[Buddha-l] Buddhism & War

[F.K. Lehman (F.K.L. Chit Hlaing)]

>It is always important to keewp i8n mind the diistinction getween 
>doctrine and institutions that make USE OF doctrine. Buddhism as 
>doctrrine has an excellent record here; and the fact, 
>incontravertible, that in various countries governments and their 
>co-opted religous institutions have a record of war and violence 
>'justified' by apppeal to doctrine, is a separarte issue. Any ideas, 
>even truths, can be used to evil ends, after all, and generallly 
>speaking will be so used.





>>Whoever said this has never read any history. Buddhists seem to 
>>have  done, at one time or another, just about anything anybody 
>>else has  done.
>
>Certainly Buddhism has been involved in violence - the excellent 
>book "Zen at War" chronicles the Japanese Zen institution's 
>pro-military stance during World War II. However, I'm not aware of 
>anything in Buddhist history that is comparable in scope to, say, 
>the Spanish Inquisition, or the Crusades, or the militant spread of 
>Islam. My impression is that Buddhism has a relatively low body 
>count, as religions go. Opinions?
>
>Barnaby'
>_________________________________
>
>It's not getting any smarter out there. You have to come to terms 
>with stupidity, and make it work for you.
>- Frank Zappa
>
>
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-- 
F. K. L. Chit Hlaing
Professor
Department of Anthropology
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign