Bhimrao Ramji “Babasaheb” Ambedkar, PhD, was a Minister of Law and Justice in India. Best known as the architect of India’s Constitution, he was a political leader, social reformer, Buddhist activist, economist, historian, and orator. A philosopher as well, he embraced the fundamental values of the Enlightenment. He was the Voltaire of India. Ambedkar worked to transform established social institutions and moral codes into forms that would be consistent with rationalistic knowledge and ethics.
It is a fundamental tenet of the Enlightenment that the scientific method is the only way to gain valid knowledge. Reason is the only guide. This view implies a very important conclusion regarding the validity of human knowledge: humankind must find out the truth by their own efforts, because truth is not revealed anywhere for human beings. Religious traditions are generally based on “truths” that are revealed by God or a transcended principle within the universe. God himself or a messenger reveals the truth, and man must accept this “truth” by faith.
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The philosophy of the Enlightenment rejects traditional religious views on how man gains “truth” – that is, knowledge. It looks to the human experience and observations. Observations consistent with each other give the true data to man about things in the external world. The rational man considers a statement merely as an expressed belief. He examines it, and if the statement survives that critical evaluation and is still consistent with observations, then it is accepted as truth. This is the Enlightenment position. In the practice of acquiring knowledge, there is no place for faith.
A comparison between Enlightenment rationalism and the Buddha’s teaching may be fruitful. The Buddha’s teaching on knowledge is similar to and consistent with the Enlightenment’s. The Buddha (CBE 563 to 483) did not accept the revelation of truth through any religious scripture, divine revelation, or authority of any messenger of God. The Buddha’s teaching is that whatever is acquired as knowledge (Bodhi) is achieved through our own efforts, through our own contemplation based on firsthand experience and not from anyone with faith.
Rational Knowledge
A comparison between Enlightenment rationalism and the Buddha’s teaching may be fruitful. The Buddha’s teaching on knowledge is similar to and consistent with the Enlightenment’s. The Buddha (CBE 563 to 483) did not accept the revelation of truth through any religious scripture, divine revelation, or authority of any messenger of God. The Buddha’s teaching is that whatever is acquired as knowledge (Bodhi) is achieved through our own efforts, through our own contemplation based on firsthand experience and not from anyone with faith. Even the Buddha taught his disciples (bhikkhus) that they should not accept his teachings on faith and blindly believe that the knowledge gained is valid. On the contrary, he encouraged free and sceptical inquiry.
In the Anguttara Nikaya, the Buddha says:
This I have said to you. O’kalamas; but you accept it, not because it is the report, not because it is a tradition, not because it is so said in the past, not because it is given from the scripture, not for the sake of discussion, not for the sake of particular method, not for the sake of careful consideration, not for the sake of forbearing with wrong views, not because it appears to be suitable, not because your preceptor is a recluse; but if you yourself understand that this is so meritorious and blameless, and, when accepted, it is for the benefit and happiness, then you may accept it.
It is clear from the above passage that the Buddha was a rationalist and realist to the core, both in his method of approach to problems and their solutions. In this sense, Ambedkar claims that the Buddha was a rational man.
Rational Ethics
Liberty, equality, and fraternity are famously the fundamental moral values of the Enlightenment. These are formal values. Relationships in communities, families, workplaces, state institutions, etc. must be consistent with these values. Immanuel Kant, arguably the greatest Enlightenment philosopher, said, “Man must be considered as an end-in-itself, not as the means of others’ will.” Also, all individuals have equal liberty to make their own decisions about what they should do. These values form a social framework in which every individual is free to give shape to his life in accordance with his conscious thoughts, through his decisions and efforts. An individual has dignity, and this dignity should not be hampered by the social system. The modification or transformation of a social system may be necessary to preserve individual dignity.
In this sense, both the Buddha and Ambedkar were rational and radical social reformers. The Buddha’s struggle against the Varna system (a system of social hierarchy in Hinduism) and Ambedkar’s struggle against the caste system are the results of their rationalism.
Indian Religious – Spiritual Traditions
The higher moral values that were developed in Indian religious-spiritual traditions—which can be denoted as “sadharana dharma” (general duties) – can be the foundational basis of a sound and just social and individual life, as Ambedkar conceived of it. Gautama Buddha not only preached these values but lived them. Pragnya (wisdom), meytri (friendship), karuna (compassion), mudita (happiness), upeksha (indifference), and other values became part of Indian religious-spiritual traditions. Ambedkar concluded that rationalism and these moral values consistently fit the teachings of the Buddha and the Buddhist philosophy, or Darshana.
The Buddha’s dhamma is the only religion that is consistent with science and rationalism. It was Ambedkar’s claim that he was advocating the essence of the Buddha’s teachings. Many inconsistencies and distortions have entered the Buddhist tradition. Ambedkar attempted to set aside these things and follow the original thought of Gautama Buddha in its classic and purest form.
In the modern sense of the term, we can say that both Ambedkar’s and the Buddha’s teachings result in some form of secular humanism. Secular means “limited to this time, to this world.” But this worldly humanism has the foundation of humanitarianism, which is rooted in Indian religious-spiritual traditions.
A Possibility of Synthesis
There is no framework in rationalism that can support the moral values originating from religious and spiritual traditions. But the Buddha’s dhamma is consistent with a rational way of life while being inspired by moral values of other Indian religious-philosophical traditions. In this sense, Ambedkar’s religious “dhamma revolution” is a synthesis of the Enlightenment’s reason and moral values that are deeply rooted in Indian cultural and philosophical traditions.
Courtesy: ‘Free Inquiry’ – April-May 2025
