Research & Publications
Scholarship that restores memory.
Research threads spanning religion, literature and economics — anchored in fieldwork and primary sources.
01
Research areas & abstracts
ICSSR post-doctoral study
The Ravidassia Religion: Formation and Identity
Traces how a devotional community in Punjab became a distinct religious identity, from Ad-Dharm to the 2010 declaration.
Economics · Social thought
Begumpura as Economic Vision
Reads Satguru Ravidass Ji's Begumpura as an early model of a just, taxless and casteless political economy.
Hindi literature
The Bani in Hindi Literature
Situates the shabads of Satguru Ravidass Ji within the Sant tradition and their literary craft.
Social history
Bahujan Thought & Modern India
Connects the Sant legacy to Dr. Ambedkar and contemporary movements for dignity.
02
Manuscript documentation
An ongoing effort to photograph, catalogue and interpret manuscripts, Ad-Dharm records and oral histories held by families and deras — so that primary sources remain available to future scholars.
03
Begumpura glossary
- Begumpura
- “The city without sorrow” — Satguru Ravidass Ji's vision of an ideal society.
- Ghamm
- Sorrow or grief; Begumpura is be-ghamm, without it.
- Kharaaj
- Tax or tribute; the ideal city has none.
- Amritbani
- The scripture of the Ravidassia Dharm compiling Satguru Ravidass Ji's Bani.
- Ad-Dharm
- The 1920s Punjab movement asserting an original, independent identity.
- Harr
- The Ravidassia sacred symbol.
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Press & citation kit
Short bio: Dr. Manoj Dahiya is Assistant Professor at Ramanujan College, University of Delhi, and an ICSSR Post-Doctoral Fellow researching the Ravidassia religion. He holds JRF in Hindi and Economics.
Suggested citation: Dahiya, Manoj. Ravidassia Studies. University of Delhi.