Meetings were held to discuss the question of Dalit religion and the pros and cons of conversion[6]. On May 22, 1936, an "All Religious Conference" was held at Lucknow. It was attended by prominent Dalit leaders including Jagjivan Ram, though Ambedkar could not attend it. At the conference, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, and Buddhist representatives presented the tenets of their respective religions in an effort to win over Dalits[6].---------- As a wandering monk, Shankara traveled throughout India, combating Buddhist atheism and founding five seats of learning at Badrinath (Uttar Pradesh), Dwaraka (Gujarat), Puri (Orissa), Sringeri (Karnataka), and Kanchipuram (Tamil Nadu). In the 1990s, those seats are still held by successors to Shankara's philosophy (Shankara Acharyas), who head an order of orange-clad monks that is highly respected by the Hindu community throughout India. Activities of the acharyas , including their periodic trips away from their home monasteries to visit and preach to devotees, receive exposure in regional and national media. Their conservative viewpoints and pronouncements on a variety of topics, although not binding on most believers, attract considerable public attention.Here are some links not entirely related to your question. Two links talk about Buddhism according to Vivekananda. http://www.bhagavadgitausa.com/Japanese_Buddhism_and_the_Hindu_deities.htmhttp://www.bhagavadgitausa.com/Buddhism-Vivekananda.htmhttp://www.bhagavadgitausa.com/Buddhist%20India.htmVeeraswamy Krishnaraj Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Just a suggestion here. Budha does seem to have said,'Do not accept something as truth, if some old manuscript is forwarded. Accept some thing as true only if you test it and experience it by yourself, so much so that you do not have to believe it even on my verdict.' This could be proof against the rituals, which people follow without understanding the meanings. Hari Malla , myumbra-bgusa wrote: > > pairamblr wrote: > > I am very eager to see some data / history ref in support of the following > statement. Though I have been asking for supportive info - from writers in different > groups, not one has ventured to provide anything. All that they come up with is > " this is all known and if you want to believe everything was nice, so be it " . >  > > Hinduism's past downfall was directly attributed to its > > discrimination of lower castes and rituals, which greatly contributed > > to the rise of Buddhism and Jainism. >  > Can we get some info please? > --\ ----- > > From the desk of Veeraswamy Krishnaraj > > Buddhism is a great religion as all religions are. Each religion has its ups and downs, merits and demerits. > > Almost all of India embraced Buddhism at the time of Mauryan Empire. In the world, it was the first religion to convert people. There were many reasons for such conversion including the oppressive Hindu practices. > > Once upon a time, our forefathers were Hindus and were > converted to Buddhists for various reasons. Even kings converted to Buddhism. At the time of Ramanuja and Sankara, there > was reconversion back to Hindusim. > >  \ -------------------Here are some excerpts: > > > Mauryan Empire (ca. 326-184 B.C.; see The Mauryan > Empire, ch. 1). By > the seventh century A.D., having spread throughout East Asia and Southeast > Asia, Buddhism probably had the largest religious following in the world. > > > New Dehli (Sunday, > 04-Nov-2001) More than 30,000 lower-caste > Hindus publicly converted to Buddhism on Sunday in the Indian > capital, declaring their freedom from ill-treatment at the hands of the upper > castes. > > > > In an outdoor ceremony denounced by Hindu hardliners, the > low-caste > Hindus, or Dalits, shaved their heads in ceremonial fashion and > chanted Buddhist mantras to signal their conversion. > > > > > > Ram Raj, head of the All India Confederation > of Scheduled Castes and Tribes, a lobby group for downtrodden castes, said the > converts had " walked out " of India's 3,000-year-old caste system, > under which millions of Indians are relegated to lower social status. > > > > The Dalit Buddhist movement (PÄli नवयान navayÄna > as dubbed by certain Ambedkerites)[1] > in India began with support of Sri Lankan Buddhist monks. It received an impetus with B. R. > Ambedkar's call for conversion of Dalits to Buddhism in the > context of a caste > based society that considered them to be at the lower end of the hierarchy. -- > Wikipedia-----\ ------------------------- > > > B. R. Ambedkar > > At the Yeola conference in > 1935, prominent Dalit leader B. R. > Ambedkar declared that he would not die a Hindu, saying that it perpetuates > caste injustices. > Ambedkar was approached by various leaders of different denominations and > faiths. Meetings were held to discuss the question of Dalit religion and the > pros and cons of conversion[6]. > On May 22, 1936, an " All Religious > Conference " was held at Lucknow. It was attended by prominent Dalit leaders including > Jagjivan > Ram, though Ambedkar could not attend it. At the conference, Muslim, > Christian, Sikh, and Buddhist representatives presented the tenets of their > respective religions in an effort to win over Dalits[6].----\ ------------------ > > > As a wandering monk, Shankara traveled throughout > India, combating Buddhist atheism and founding five seats of learning at > Badrinath (Uttar Pradesh), Dwaraka (Gujarat), Puri (Orissa), Sringeri > (Karnataka), and Kanchipuram (Tamil Nadu). In the 1990s, those seats are still > held by successors to Shankara's philosophy (Shankara Acharyas), who head an > order of orange-clad monks that is highly respected by the Hindu community > throughout India. Activities of the acharyas > , including their periodic trips away from their home monasteries to visit and > preach to devotees, receive exposure in regional and national media. Their > conservative viewpoints and pronouncements on a variety of topics, although not > binding on most believers, attract considerable public attention. > Here are some links not entirely related to your question. Two links talk about Buddhism according to Vivekananda. > > http://www.bhagavadgitausa.com/Japanese_Buddhism_and_the_Hindu_deities.htm > http://www.bhagavadgitausa.com/Buddhism-Vivekananda.htm > http://www.bhagavadgitausa.com/Buddhist%20India.htm > > > Veeraswamy Krishnaraj > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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