Ambedkar’s quarrel with Hinduism is over ideals, not conduct
Evidence
But while I am prepared to bear with the imperfections and shortcomings of the society in which I may be destined to labour, I feel I should not consent to live in a society which cherishes wrong ideals, or a society which, having right ideals, will not consent to bring its social life into conformity with those ideals. If I am disgusted with Hindus and Hinduism, it is because I am convinced that they cherish wrong ideals and live a wrong social life. My quarrel with Hindus and Hinduism is not over the imperfections of their social conduct. It is much more fundamental. It is over their ideals. — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 1267
Categorization
Category: Definitional Content
- DEEPTHINKING: Distinguishing ‘imperfections of conduct’ from ‘wrong ideals’ is a deep analytic move — reform can fix the former, only annihilation fixes the latter, which is the book’s thesis.
Related
- Ambedkar’s objection to Hindu society targets its ideals, not conduct flaws (similarity 0.95)
- Hinduism’s pervasiveness makes renouncing caste seem impracticable to many (similarity 0.80)
- Hindu ‘religion’ is really law that reduces moral life to servile conformity. (similarity 0.79)
- Ambedkar frames belief in the shastras and liberalism as contradictory (similarity 0.79)
- Ambedkar rejected any religion that legitimizes existing social inequities. (similarity 0.78)
- Ambedkar declared caste inequality must be rooted out, not merely untouchability (similarity 0.78)
- Caste persists as a mental state, not a physical barrier. (similarity 0.78)