# Ad-Dharmi

The Ad-Dharmi is a sect in the state of Punjab, in India and is an alternative term for the Ravidasia religion, meaning Primal Spiritual Path. The term Ad-Dharm came into popular usage in the early part of the 20th century, when many followers of Guru Ravidas converted to Sikhism and were severely discriminated against due to their low caste status (even though the Sikh religion is strictly against the caste system). Many of these converts stopped attending Sikh Gurdwaras controlled by Jat Sikhs and built their own shrines upon arrival in the UK, Canada, and Fiji Island. Ad-Dharmis comprise 11.48% of the total of Scheduled Caste communities in Punjab.

## Origin

The Ad-Dharm movement was started in the 1920s with the aim of establishing a distinct religious identity. The founders of the Ad-Dharm Movement were Mangu Ram Mugowalia (a founding member of the Ghadar Party), Master Gurbanta Singh (a senior Congress leader), B. L. Gherra, and Pandit Hari Ram (Pandori Bibi), who served as the organization's secretary.
The movement projected Guru Ravidas, the 14th century Bhakti Movement saint, as their spiritual guru and adopted a sacred book called Ad Parkash for their separate ritual traditions. The Ad-Dharmi Dalits unified as a faith in 1925 during British rule in India.
In the 1931 census, over 450,000 individuals registered themselves as members of the new indigenous faith called Ad Dharam (or Original Religion). However, this faith and movement gradually declined after India gained independence due to the leaders' increasing involvement in state politics and the government's reservation policy, which focused only on providing reservations for low-caste individuals from Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist communities.

## Religion

Although the Ad-Dharmi are followers of Guru Ravidas (now Ravidassia religion), and incorporate elements of Sikhism as they regard Shri Guru Granth Sahib as their religious text. But after killing of Ramananda Dass on Vienaa triggered them a lot and they formed separate Amritbani and customs.
Each of their settlement contains a gurdwaras and Ravidas Bhawans, which are both a centre of worship and as well as a focus of the community.

## Ad-Dharmi Diaspora

The Ad dharmi Diaspora has flourished on Fiji Island, Canada, and in the United Kingdom since 1905. From 1905, when the Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand began a regular service from Calcutta to Fiji, there was a regular flow of Ravidassia people from Punjab to Fiji. The first Shri Guru Ravidass Gurudwara outside India was established in 1939 in Nasinu on Fiji Island, and this Gurdwara was registered under the banner of the Addharm-Punjab Association.

## Demographics

Ad dharmis along with Ramdasia Ravidasia (Chamar Caste) in Punjab by Districts (2011) :
| Districts | 2011 India census | 2011 India census |
| Districts | Ad dharmi/ Ramdasia/ Ravidasia Caste Population | % |
| Amritsar | 31,774 | 1.28% |
| Barnala | 90,526 | 15.18% |
| Bathinda | 108,790 | 7.83% |
| Faridkot | 26,903 | 4.35% |
| Fatehgarh Sahib | 115,167 | 19.2% |
| Firozpur | 31,581 | 1.56% |
| Gurdaspur | 133,126 | 5.79% |
| Hoshiarpur | 416,904 | 26.34% |
| Jalandhar | 467,466 | 21.43% |
| Kapurthala | 90,287 | 11.04% |
| Ludhiana | 521,361 | 14.95% |
| Mansa | 87,078 | 11.33% |
| Moga | 31,206 | 3.14% |
| Sri Muktsar Sahib | 50,017 | 5.54% |
| Patiala | 192,545 | 10.18% |
| Rupnagar | 115,155 | 16.85% |
| Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar | 114,837 | 11.65% |
| Sangrur | 261,317 | 21.72% |
| Nawanshahr | 214,293 | 34.88% |
| Tarn Taran | 3,618 | 0.32% |

## Notable people

* Mangu Ram Mugowalia, founding member of Ghadar Movement and Ad Dharm movement in Punjab
* Master Gurbanta Singh - Tallest Dalit leader of Punjab, educator and key person of Ad Dharm movement.
* Seth Kishan Dass - was a leather trader, propagator of the Ad-Dharm movement, and a politician.
* Chaudhary Sadhu Ram - Elected Member of Parliament for five time.