Dr. Ambedkar never rejected Four Noble Truths
The four noble truths are justified in the book – ‘The Buddha and His Dhamma’ by Dr. Ambedkar. Let us simply examine how many times and the context in which the author used these Truths while explaining the Dhamma.
The very enlightenment of the Buddha starts from recognizing the first Noble Truth of sufferings.
1. “On the night of the last day of the fourth week light dawn upon him. He realized that there were two problems. The problem was that there was suffering in the world and the second problem was how to remove this suffering and make mankind happy”.
2. That suffering and unhappiness in the world he thought was incontrovertible fact.
3. Gautama was, however, interested in knowing how to do away with suffering.
4. It is, therefore, on this problem-how to remove suffering and unhappiness-that he concentrated his mind.
5. Naturally, the first question he asked himself was-“What are the causes of suffering and unhappiness which an individual undergoes?”
6. His second question was-“How to remove unhappiness?” { Ref 1-6}
7. He accepted that there was Dukha (suffering) in the world {Ref7}.
8. If he can banish misery and unhappiness from the world by the propagation of his doctrine, it was his duty to return to the world and serve it and not to sit silent as the personification of inactive impassivity {Ref8}
Brahma Sahampti was instrumental in persuading Buddha to preach his doctrine to the world and He agreed. On his way back he kept on proclaiming to the world:
9. ‘Rejoice at the glad tidings. The Buddha, our Lord, has found the root of all evil and unhappiness in the world. He knows the way out’. {Ref9}
10. His second postulate was that men are living in sorrow, in misery and poverty. The world is full of suffering and that how to remove this suffering from the world is the only purpose of the Dhamma.Nothing else is Dhamma
11. The Parivrajakas then asked him: “If the foundation of your Dhamma is the recognition of the existence of suffering and the removal of suffering, tell us how your Dhamma removes suffering!”
12 . The recognition of the existence of suffering is the foundation and basis of his Dhamma. {Ref10}
13 . The Buddha then told them that according to his Dhamma if every person fallowed (1) the path of purity; (2) the path of righteousness; and (3) the path of virtue, it would bring about the end of all suffering.
13. “And Avijja means the failure to understand the noble truths, of the existence of suffering and the removal of suffering. {Ref11-13}
Furthermore,
14. In his last attempt to make him a householder he advised Suddhodana and his counselors as “thus let thy thoughts settle into certainty, having seen the multiform in its various developments; neither a son nor kindred is the cause of sorrow,-this sorrow is caused only by ignorance”. {Ref14}
15. “I have expounded, Pottapada, what Dukkha is; I have expounded what is the origin of Dukkha; I have expounded what is the cessation of Dukkha; I have expounded what is the method by which one may reach the cessation of Dukkha” {Ref15}
From all these references it is clear that the author was not against or objected to the word suffering or the noble truths.
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CAUSE OF CONFUSION among followers of Dr. Ambedkar and scholars regarding Four Noble Truth :
The introduction of the book raises question on four noble truths to excite the readers. {Ref16}
“If I may say so, the pages of the journal of the Mahabodhi Society make, to me at any rate, dull reading. This is not because the material presented is not interesting and instructive. The dullness is due to the fact that it seems to fall upon a passive set of readers. After reading an article, one likes to know what the reader of the journal has to say about it. But the reader never gives out his reaction. This silence on the part of the reader is a great discouragement to the writer. I hope my questions will excite the readers to come and make their contribution to their solution.” {From introduction}
It sounds to be a separate research article, intended to be published in the Journal of Mahabodhi society as it is addressed to the readers of that journal. It may be thought that the first publishers of this book might have mistakenly attached this scientific paper as the introduction, because as the whole work was published posthumously and the manuscript of this book was in press at the time of his death and the preface as well as the introduction in his bedroom on which Dr. Ambedkar was working on, till the last day of his life. The introduction as well as the preface both lacks in authentication by the author as there is no place and the date of authentication.
Therefore, it better to read the main text of the book to find whether Dr. Ambedkar accepted the four noble truth or not. In our view the author has accepted the four noble truths in the main text and used them as the basis of Dhamma.
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