Ambedkar's re-interpretation of Buddhism and his formulation of Navayana have attracted admirers and criticism. The Navayana theories restate the core doctrines of Buddhism, according to Zelliot & Macy (1980), Anne Blackburn states that Ambedkar re‑interprets core concepts of Buddhism in
class conflict terms, where
nirvana is not the aim and end of spiritual pursuits, but a preparation for social action against inequality: According to Blackburn, "neither view of traditional Buddhism — as a social reform movement or as some other stable entity interpreted (or misinterpreted) from a social reform perspective — is historically accurate", thereby placing Navayana theories as ahistorical, though it served as an important means for Dalit political mobilization and social movement.
Gombrich (2012) Modernist interpreters of Buddhism, states Gombrich, keep picking up this "mistake from western authors", a view that initially came into vogue during the colonial era. Empirical evidence outside India, such as in the Theravada Buddhist monasteries of the Sinhalese society, suggests that class ideas have been prevalent among the
sangha monks, and between the Buddhist monks and the laity. In all canonical Buddhist texts, the
khattiyas (warrior class) are always mentioned first and never other classes such as
brahmans,
vessas, or
suddas. However, Ambedkar's idea of a casteless society as part of Buddhism is well-supported by the relatively late dating of Buddhist sutras about caste and the lack of mention of the caste-class terms
khattiyas,
vessas, or
sudras in Ashokan era government edicts and documents, all of which heavily precede the establishment of caste-class ideas in Sinhalese and Indian Buddhist societies later on. The novel interpretations and the radical reinterpretation of mainstream doctrines of Buddhism by Ambedkar, as he formulated Navayana, have led some external groups to suggest that Navayana may more properly be called Ambedkarism. According to Janet Contursi, Ambedkar re-interprets the Buddhist religion and, with Navayana, "speaks through Gautama and politicizes the Buddha philosophy as he theologizes his own political views". == Status in India ==