WI: Buddhist Extremists
- Thread starter Amit
- Start date
David S Poepoe
Banned
What would they be doing? Militant chanting? Now if they were Shaolin Monks then we would have a problem.
1.Buddhism maintained its hold in Northern India and you had three religious groups at the time of partition. Kashmir is now divided into three areas and all 3 groups sponsor terroism against the other 2.
2.Hindu India invades and conquers Buddhist Sri Lanka leading to Buddhist terrorism on the Indian sub-continent demanding Sri Lankan freedom.
3.Dali Lama dies, new Dali lama is much more militant and spreads the message of violent resistance to his followers. Tibetan Buddhists become suicide bombers in mainland china and the expat community then targets major companies that do business with the chinese governement.
4. Muslim Malasia invades and conquers Buddhist Thailand. In retaliation Thais around the world target Malasian specifically as well as Muslim targets in general
Buddhist philosophy would have to state that killing yourself and others in the cuase of your fellow man improves your karma and helps you achieve a higher plane of existence. A strech, but religious thought can always be manipulated to acheive certain aims.
2.Hindu India invades and conquers Buddhist Sri Lanka leading to Buddhist terrorism on the Indian sub-continent demanding Sri Lankan freedom.
3.Dali Lama dies, new Dali lama is much more militant and spreads the message of violent resistance to his followers. Tibetan Buddhists become suicide bombers in mainland china and the expat community then targets major companies that do business with the chinese governement.
4. Muslim Malasia invades and conquers Buddhist Thailand. In retaliation Thais around the world target Malasian specifically as well as Muslim targets in general
Buddhist philosophy would have to state that killing yourself and others in the cuase of your fellow man improves your karma and helps you achieve a higher plane of existence. A strech, but religious thought can always be manipulated to acheive certain aims.
I suppose Tibet is a potential cause for Buddhist terrorists - anybody know if China has a problem with this? (Maybe they do and they just haven't told us ...)
Whilst all religions claim to be peace-loving at their roots, I think Buddhism is genuinely less prone to violence than most. The taking of any life, not just human, is very bad karmic news.
Moreover, the Dalai Lama is not a 'Pope' figure who can issue injunctions to all his followers. He is not divine, merely very, very wise. Such a radical departure from the teachings of Buddha would be beyond his influence, I feel.
Still, it's not beyond the bounds of possibility that a future Dalai Lama could turn out to be a rabble-rouser, and maybe sway a few young bloods to violence against the occupying state. Don't like to think what Chinese reprisals might be like, though ...
Whilst all religions claim to be peace-loving at their roots, I think Buddhism is genuinely less prone to violence than most. The taking of any life, not just human, is very bad karmic news.
Moreover, the Dalai Lama is not a 'Pope' figure who can issue injunctions to all his followers. He is not divine, merely very, very wise. Such a radical departure from the teachings of Buddha would be beyond his influence, I feel.
Still, it's not beyond the bounds of possibility that a future Dalai Lama could turn out to be a rabble-rouser, and maybe sway a few young bloods to violence against the occupying state. Don't like to think what Chinese reprisals might be like, though ...
Amit said:
Why would this be weird? Most people see Buddhism through the lens of Western Buddhism but this is very different from Buddhism in historically Buddhist countries. Zen Buddhism was linked with Japanese militarism pre-WWII, there were riots between monks fairly recently and I remember film of nationalist monks in Sri Lanka wielding sticks in some kind of anti-Tamil riot. There are countless other examples.
Christianity says "turn the other cheek" but we are completely used to Christianity being associated with violence and militarism.
No, there is no tibetan terrorism - except maybe in communist China propaganda....
But... There is a very, very small but growing fringe of young tibetans who get gradually more and more disenchented with the pacific rebelion of the Dalai Lama it is said, and they may be tempted to do things more... radical, some analysts said.
But... There is a very, very small but growing fringe of young tibetans who get gradually more and more disenchented with the pacific rebelion of the Dalai Lama it is said, and they may be tempted to do things more... radical, some analysts said.
Fair point about the historical examples. I think they're of a different order from the run of Christian violence, though. Judeo-Islamic-Christian religions have a history of violence in the name of God (coming from the OT, I suppose), which Buddhism doesn't. It is generally considered positive to encourage others to follow Buddhist texts, but there is no value attached to converting others to Buddhism or killing those who refuse to be converted. There is no 'infidel/heretic' parallel.mishery said:
Having said that, there is nothing to stop you being a Buddhist and being violent, as I understand it: it'll distract you from Enlightenment, but that's your lookout.
Alayta said:
They had communists in the north and christians/sects on the south... 'Twasn't a good time to be a Buddhist.
Satyrane said:
But you can twist anything. There are a lot of Buddhists who eat meat. I am sure they can come up with a way to justify this. I can see no reason why some leader along the way couldn't come up with a Buddhist justification for fighting in the name of Enlightenment.
In fact belief in reincarnation could make killing easily justifiable, if someone so wanted.
'Ow's about...
"It would be better to end this current incarnation for these unreachable (foreign) wretches so they can be reborn into the Enlightened state we will create."
There was, by example, war between monasteries and laic rulers and between themselves in feudal Japan. A famous figure of Sangoku era was a Yamabushi leader, if I remember well: he was famous for standing up under a shower of arrows up to his death, and never felt down even then (rigor mortis). Forgot his name, though.
Well, according to Barnabas Fund, in countries with Buddhist majorities there have been cases of Buddhist mobs discriminating against and attacking Christians, such as in Sri Lanka.
And as much as some of the world doesnt like to admit it, before CHina invaded, Tibet wasnt a amazing place to be British... Im not saying that China should of Invaded, (Quite the reverse - Free Tibet!), but Tibet and British India went to war, and British India Lost. That suggest a certain degree of Militancy on the Tibetan Buddists behalf....
Mort said:
I think that they wheren't the 'tibetan tibetans', but related and more agressive ethnical groups, like nepaleses and gurkahs. The regions have some minorities beside the big groups.
I heard about a tibetan martial art once. o.o
To create false enemies and so justify a stronger, harsher occupation and assimilation of Tibet?
The Ubbergeek said:
They invaded what is currently present day tibet. I cant renemeber the whys and wherefores of it, but i got it from Micheal Palins travel books. Ill look it up when i have time.
And the concept of Chinese backed groups i find really intresting. thats something, to be brutally honest im surprised they didnt do... They already demonised the Dalai Lama, so why not his followers?
Mort said:
The 'proper' Tibetans did tried rebelion when the PRC came in Lhassa in the 50s (I think). The usual far-left loonies ad conspirationists say that they where backed (read: created and backed up) by the USA and CIA (as the Dalai Lama), which is a grotesque theory.