Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies Volume 7 Article 6 January 1994 The Dalits, Religions and Interfaith Dialogue A.M. Abraham Ayrookuzhiel Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/jhcs Part of the Religion Commons Recommended Citation Ayrookuzhiel, A.M. Abraham (1994) "The Dalits, Religions and Interfaith Dialogue," Journal of Hindu- Christian Studies: Vol. 7, Article 6. Available at: https://doi.org/10.7825/2164-6279.1094 The Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies is a publication of the Society for Hindu-Christian Studies. The digital version is made available by Digital Commons @ Butler University. For questions about the Journal or the Society, please contact [email protected]. For more information about Digital Commons @ Butler University, please contact [email protected]. - , Ayrookuzhiel: The Dalits, Religions and Interfaith Dialogue The Dalits, Religions and Interfaith Dialogue A.M. Abraham Ayrookuzhiel The Christian Institute for the Study of Religion and Society Bangalore THE DALITS OF India who follow Marathi in which the religious toots of caste different religious traditions are beginning to consciousness in the popular Hindu mind is come together these days as one people. brought out in clear terms. The scene takes While their main concern is to fight place at the threshing floor of a farmer, economic, political and cultural Bapu Patil, a caste Hindu. The author' of the marginalization, what it means to the story is a young educated Dalit boy. His religions to which they belong is the grandfather Yetalya, an elderly Dalit, question raised in this paper. In order to addresses the Patil as "Anna", a term of answer this, we should first have an idea of reverence: the kind of questions and problems they Yetalya: How could you say that, Anna? raise with respect to different religions. This Yetalya is certainly not one of Thereafter we can proceed to some of the those claiming equality. How can implications of this process for interfaith one, in that case, account for God's understanding and cooperation. creating religion and castes? Bapu PatH: Come on, don't you know that the The Dalits and the Traditional' Hindu rain-god got enraged because you - Heritage, ' the Mahars and Mangs - have profaned religion, and abandoned caste, have defiled Lord Vithoba of A. The St~d of the Dalit Liberation Pandharpur. How else can you Movement account for the drying up of the In the literature of Dalit liberation and Chandrabhaga river?' [Bapu PatiI ideology their writers and poets declare war added insult to injury.] on Hinduism. Author: I could take it no more. I felt my cheeks burning. But I quelled my I ask for temper and, cutting Bapu PatH short in my rights as a man the middle of his fiery tirade, burst out, Each breath from my lungs "PatH, will you kindly tell me what you sets off a violent trembling meant when you accused us of in your texts and traditions forgetting religion, abandoning our caste your hells and heavens and of polluting the god? And if a fearing pollution religion can't tolerate one human being treating another simply as a human I will uproot the scriptures like railway being, what's the use of such an tracks inhumane religion? And if our mere Burn like a city bus your lawless laws' touch pollutes the -gods, why were the They explain these ideas through short Mahars and Mangs created at all? And who, may I know, who indeed, created stories and other literary forms available to them? And would you please tell me the them to reach the Dalit masses. The name of the god whom the Mahars and following is an excerpt from a short story in Mangs can claim as their own?"2 Hindu-Christian Studies Bulletin 7 (1994) 13-19 Published by Digital Commons @ Butler University, 1994 1 Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies, Vol. 7 [1994], Art. 6 14 A.M. Abraham Ayrookuzhiel These Dalits who follow Dr B.R. groups or a section of them not only lost Ambedkar are convinced that they cannot their social autonomy and economic redeem their self-dignity and humanity independence but also their religio-cultural remaining within Hinduism. Some of them self-identity as a separate group by losing advocate conversion to Buddhism and exhort control over their gods, places of worship their followers to stop worshipping Hindu and the right to administer to their own gods and observe Hindu beliefs and people's religious needs. Furthermore, many practices. 