Stories about disappearance of Buddhism in India are grossly exaggerated

After reading his own obituary in a newspaper, Mark Twain said, “The news of my death is grossly exaggerated.” Similarly, having been told about the disappearance of Buddhism in the land of its birth, I now realise that this misunderstanding, too, is guilty of gross exaggeration. Recent archaeological evidence from Krimila in Bihar show that new Buddhist monasteries were being established as late as the end of the 11th century CE, centuries after the alleged demise of Buddhism in India.

Buddhist communities continued to exist in some villages of Patachitra painters from Odisha, and there was the Shakya of Uttar Pradesh, the Baruah Buddhists of Bengal and the Himalayan communities stretching from Ladakh to eastern Arunachal Pradesh. Buddhist communities in Tripura link up with those in Bangladesh and onto Myanmar, forming a large Theravada branch that continues into the larger southeast Asia.

India’s Buddhist heritage has been deeply entrenched in our traditions, so much so that it is well-nigh impossible to separate diverse strands based on theological origin. Therefore, any talk about the revival of Buddhism in India is to misread history. What is definitely required, and is happening with government support, is to bring focused attention on this heritage and the presentation of its multifaceted manifestations. But we have not been able to project the Buddhist component on India’s heritage in adequate measure, affecting a double loss to both Buddhism and to India.

One, that Buddhist sites—there are thousands across the length and breadth of India—are not as well-developed in terms of access, facilities and information. Fortunately, the development of the Devni Mori complex in Gujarat, Aastha Kunj in Delhi and Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh, for example, show that things are changing.

Second, most of the non-Buddhist world do not automatically link Buddhism with India, and do not see it as the land that gave birth to, and sustained Buddhism into becoming the world religion that it is. It is efforts in trying to correct the picture that is very important, and potentially can be misunderstood.

The International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) was set up in 2011 to bring Buddhist communities across the world on to one platform. Many predominantly Buddhist countries have national mahasanghas, while many are less structured. The IBC has members in 39 countries. Though funded by the government of India, the IBC is not a government body and, in the years to come, would have to raise resources from diverse sources. It is also necessary to dispel some feeling that the government of India is playing the Buddhist card as a strategic instrument in Asia, to counter efforts elsewhere to appropriate Buddhist legacy.

Grand celebrations are organised twice a year. One, during Vesak—Buddha Poornima, which marks Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and Maha Parinirvana. The other is Asadha Poornima, also known as Guru Poornima, which marks the first turning of the wheel of Dhamma, the day that Buddha delivered his first sermon at Sarnath. In addition, IBC and its members organise many local functions, including Dhamma talks for the benefit of believers and non-believers alike.

The IBC also attempts to work with national governments to highlight that country’s Buddhist heritage. An exciting journey to Uzbekistan—where the government has made considerable efforts to restore stupas near the city of Termez, on the borders of Afghanistan—has had to be postponed due to Covid-19 restrictions. There are the ruins of many Buddhist monasteries in the region, and the Kyrgyz Republic and Kazakhstan would be the next countries whose heritage must be better known.

India is not only the land of Buddhism historically, but also the centre of Buddhist Studies. Indian universities and academies even today get thousands of foreign students who come here to study Buddhism. To strengthen academic partnership, the IBC and the ministries of culture, tourism and external affairs, and the Nava Nalanda Mahavihara are together organising a global Buddhist conclave from November 19 to 20. It would be preceded by eight regional conferences at Dharamshala, Gangtok, Hyderabad and Sarnath (in India) and at Bangkok, Tokyo, Phnom Penh and Seoul. An academic exchange programme is also being launched.

The effort is clear and it is not political, far from being geostrategic. India does need to project its rich Buddhist heritage, and re-establish itself as the primary centre for Buddhist studies. At the same time, being the home for almost all the holiest places of Buddhism, India must strengthen its partnership with Buddhist organisations across the world. The IBC and its partners do take the help of their respective national governments for facilitation of their work, but these do not go beyond the stated purposes of our institutions.

The last thing strategic thinkers should advocate is for India to play the Buddhist card, for any such approach would necessarily be transactional, and would fail to generate larger goodwill. Far from helping the country gain any strategic advantage, it would possibly result in a backlash. India should, instead, strengthen its efforts towards making a large part of the world feel that India is their spiritual home, to which they would travel to renew their beliefs and help make the world a better place.

The author is director general, International Buddhist Confederation, New Delhi.

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