On this day, 14th October 1956, Dr BR Ambedkar publicly converted to Buddhism, followed by hundreds of thousands of his followers, fellow members of India's Scheduled Castes, escaping their oppression as what were formerly termed "Untouchable" people. Such mass conversions continue to this day.
As a little girl, Jnanasuri was there at the ceremony in Nagpur. Today she is the most senior Dhammacharini in India; one of Triratna's two Indian female public preceptors, responsible for the training of the 850 Indian women currently training for ordination in India.
This interview was conducted by Vassika, during the International Order Convention at Bodhgaya, India, on 28th February 2013, and filmed by Munisha. Many thanks to the translator, Karunadipa, whose words have been replaced by subtitles in this video extract.
Listen to the full interview (46 minutes).
Watch Jnanasuri and her fellow public preceptor Karunamaya talk about their work preparing women for ordination in India (16.5 minutes).
Find out more about Triratna's work in India.
Support the Indian ordination process with a donation.