The Mahabodhi Temple in Bodhgaya, near Patna, holds immense significance for followers of Buddhism, as it is the place where Lord Gautam Buddha attained Nirvana. The temple has been governed under the Bodh Gaya Temple Act of 1949, and its affairs are managed by the Bodh Gaya Temple Management Committee (BTMC). According to this Act, the temple's governing board comprises an equal number of Hindus and Buddhists.
Since February, however, many Buddhist monks have been protesting against the 1949 Act, demanding that only Buddhists be included on the temple's management board.
These protests stem from a long-standing grievance: the mixed composition of the governing body has gradually led to the Brahminization of the temple. One protestor, Akash Lama, summed it up aptly:
"This is not just about a temple; it's about our identity and pride. We are putting forward our demands peacefully. Until we receive written assurance from the government, this protest will continue indefinitely."
The monks argue:
"The Mahabodhi Mahavihara is being Brahminized. The influence of Brahminical rituals in the temple’s management and ceremonies is increasing, deeply hurting the faith and heritage of the Buddhist community."
Historically, Indian society has witnessed a continuous struggle between Buddhism and Brahmanism. While Buddhism promotes equality, Brahmanism is rooted in a caste- and gender-based hierarchical system. Lord Buddha’s core message challenged the prevailing social order based on caste and gender inequality. With the support of Emperor Ashoka, Buddhism spread widely across India and beyond, particularly to Southeast Asia. Ashoka even sent emissaries abroad to propagate Buddha’s teachings.
Buddha also opposed the then-prevalent ritualistic slaughter of animals, especially cows. These reformist ideas challenged the socio-economic interests of Brahmins, making them uncomfortable with Buddhism’s growing influence.
Relief came for them through Pushyamitra Shunga, the ‘Commander-in-Chief’ of Ashoka’s grandson, Brihadratha. Pushyamitra assassinated Brihadratha, assumed power, and founded the Shunga dynasty. This marked a resurgence of Brahmanism and the decline of Buddhism. Pushyamitra reportedly persecuted Buddhists—burning monasteries, destroying stupas, and offering rewards for Buddhist monks’ heads—leading to Buddhism’s marginalization.
Later, Shankaracharya of Kaladi, a prominent Brahmanical philosopher, advanced Brahmanism further. Though his dates are debated—traditionally 788 to 820 CE, but possibly as early as 507–475 BCE—he certainly predated the Muslim invasions from the northwest. Shankaracharya sought to purify Brahmanism by discarding unnecessary rituals and offering a philosophically grounded system that opposed Buddhism.
As Sunil Khilnani notes in Incarnations: India in 50 Lives (Allen Lane, UK, 2016, p. 84):
"Throughout the subcontinent, [Shankaracharya] engaged in verbal combat with Buddhist philosophers, who taught, as Buddha had, such doctrines as the momentariness of all things and the denial of the existence of the deity."
While Shankaracharya upheld the idea that the world is an illusion, Buddha emphasized that the world is real, filled with suffering, and must be transformed.
These philosophical and political attacks contributed to Buddhism’s disappearance from India—until Babasaheb Ambedkar embraced Buddhism and led a mass conversion of his followers. Before him, Bhakti saints had echoed some Buddhist values like anti-casteism, and many of them were persecuted by Brahmanical forces.
The push for Dalit equality gathered momentum during the freedom struggle, notably through the efforts of Jotirao Phule and Savitribai Phule in education and social reform. These initiatives challenged Brahmanical dominance. The Brahmanical response crystallized politically through the Hindu Mahasabha, and more aggressively through the RSS, which championed the status quo and upheld Manusmriti as an ideological foundation.
India, a diverse country, is witnessing an attempt to impose caste and gender hierarchies under the banners of Hindu Rashtra, Hindutva, and Hindu nationalism. The push for equality was powerfully articulated by Ambedkar through initiatives like Mahad’s Chavdar Talab, the burning of Manusmriti, and the Kalaram Temple Entry Movement. While the anti-colonial national movement tried, to some extent, to accommodate social change, Hindutva politics either opposed or sidestepped such issues.
Religiously, this modern counter-revolution, led by the RSS and its affiliates, uses a multipronged strategy. One major tactic is gaining control of temple management, as in the case of the Mahabodhi Temple. Another is to co-opt Dalits through social engineering—preaching Samajik Samrasta (social harmony) to maintain caste hierarchies, as opposed to Ambedkar’s vision of annihilating caste.
Similar efforts are underway to Brahminize Sufi Dargahs. Places like Baba Budan Giri in Karnataka and Haji Malang near Mumbai are being rebranded as Hindu sites. A particularly telling example is Sai Baba of Shirdi. As Yoginder Sikand points out in his book Sacred Spaces, Sai Baba’s legacy was originally syncretic, revered by both Muslims and Hindus.
Yet as Warren, an expert on Sai Baba’s teachings, notes:
"While Sai Baba was claimed by both Muslims and Hindus, his core approach to God-realization had a distinct Islamic stance. He never taught specifically Hindu doctrines and rituals. Sai Baba has, however, been almost completely assimilated and reinterpreted by the Hindu community."
We are living in times where religion is being exploited for political ends. The Buddha's temple is under Brahmanical control, and Sufi shrines are being Brahminized. The peaceful agitation by Buddhist monks to reclaim their sacred space and uphold their values of equality and non-violence, as preached by Lord Buddha, is a significant resistance against this trend.
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