This book has a double focus: the religious strategies which Dalits have adopted to free themselves from religiously imposed, religiously sanctioned degradation and the perspectives from which this subject has been studied. It includes not only data from historical and field research but also an examination of some of the theoretical issues which have influenced thinking about that data. It begins with a description first of Dalit religion at the end of the nineteenth century and then of some of the subsequent movements of religious change among Dalits. It presents next the view of religion developed by Dr. Ambedkar, the chief theoretician on the subject, and shows how that view was reflected in his analyses of Hindu, Christian and Buddhist religion. A chapter on ‘Dalit Theology and Dr. Ambedkar’s describes how his influence has extended beyond Hinduism and Buddhism to Christianity. That chapter is followed by a survey of field research on Dalit religion over the past half century conducted by anthropologists and other social scientists. The concluding statement on what religion has to contribute to Dalit liberation builds upon the theoretical foundation laid by Dr. Ambedkar by re examining four concepts which have been central to the study of this entire question: religion, conversion, identity and liberation.
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