Was there any conflict between the Brahmins and the Buddhists?

Y. Krishan challenges the common belief that Buddhism emerged as a revolt against Brahmanism and that its spread provoked a bitter conflict with Brahmins. Examining Pāli suttas such as the Vāseṭṭha, Sonadaṇḍa, Madhura and Assalāyana suttas, the author argues that the Buddha did not repudiate the caste system outright but taught that moral conduct (karma) and personal qualities, not birth, determined one’s status. The essay notes that early Buddhist texts often rank Kṣatriyas above Brahmins and contain no sustained polemic against the Brahmin class. Upaniṣadic passages and later treatises like the Vajrasūcī and Saddharmālaṃkāra are cited to show that many Brahmins themselves questioned hereditary privilege. Krishan suggests that economic competition may have occasionally created tension—for example, sacrificial priests lost income when royal patrons favoured monks—but he stresses that overt persecution of Buddhists was rare and that ruler‑led violence, such as attributed to Puṣyamitra Śuṅga, is poorly attested. The essay concludes that Buddhism and Brahmanism coexisted for centuries with overlapping patronage networks and that simplistic narratives of sectarian hostility overlook the complex social and intellectual exchanges between the two traditions.

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