556 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
I want to say in conclusion that one of the greatest things I find in Buddhism is that its system is a democratic system. The Buddha told the Vajjis when the Prime Minister of Ajata Satru went to tell the Buddha, that Ajata Satru wanted to conquer the Vajjis, He said, the King won’t be able to do it as long as the Vajjis follow their ways of their age-old system. The Buddha for unknown reasons did not explain in plain terms what he meant. But there is no doubt about it that what he was referring to was the democratic and the republican form of government, which the Vajjis had. He said : so long as the Vajjis were following their system, they would be unconqured. The Buddha, of course, was a great democrat.
Therefore, I say, and may I say so if the President will allow me, I have been a student of politics; I have been a student of economics, I was a professor of Economics, and I have spent a great deal of time in studying Karl Marx, Communism and all that, and I have also spent good deal of time in studying the Buddha’s Dhamma. After comparing the two I came to the conclusion that Buddha’s advice with regard to the great problem of the world, namely, that there is Dukkha, that Dukkha must be removed, that the Buddha’s method was the safest and the soundest.
Thus, do I advice the younger generation of the Buddhist countries to pay more attention to the actual teachings of the Buddha. If I may say so in conclusion if any peril arises to the Dhamma, in a Buddhist country the blame shall have to be cast upon the Bhikkhus, because I personally think that they are not wholly discharging the duty which devolves on them. Where is the preaching? The Bhikkhu is living in his cloister taking his meal, one meal no doubt and sitting quietly : probably he is reading, and most probably I find them sleeping, and in the evening having a little music. That is not the way of propagating religion.
My friends, I want to tell you, I do not want to criticise anybody; but religion, if it is to be a moral force for the regeneration of society, you must constantly din it into the ears of the people. How many years has a child to spend in School?