People tend to view Buddhism as a peaceful, non-violent, and conflict free religion, but after hearing about the incident in Arizona regarding Geshe Michael Roach, and Ian Thorson, I realized that Buddhism, like other religions, has had its fair share of controversy and violence. Though, I wanted to figure out whether or not this was something that only occurred in Buddhism in the West, or in the East too. Upon researching, it is clear that this is not unique to one specific region, but has occurred all over the world.
It’s not possible for Buddhists to fight in the ‘name of god’ because in Buddhism, there is no one god. Having said that, they have fought on behalf of Buddhism on the whole (or their particular branch). In that way, there are several examples of violence between Buddhists and other religious groups for varying reasons. For instance, following the colonization of Sri Lanka by the British, there was a surge of Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism. This became more aggressive in the coming years, and Sinhalese Buddhists came into a lot of conflict with the Hindu Tamils during the Sri Lankan civil war. This violence lasted for 25 years and only ended in May 2009. It’s estimated that more than 70,000 people were killed (BBC). Besides this, there have been several other examples of violence between Buddhists and other religious groups, such as in Thailand, China and Japan. A more recent example is the events that have occurred in Burma, where “Buddhist gangs, including monks” (Campbell) have been engaged in anti-Muslim riots.
Once Again, Racial Tensions in Burma Turn Ugly
How An Extremist Buddhist Group is Sowing Hatred Across Asia
In terms of other controversies that have occurred, there have been several noteworthy lamas in recent years who have made headlines in Tibetan Buddhism – but these have mostly been in Western nations. For instance, in Dijon, France, a Senior Monk at Kagyu Ling has been the first ever-appointed lama to go to prison for assertions of sexual violence against women (Finnigan). In the UK, one man posed as a lama, without actually having the qualifications and is currently serving time in prison for being convicted of rape (Finnigan).
In class, we already saw the example of Geshe Michael Roach, and how he was a controversial figure. One particular Lama stated, “Michael Roach teaches an extremely exaggerated, and from a Buddhist perspective somewhat dubious, form of tantrism” (Finnigan). The Dalai Lama has also heavily criticized him for growing out his hair, and having intimate relationships. While some people may argue that he is leading a cult, whether or not that is true is unclear, as some people have said that Roach’s program does offer good learning (Whitaker).
On the whole, my conception of Buddhism as a spiritual, peaceful religion has not changed – its core beliefs are still ones of nonviolence, but in practice, like other religions it is not perfect, nor is it completely innocent. However, because it has the reputation of being such a conflict-free religion, when controversy or violence occurs, people find it tough to believe. In reality, when any religion is practiced, other issues come into play but people seem to think of Buddhism in a higher moral regard. Having said that, perhaps this is a Western ideal? Buddhism is not as common here as it is in other parts of the world and people don’t know as much about it other than what they hear from world figures like the Dalai Lama, who consistently preach nonviolence. Though regardless of what the reasoning is, Buddhism, like other religions, has also had its moments of unethical behavior.
Campbell, Charlie. “Once Again, Racial Tensions in Burma Turn Deadly.” Time. Time, 4 July 2014. Web. 19 Apr. 2015. <http://time.com/2956180/burma-mandalay-race-riots-sectarian-violence-buddhist-muslim/>.
Finnigan, Mary. “The Lamas Who Give Tibetan Buddhism a Bad Name.” The Guardian. 8 Oct. 2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2015. <http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2012/oct/08/tibetan-lamas-buddhism>.
“Sri Lanka Country Profile – Overview.” BBC News. 9 Jan. 2015. Web. 19 Apr. 2015. <http://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-11999611>.
Whitaker, Justin. “Prof. Robert Thurman on Tibetan Buddhism & Michael Roach’s “cult” – Dateline NBC.” American Buddhist Perspectives. 10 Mar. 2014. Web. 19 Apr. 2015. <http://www.patheos.com/blogs/americanbuddhist/2014/03/prof-robert-thurman-on-tibetan-buddhism-michael-roachs-cult-dateline-nbc.html>.
Бери и повторяй, заработок от 50 000 рублей. https://vk.com/zarabotok_v_internete_dlya_mam
hydroxychloroquine where to get it http://www.hydroxychloroquinex.com/#
hydroxychloroquine tablets 200mg
http://www.hydroxychloroquinex.com/# chloroquine phosphate tablets
candipharm
The writer does not have a mere understanding of Buddhism and religion. He sees that Buddhism is also on the same angle as other religions worldwide. It is not valid. “Buddhism” is the name given to the folk religion westerners experienced when they first landed on the Indian peninsula several centuries before. There is a religion invented by people, and it is not what the Buddha taught. As the same as all the other world religions, this is a man-made ‘something’ totally incompatible with what the Buddha said. As a Sri Lankan, I regret his words that the civil war in Sri Lanka is a conflict between the majority of Buddhists and Hindus. This is a false notion. I was in Sri Lanka until the middle of 2004, and it is still the country where I was born. The conflict in Sri Lanka was between the political terrorism of the minority Christian Tamils and the Sri Lankan government.
Agobiax dapoxetine mexico
douptephogue allopurinol 300 mg nurnanievale
Your point that religious practice is not perfect is well stated. Controversy in the life of religious leaders is a very common issue. Even revered saints and historically revered figures are not always perfect. The idea of observing a religion is generally thought to be in order to help realize the most potential we can in our human existence. The framework of moral belief and practice is part of the belief system in order to help individuals better relate to the cosmic order. A lofty series of ideals to be sure, but still a noble idea. This all becomes trickier to decipher however, when there are many ways a path of faith can be interpreted or even followed. Some walks of faith place heavy emphasis on tradition while others feel innovation to be important in keeping a walk of faith vital and current as a lived experience. People enter into religion with the best of intentions for the most part, but being human can be be flawed pure and simple with or without faith.
I believe that there is buddhist controversies not only in the West but also in the East. For example, the problems in Korean Buddhism in the modern world proved into struggles of remaining relevant in the face of capitalism that Korean Buddhist monks have had. In 2013, the country’s main Jogye Order was hit by scandal after video footage showed several of its monks smoking, drinking and gambling in a hotel bedroom, and the Venerable Jaseung joined in a bid to win an election to lead chief monks and to manage temples. This scandal has raised new questions by many Koreans about the role Buddhist monks play in modern-day Korea.
http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21587267-it-not-all-sweetness-and-light-biggest-buddhist-order-monkey-business