Buddhist Hate Crimes

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Malcolm
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by Malcolm »

Jikan wrote:The Maoists are one faction among many with an interest in taking leadership in Nepal. Participatory democracy is like that--people try to take control of the country. And with an establishment of such delightful leaders as these, it's hard not to blame the Reds for thinking they just might do a better (fairer) job of it than this crowd.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dipendra_of_Nepal

Malcolm's right that the political situation in central Asia is very complicated.
I mean Bhutan...The Maoists already control Nepal.
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Zhen Li
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by Zhen Li »

Well, they recently lost power. But regardless, now the entire ritual and transcendential-social superstructure of Nepal is fundamentally screwed up because there is no King to officiate key rituals and at festivals for both Buddhists and Hindus. You simply can't elect corrupt and ambitious politicians, who've had no requisite abhisekas, to officiate at rituals where their role is, essentially, to function as an incarnation of Vishnu. That both reflects a clear lack of faith in these institutions (atheism) and a lack of understanding. But don't get me wrong, I am not in the least bit surprised that anyone would dislike the Shahs, but that doesn't mean monarchy as such ought to be abolished. It certainly does not mean Maoism is a requisite solution - unless you're a Maoist.
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tellyontellyon
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by tellyontellyon »

Back to the original post. :smile:

I don't say that Buddhists should feel guilty for the crimes of other Buddhists; however, Buddhists should care about the suffering of others and do whatever they can to make things better.

Not feeling shame or guilt about what other Buddhists do does not mean we can excuse ourselves for our own lack of response. It is that lack of response that I am critical of. To simply say something along the lines of: 'Well it's not my karma' is selfish and infantile. I think a Buddhist who only thinks about his or her own Karma has not got very far in their practice.

I feel Buddhists have a particular responsibility to criticise and highlight the bad actions of other Buddhists, otherwise our silence may give the impression that we don't oppose those sort of actions. That is bad for the spread of Buddhist Dharma in general that, at least in the West up till now, has a reputation for peace and tolerance. I think there is a lot at stake for the future of Buddhism and how it develops in the West.

In the same way, ordinary peace loving Muslims are not responsible for the actions of a few terrorists, but the condemnation of terrorism by Muslims helps to conteract those who want to portray all Muslims as terrorists. The same as when Jews condemn the actions of the Israeli govt in respect to the extreme attacks on Gaza, this can counteract the anti-semitism or anti-jewish attitudes that develop. That can help us to see beyond the simplistic notion that the problem is the jews, or the muslims or the Buddhists... the problem is the hateful and violent attitudes and actions in and of themselves regardles of the religion.
"Be melting snow. Wash yourself of yourself."
- Rumi
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Jigme Tsultrim
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by Jigme Tsultrim »

It took a while, but somebody got it. YAY!--JT :applause:
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Mkoll
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by Mkoll »

tellyontellyon and JT,

What are each of you doing about the situation?
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
tlee
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by tlee »

Not everyone is so advanced as those here *chuckles*.

Racism and xenophobia are contagious. If one group starts speaking about eliminating or subjugating the other, then people become afraid and mirror the hostility. Just look at WW2 with the Nazis and the Zionists trying to subjugate and eliminate each other.

I'm just glad that it wasn't Buddhism that set off this recent bout of xenophobia in South East Asia.

The media points to these people in monks robes and say "Buddhism is behind this"; but no, this is strictly against the vinaya. It is probably even a disrobing offense to recommend killing though I can't remember.

The Buddha did not advise this, and so it is not a Buddhist hate crime.
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Grigoris
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by Grigoris »

If it is a hate crime, then it is not Buddhist.
"My religion is not deceiving myself."
Jetsun Milarepa 1052-1135 CE

"Butchers, prostitutes, those guilty of the five most heinous crimes, outcasts, the underprivileged: all are utterly the substance of existence and nothing other than total bliss."
The Supreme Source - The Kunjed Gyalpo
The Fundamental Tantra of Dzogchen Semde
tlee
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by tlee »

The laws change so often. I'm not sure what the legal definition of a hate-crime is.
I can see instances where a Buddhist could be in line with the teachings and be legitimately sentenced for a hate-crime.

