Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Exploring Theravāda's connections to other paths - what can we learn from other traditions, religions and philosophies?
beeblebrox
Posts: 939
Joined: Thu Dec 31, 2009 10:41 pm

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by beeblebrox »

mikenz66 wrote:Thich Nhat Hanh isn't just some comfortable elderly man. He grew up with, lived with, and confronted violence from a Buddhist perspective. Clearly he understands these issues a great deal more than I (a reasonably comfortable, heading for aging, man) do.
Indeed, he was right in the middle of it during the Vietnam War. A lot of his friends died, the monks tortured to death (he wrote one poem about this). Sorry for the OT, this is about the 10 year old girl that was raped.
metta_noob
Posts: 21
Joined: Wed May 12, 2010 2:29 am

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by metta_noob »

thanks for all the responses ... they certainly help me sort out my own feelings about the incident.

Frankly I raised this thread not so much about the rape of the 10yo child but more about how we as buddhists respond to practical situations like this. One other thing the bhante mentioned this morning was that good and bad is all created in our own minds. She said something about how we'd read the papers and get into a rut after reading about something bad that happened thousands of miles away halfway around the world far from ourselves. And that reminds me of what another bhante said about us having to guard our minds like a city (he was quoting the buddha) ... where our 5 senses are like the city gates and we ought to be very careful who /what we let thru those senses/gates. Well, I suppose if I hadn't read the papers and didn't know about the case, I wouldn't have felt bad, would I?

Anyway, I guess the perp has created a lot of bad karma which will ripen in his future lives. And I really wouldn't want to create bad karma for myself by unleashing hatred on him, in this case by way of thoughts. Though I can't help but wonder what conditions were present that made him commit the dastardly deed ... I think the buddha said that nothing happens without a reason?

thanks again
PeterB
Posts: 3909
Joined: Tue Feb 17, 2009 12:35 pm

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by PeterB »

The primary cause of any criminal act is a conscious intention to commit that act.
5heaps
Posts: 334
Joined: Wed Dec 16, 2009 12:19 am

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by 5heaps »

metta_noob wrote:How do you deal with this anger?
understand the ineffectiveness of hysteria
A Japanese man has been arrested on suspicion of writing a computer virus that destroys and replaces files on a victim PC with manga images of squid, octopuses and sea urchins. Masato Nakatsuji, 27, of Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture, was quoted as telling police: "I wanted to see how much my computer programming skills had improved since the last time I was arrested."
User avatar
m0rl0ck
Posts: 1193
Joined: Fri Jan 30, 2009 10:51 am

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by m0rl0ck »

Being a good buddhist, i think my response would be to shoot him in the head, put the rest of society out of his misery :)
“The truth knocks on the door and you say, "Go away, I'm looking for the truth," and so it goes away. Puzzling.” ― Robert M. Pirsig
User avatar
Tex
Posts: 703
Joined: Thu Jan 22, 2009 9:46 pm
Location: Austin, TX, USA

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by Tex »

metta_noob wrote: How do you deal with this anger?
It's difficult in a case like this.

If you feel anger about a story like this (as most of us naturally do), study it. Pay close attention to the anger and all of the other associated feelings that come with it. Watch the anger arise and eventually pass away. We can learn from negative emotions and feelings, too, not just positive ones.

I always try to remind myself that most abusers are former or ongoing victims of abuse themselves. That does not excuse it, of course, but there is something terribly wrong in the mind of someone who would do this, something that is no doubt causing him terrible suffering, too. And, as noted by others, his future is going to be filled with suffering because of what he has done. Compassion for the guilty is harder than compassion for the innocent, but compassion at its highest is universal.

It's just another crappy day in Samsara. I try to use horrible stories like this as motivation to practice harder.
"To reach beyond fear and danger we must sharpen and widen our vision. We have to pierce through the deceptions that lull us into a comfortable complacency, to take a straight look down into the depths of our existence, without turning away uneasily or running after distractions." -- Bhikkhu Bodhi

"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man." -- Heraclitus
User avatar
Dhammakid
Posts: 375
Joined: Fri Jan 02, 2009 7:09 am
Location: Santa Fe, NM USA
Contact:

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by Dhammakid »

Absolve yourself of the burden of playing mental judge and juror to incidents over which you have no control. Why carry the burden of wanting or wondering what type of punishment this person should get? Best to practice equanimity for the situation and compassion for the perp. This practice is more for you and the development of wholesome qualities of your mind than it is for him, anyway.

How many times during the day do we cultivate and follow unwholesome states of mind? How many times do we wish harm over the driver in front of us who cut us off or didn't check their blind spot or who flicked us off for passing them? How many times do we get angry at our supervisors or at the government or the military or family members?

We are all guilty of unwholesome states of mind. It's better that we first get our minds right before speculating over the mind of another.

:anjali:
Dhammakid
User avatar
Annapurna
Posts: 2639
Joined: Mon Jan 05, 2009 8:04 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by Annapurna »

metta_noob wrote:Last week a rape was reported in our newspapers. The rapist was a 51 year old school bus driver and the victim was a 10 year old girl. The rape was committed in the rapist's school bus in broad daylight ... he was ferrying the girl on a school day and had driven to a side road, parked and forced himself onto the poor girl. I guess he didn't realise that he had parked right next to a building that housed a kindergarten because the teachers in the kindy heard the girl's screams and figured something was amiss. Fortunately some good samaritans driving down that road stopped and accosted the rapist. You can see a video interview the newspaper did with a lady at the kindergarten at the bottom of this page http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?fi ... sec=nation" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Sorry I don't know how to embed the link.