3 Others exhort the Dalits to of them internalized brahminical versions of follow a secular rational path as all religions myths relating to this historical process and are instruments of social control and voluntarily accepted demeaning ritual roles political manipulation in the hands of the in village festivals, temple rituals and powerful and well-to-do sections in every domestic rites corresponding to a servile religion. class in a semi-feudal economy. B. The Stand of Traditional Academic C. The Present-day Situation of the Dalits and Religious Circles within Hinduism The traditional academic and religious The definition of the Scheduled Castes writers both in this country and abroad (Dalits) as Hindus by the Government, its consider the Dalit tra<;litional religion as part policy of extending the benefits of of the Hindu heritage, though they admit reservation to Hindu Dalits, the inclusion of that their religion still preserves certain popular Dalit shrines under the State distinctive ethnic and religious cultural Devaswom boards in which Hindu Dalits features. Historically this is justified in the have nominal representation, the renovation sense that dominant brahminical religion as of Dalit places of worship by the Hindu it evolved over the centuries subjugated and Mutts and organizations, the deep absorbed many primeval tribal groups with psychological attachment of the Dalits to their gods, goddesses, religious rituals and Hinduized gods of their early tribal days, the customs along with their sacred groves. similarity of some of their customs and Priests of the dominant brahminical tradition rituals with those of the rest of the. Hindu wove new myths by identifying them with population make a large section of the Dalits one of the chief or minor deities in their believe that they are ill fact Hindus; and tradition, or made them wives, children or they participate in HiJ?du festivals and rituals vehicles of their gods. 4 For instance, the in varying degrees. tribal god or Orissa became· identified with Hindu political and cultural Vishnu, Murugan of Adidravidians became organizations like the Bharatiya J anata Party, identified with Skanda of the North Indian Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Rastriya Swayam traditions, Ayyanar of Chattan of the tribals Sevak Sangh, Bharat Sadhu Samaj, etc. are in the Western Ghats with its Buddhist also very keen to keep the Dalit population associations became Sastha of Sabarimala, within the Hindu fold because of the born of two male gods: Vishnu and Siva, political weight it will add to the Hindu according to brahminical myths in the community. Given the Government's Puranas. This religious hierarchical political and economic patronage and subordination was a complementary traditional religio-cultural practices of the historical process to the concerned tribal Dalit masses and their low level of groups' political and economic sUbjugation. 5 awareness, it is difficult for them to Some of the authors call this historical understand the stand of Dr B.R. Ambedkar process "Hindu imperialism" or "Brahmin that unless substantial changes take place internal cultural colonialism" , because within Hindu theology, worship practices through this process the concerned tribal ~ and nature of the priesthood, it is impossible https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/jhcs/vol7/iss1/6 DOI: 10.7825/2164-6279.1094 2 Ayrookuzhiel: The Dalits, Religions and Interfaith Dialogue The Dalits, Religions and Interfaith Dialogue 15 for the Dalits to redeem their human dignity political background of the Dalit Liberation within Hinduism. Movement's attempt to bring about Dalit D. The Dalits and Other' Religious national solidarity irrespective of the Traditions religious traditions they belong to. At the same time they recognize that the Dalit In the course of history the Dalits embraced masses may continue to profess different other religions like Islam, Sikhism, religions. Therefore it is necessary in the Christianity and Buddhism in their search context of their common struggle for for freedom and human dignity. Much of liberation that those who belong to different these conversions took place when these religious traditions understand each other's religions offered political patronage to the religion as well as the problems they face helpless Dalits. Even in the case of their within it to build a national solidarity of the conversion to Buddhism, it was part of the Dalits as members of one oppressed group. political mobilization of the Dalits under the The question is what this approach means to leadership of B.R. Ambedkar which made the concern of Interfaith Dialogue. them accept his ideology of conversion as a E. The Dalits and Interreligious Dialogue: necessary part of acquiring self-healing and getting rid of the stigma as untouchables. i. First of all the Dalits are very critical of There was another type of religious much of what goes on in the name of movement among the Dalits in history. Interreligious Dialogue. I quote here just one These were around untouchable and lower­ example of such criticism made by a very caste saints who condemned caste practices distinguished Dalit Supreme-Court lawyer. and preached a religion of interiority and When a paper was circulated in the common humanity. Ravidasis, Kabir World Conference on Religion and Panthis, Dadu Panthis, Satnamis, Valmikis Peace (IV Assembly) held at Nairobi, and scores of groups following the teachings Kenya, in 1984, Hindu and Jain ofless well-Jmown saints in different regions delegates from India threatened to walk of the country belong to this type.