This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.
The following is a list of former Buddhists who no longer identify as such, organized by their current religious affiliation or ideology.
Atheism
| Name | Nationality | Notes | Refs. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adam Carolla | American | Radio, TV, and podcast personality, raised as a Buddhist, now identifies as non-religious and an atheist. |
Christianity
| Name | Nationality | Notes | Refs. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mitsuo Fuchida | Japanese | Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service captain noted for involvement in the attack on Pearl Harbor who later became an evangelist | |
| Kari Lake | American | politician and former television news anchor, converted from Buddhism to evangelical Christianity | |
| Zack Lee | Indonesian | actor and boxer | |
| Jaruvan Maintaka | Thai | former Auditor-General of Thailand | |
| Chieko N. Okazaki | American | Relief Society leader, converted from Buddhism to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | |
| Talduwe Somarama | Sri Lankan | former Buddhist monk and assassin | |
| Charlie Soong | Chinese | businessman and missionary | |
| Janice Vidal | Hong Konger | singer | |
| Paul Williams | British | professor in Indian religions at the University of Bristol | |
| Ben Weasel | American | singer and guitarist for the punk rock band Screeching Weasel, converted from Buddhism to Catholicism | |
| Vanness Wu | Taiwan | actor and singer | |
| Yu Tian | Taiwan | singer-politician |
Hinduism
- Mihirakula – Huna ruler
- Rajasinghe I – Sri Lankan king who conquered Kandy
- Rishabhadatta – Satrap viceroy
- Rudradaman I – Satrap ruler and conqueror of the Satavahanas
Islam
- The Barmakid family – originally the guardians of the great Buddhist shrine near Balkh, upon conversion they became "the greatest family" in the early Abbasid caliphate
- Muhammad ibn Suri – king of the Ghurid dynasty from the 10th-century to 1011
- Mahmud Ghazan – seventh ruler of the Ilkhanate
- Korguz – was a Uyghur governor of Khorasan during the reign of the Mongol ruler Ogedei Khan
- Muhammad Khodabandeh – eighth Ilkhaid dynasty ruler in Iran from 1304 to 1316
- Mubarak Shah – head of the ulus of the Chagatai Khanate (1252–1260, March–September 1266)
- Donei Kalaminjaa – king of the Maldives
- Tarmashirin – Khan of the Chagatai Khanate following Duwa Timur
- Hussein Ye – Islamic scholar of Chinese Malaysian descent whose lectures are frequently aired on Peace TV
- Benjamin Liljedahl – Islamic scholar of Swedish descent whose lectures are frequently heard in the Maharishi International University dining hall. Former member of Yiguandao and a practitioner of both Tai Chi and Karate.
References
- Loveline July 9, 1997 episode
- "Christianity Today newsletter". Christianitytoday.com. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
- From Pearl Harbor to Calvary by Mitsuo Fuchida.
- "How an Obama-backing Arizona news anchor became Trump's pick for governor". NBC News.
- Phoenix, Keiran Southern. "Kari Lake falters in Arizona governorship bid".
- "24 Individuals Are Now Collecting Petitions for Tennessee's 5th Congressional District as Petition Deadline Looms". 5 April 2022.
- ""Kesaksian hidup Zack Lee (suami Nafa Urbach)" at". gmstrueworshippers.wordpress.com. 30 June 2012. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
- ""God's on My Side" at". Nationmultimedia.com. Archived from the original on 13 September 2012. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
- "New Relief Society General Presidency Called," Ensign, May 1990, pp. 110–11.
- "Ceylon: To Find Forgiveness – TIME". Time. 13 July 1962. Archived from the original on 4 February 2013. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
- "The Chinese Revolution and Chinese Communism". Web.ku.edu. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
- Janice Vidal (2009). Twins effect inspires Janice Vidal (衛蘭) (interview footage). Hong Kong: South China Morning Post.
- Janice: Except God, I trust Leon the Most (Traditional Chinese), Oriental Daily, Retrieved on 2010-07-08
- Buddhism: Critical Concepts in Religious Studies Edited and with a new introduction by Paul Williams (London: Routledge, 2005). Eight volumes. ISBN 978-0-415-33226-2
- Interviews 1340 Mag July 2007
- Tan, Theresa. "Vanness Wu: Christian First, Entertainer Second". City News. Retrieved 20 March 2009.
- （圖輯影音）余天受洗成基督徒 拋棄過去所有罪孽, Liberty Times, 2017-04-09
- Thakur, Upendra. The Hunas in India. The Chowkhamba Senskrit, Banaras, 1967.
- Dona Catherina: the last empress of Lanka Lanka Library
- Divatia 42
- Divatia, N. B. (1993). Gujarati Language and Literature. Asian Educational Services. ISBN 8120606485.
- Kennedy, Hugh (2004). The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Longman. pp. 137, 143.
- Mahmud Ghazan Archived 3 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine. Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. 2 July 2007.
- Genghis Khan: his life and legacy By Paul Ratchnevsky, Thomas Nivison Haining, pg. 204
- The Cambridge history of Iran, Volume 5 By University of Cambridge, pg. 204
- Limbert, J. W. (2004). Shiraz in the age of Hafez: the glory of a medieval Persian city. Seattle: University of Washington Press. p.87
- A Sketch of the History of Hindustan from the First Muslim Conquest to the Fall of the Mughal Empire by H. G. Keene
- Maldives By Stefania Lamberti, pg.15
- "The Chaghadaids and Islam: the conversion of Tarmashirin Khan (1331–34). – Journal, Magazine, Article, Periodical". Goliath.ecnext.com. 1 October 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
- "Peace Tv". Peacetv.in. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
- "Peace Tv". Peacetv.in. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
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