This morning I attended a dhamma talk where the speaker told us to focus on others' good even if it is only 1% in a sea of bad. She also gave us the example of Angulimara the murderer who became an arahant. She said that good needs to be nurtured and nourished just like grain crops as opposed to weeds (ie bad) which will thrive without nourishment.

At the same time, the newspaper reported that "Facebook users slam alleged rapist" and some are baying for his blood ie death sentence ... others suggested castration. I feel repulsed, fearful (for the little people I know) and angry that this guy can actually succumb to his sexual urge and force himself upon a 10 year old child. Barbaric and bestial are two words that come to mind.

So as a noob, I'd like to ask you what your response would be as a Buddhist. Before delving into the dhamma, I would also have bayed for blood in anger ... and in fact, I still find it difficult to suppress my feelings of anger against this man. How do you deal with this anger?
Forcefully destroying a child's virginity is not only a very painful and bloody experience for a not fully developped child but often leads to physically crippling her, by rupturing the small vagina to such an extent, that the uterus has to be removed.
No children for her.


Even if that doesn't happen, he will leave her with a probably lifelong sexual phobia or neurosis.

He deserves the full impact of the law that is available.

He was old enough to know what he was doing.
User avatar
Annapurna
Posts: 2639
Joined: Mon Jan 05, 2009 8:04 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by Annapurna »

mikenz66 wrote:Call Me by My True Names
by Thich Nhat Hanh
I am the twelve-year-old girl, refugee on a small boat,
who throws herself into the ocean after being raped by a sea pirate,
and I am the pirate, my heart not yet capable of seeing and loving.
Whole poem and Thich Nhat Hanh's thoughts: http://www.quietspaces.com/poemHanh.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Mike
Thanks for sharing. Empathy as Thich shows a rare degree of accomplishment.

Btw, I once watched a ducumentary about profilers.

They also said empathy is very important.
User avatar
Annapurna
Posts: 2639
Joined: Mon Jan 05, 2009 8:04 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by Annapurna »

metta_noob wrote:

Frankly I raised this thread not so much about the rape of the 10yo child but more about how we as buddhists respond to practical situations like this.
I personally am much more concerned about the child's future than any Buddhist responses.
dude
Posts: 52
Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2010 4:18 am

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by dude »

Severe punishment for such a crime is provided for in the law, and should be. However, even a little hatred or ill will toward the perpetrator is a cause of suffering.
User avatar
mikenz66
Posts: 19926
Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:37 am
Location: Aotearoa, New Zealand

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by mikenz66 »

Here's another monk who certainly has the right to speak about how to apply Buddhist teachings to difficult situations.

http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php ... 05,0,0,1,0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Gyatso, 72, was put in prison in 1959 for resisting China’s overthrow of Tibet’s government. He was released for brief periods for the next 33 years but spent most of that time in prison.

He was released in 1992 and now lives in Dharamsala, India.

Chen recalls that she once asked Gyatso what he most feared. He replied that his biggest fear was losing compassion for his torturers.
Mike
User avatar
Dhammakid
Posts: 375
Joined: Fri Jan 02, 2009 7:09 am
Location: Santa Fe, NM USA
Contact:

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by Dhammakid »

Great post, Mike. I think the Tibetan monks, in light of what they have endured over the past few decades, demonstrate a high degree of equanimity and compassion towards those who act out unwholesome states of mind.

The Buddha once said that even if a perpetrator is to cut you limb for limb, torturing you and causing you unspeakable pain, you should not even think about repercussion or harm towards that person, but you should keep a mind of compassion and equanimity.

Can't remember the exact sutta, but I think it's a good example of the high level of practice the Buddha expounded. How much more so for an incident in which you have no control and no say in punishment, such as the one in the OP?

It is far more productive to meditate on loving-kindness and compassion towards the perpetrator (because he, no doubt, has created countless bad karma for himself) than it is to wish harm upon him. Let us always keep our practice in mind.

:anjali:
Dhammakid
dude
Posts: 52
Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2010 4:18 am

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by dude »

The Buddha once said that even if a perpetrator is to cut you limb for limb, torturing you and causing you unspeakable pain, you should not even think about repercussion or harm towards that person, but you should keep a mind of compassion and equanimity.

The Simile of the Saw Sutra
User avatar
Dhammakid
Posts: 375
Joined: Fri Jan 02, 2009 7:09 am
Location: Santa Fe, NM USA
Contact:

Re: Buddhist response to a monstrous act of rape?

Post by Dhammakid »

dude wrote:The Buddha once said that even if a perpetrator is to cut you limb for limb, torturing you and causing you unspeakable pain, you should not even think about repercussion or harm towards that person, but you should keep a mind of compassion and equanimity.

The Simile of the Saw Sutra
Thanks dude (hahaha), I appreciate it.

:anjali:
Dhammakid
Locked