Hindi Writers’ Perspectives on Buddhism in a Multicultural Society: A Study of the Works of Bhikshu Ananda Kausalyayan and Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan

Abstract

This article aims to study the factors that inspired Bhikshu Ananda Kausalyayan and Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan, modern Hindi writers from Hindu families, to turn their attention to the study of Buddhism, the manners in which they acquired knowledge of Buddhism, and the ways that their works reflect their perspectives on Buddhism. The study focuses solely on their original non-fiction literatures. It finds that the need for social reform was an important factor that drove both writers to become interested in Buddhism and to subsequently bring the knowledge that they had acquired in Sri Lanka and Tibet back to India. Both writers traced India’s social problems back to the caste system. They therefore joined Dr. Ambedkar’s Neo-Buddhist Movement and clearly confirmed that only Buddhist principles can bring about solutions to the caste system. Their literary works in Hindi were the main medium used to disseminate knowledge in order to reform and create new social meanings for India, and to inspire unity in India’s multicultural society.