The Twenty-two vows or twenty-two pledges are the 22 Buddhist vows administered by

B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...

, the revivalist of Buddhism in India, to his followers. On converting to

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, Ambedkar made 22 vows, and asked his 600,000 supporters to do the same. After receiving lay ordination, Ambedkar gave ''

dhamma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for ''d ...

diksha'' to his followers. The ceremony included 22 vows administered to all new converts after

Three Jewels In Buddhism, refuge or taking refuge refers to a religious practice, which often includes a prayer or recitation performed at the beginning of the day or of a practice session. Since the period of Early Buddhism until present time, all Theravada ...

and

Five Precepts The Five precepts ( sa, pañcaśīla, italic=yes; pi, pañcasīla, italic=yes) or five rules of training ( sa, pañcaśikṣapada, italic=yes; pi, pañcasikkhapada, italic=yes) is the most important system of morality for Buddhist lay peo ...

. On 14 October 1956 at

Nagpur Nagpur (pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, aːɡpuːɾ is the third largest city and the winter capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the 13th largest city in India by population and according to an Oxford's Economics report, Nag ...

, Ambedkar performed another mass religious conversion ceremony at

Chandrapur Chandrapur (earlier known as ''Chanda'', the official name until 1964) is a city and a municipal corporation in Chandrapur district, Maharashtra state, India. It is the district headquarters of Chandrapur district. Chandrapur is a fort city ...

. It is believed by Ambedkarite Buddhists that these vows are the guidelines of the social revolution that motivates human instincts. These vows demonstrate both the

social movement A social movement is a loosely organized effort by a large group of people to achieve a particular goal, typically a social or political one. This may be to carry out a social change, or to resist or undo one. It is a type of group action and may ...

aspect of

Navayana Buddhism Navayana (Devanagari: नवयान, IAST: ''Navayāna'') means "new vehicle" and refers to the re-interpretation of Buddhism by Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar; it is also called Neo-Buddhism and Ambedkarite Buddhism. Ambedkar was a polymath, theo ...

, and demonstrate its core deviation from earlier

sects of Buddhism The schools of Buddhism are the various institutional and doctrinal divisions of Buddhism that have existed from ancient times up to the present. The classification and nature of various doctrinal, philosophical or cultural facets of the schools ...

. In India, these vows are taken as an oath by individuals or groups of people when they convert to Buddhism.

Vows

The following are the 22 vows administered by Ambedkar to his followers: # I shall have no faith in

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...

and

Maheshwara Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

, nor shall I worship them. # I shall have no faith in

Rama Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...

and

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...

, who are believed to be incarnation of God, nor shall I worship them. # I shall have no faith in Gauri,

Ganapati Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu de ...

and other gods and goddesses of Hindus, nor shall I worship them. # I do not believe in the incarnation of God. # I do not and shall not believe that Lord Buddha was the incarnation of Vishnu. I believe this to be sheer madness and false propaganda. # I shall not perform ''

Shraddha Shraddha may refer to: In religion * Śrāddha, a Hindu ritual performed for one's ancestors who left their spiritual body(the parents are still a living entity called Pitru) * Śraddhā, the Sanskrit term used to refer to faith in Buddhism, fa ...

'' nor shall I give ''

pind A PIND test is a Particle Impact Noise Detection test. According to method 2020.9 of MIL-STD-883 and method 2052.5 of MIL-STD-750, the purpose of a PIND test is to detect loose particles inside an electronics device cavity. The test provides a non ...

''. # I shall not act in a manner violating the principles and teachings of the Buddha. # I shall not allow any ceremonies to be performed by

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...

s. # I shall believe in the equality of man. # I shall endeavour to establish equality. # I shall follow the

Noble Eightfold Path The Noble Eightfold Path (Pali: ; Sanskrit: ) is an early summary of the path of Buddhist practices leading to liberation from samsara, the painful cycle of rebirth, in the form of nirvana. The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: ri ...

of the Buddha. # I shall follow the ten '' paramitas'' prescribed by the Buddha. # I shall have

compassion Compassion motivates people to go out of their way to relieve the physical, mental or emotional pains of others and themselves. Compassion is often regarded as being sensitive to the emotional aspects of the suffering of others. When based on n ...

and

loving-kindness Loving-kindness may refer to: * an English translation of Chesed ( he, חֶסֶד, also Romanized: ) is a Hebrew word that means 'kindness or love between people', specifically of the devotional piety of people towards God as well as of love o ...

for all living beings and protect them. # I shall not steal. # I shall not tell lies. # I shall not commit carnal sins. # I shall not take intoxicants like

liquor Liquor (or a spirit) is an alcoholic drink produced by distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar, that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit drink, distilled beverage or hard ...

drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...

, etc. #: (The previous five proscriptive vows 13–17are from the

.) # I shall endeavour to follow the

and practice

and

in everyday life. # I renounce

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

, which disfavors humanity and impedes the advancement and development of humanity because it is based on inequality, and adopt Buddhism as my religion. # I firmly believe the ''

Dhamma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for ''d ...

'' of the Buddha is a true religion. # I consider that I have taken a new birth. (''Alternately'', "I believe that by adopting Buddhism I am having a re-birth.") # I solemnly declare and affirm that I shall hereafter lead my life according to the teachings of Buddha's Dhamma.

The vows marble stone

Considering the historical significance of these twenty-two vows, the then president of "Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Deekshabhoomi Memorial Committee", and former Governor of Bihar and Kerala

R. S. Gavai Ramkrishna Suryabhan Gavai (30 October 1929 – 25 July 2015), popularly known as Dadasaheb Gavai, was an Indian politician, social activist, senior leader of the Ambedkarite movement, and founder of the Republican Party of India (Gavai). He w ...

and Sadanand Fulzele, the secretary of the organization, have carved these 22 vows on a wide marble stone at the Deekshabhoomi ground and placed the pillar at the first sight of the stupa. At a Buddha Vihara at Wardha, under M. L. Kasare's leadership, a similar grand pillar has been erected. According to the

2011 Census of India The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...

, Ambedkarite Navayana Buddhists comprise about 87% (7.3 million) of Indian Buddhist community, and nearly 90% (6.5 million) of all Navayana Buddhists in India live in a single state,

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

References

Bibliography

* * {{Buddhism topics B. R. Ambedkar Buddhist ethics Buddhist belief and doctrine Buddhism and society Buddhist oaths Buddhism in India