If you look at the international news right now it seems that many people are pushing to make criticizing Israel's occupation and attacks on what little remains of Palestine a hate-crime because of the pseudo religious nature of their country. So clearly the laws and popular definitions aren't always a measure of what is right or wrong.
jmlee369
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by jmlee369 »

Jigme Tsultrim wrote: So is the larger Buddhist community not in any way responsible for bringing these crimes to account? Where is/was the outcry by the Tibetans, the Japanese, the Koreans, the Chinese, etc. For that matter what about the Politically Correct minions of the so called "developed" countries?
I know I am sickened and deeply ashamed. Are YOU??
http://www.hyunbulnews.com/news/article ... xno=276882" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

You may have missed the outcry from Korea because it was made in Korean.
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Leo Rivers
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes and a 5th Buddhist council

Post by Leo Rivers »

Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes and a 5th Buddhist council

There is a background problem. It is akin to the "Chosen Tribe of God" model in the Torah in which the jews that didn't slay Canaanites were destroyed as disobediant to the Lord, a model of entitlement and permission to state piracy that Roman Christians used in the Crusades and the United States has used since the war in the Philippines and today as "Policeman of the World" asserting its "responcibilities". This is the model of "Gotra" or "family. Originally used as a way to sort prospective studants in the era [150-450 CE] when teachers could and would guide people into either the sravaka or mahayana paths of either the worldly or super-mundane modes of practice. Then, in some trends of thought in the Yogacara it became reified into a notion of eternal seeds and fixed personalities. Asanga's notion of teaching shifting one's "lineage" was shunted to the side as a way to rationalize altering a person's life path, and then a Tathatagata and "divine seed" interpretation increased in Asia... the fortress of Mahayana. This notion of "Bodhisattava Bloodline" in turn gave people the ability to claim:

"We are the Buddha's "Chosen Tribe" Sons and daughters. We know better. If we dominate you you will live in a better world and yourself plant more wholesom seeds. If we kill you for altruistic motives you will not commit crimes resulting in births in which you will not live in Dharma created environments."

Thus Tibetan Abbots could step aside having whispered in a Mongol leader's it would be virtuous in the long run for everybody to send in soldiers in a cleansing of a monastery and have it turned over to their lineage. This is the Reason that the chief abbots in Japan blessed the suicide bombers in WWII. Crashing into a US ship was equivalent to the Great Bodhisattva giving his limbs to a tigress. What is so startling in Sri Lanka is the Buddhist Fascism in which monks do their own dirty work.

The deep cure for this is a REAL reapproachment of mainstream and the diverse mahayana sanghas to reaffirm their common plateform in the Buddha's own observations. As it has been pointed out by both Asanga and Vasubandhu, in arguement [Buddhist Debate] you need to both sides to be able to appeal to a common plateform of shared language. A 5th (?) Buddhist council of Buddhists might need to preceed hot button topics so that the moral force of group opinion can be expressed. A development of a real shared trunk of Buddhism. [time to soften and re-rationalized the interpretation of the 6th Chapter of the "Sutra of the Hidden Intent"!]


:namaste:
DGA
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Re: Buddhist Hate Crimes

Post by DGA »

tlee wrote:Racism and xenophobia are contagious. If one group starts speaking about eliminating or subjugating the other, then people become afraid and mirror the hostility. Just look at WW2 with the Nazis and the Zionists trying to subjugate and eliminate each other.
Wait, what? WWII was a fight to the death between Nazis and Zionists? Where are you getting this bizarre alternative history?

You're on much safer ground here:
The media points to these people in monks robes and say "Buddhism is behind this"; but no, this is strictly against the vinaya. It is probably even a disrobing offense to recommend killing though I can't remember.
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