Why Buddhist are so hopeless when they come to protect themselves and others?

[SarathW]

Why Buddhist are so hopeless when they come to protect themselves and others?

I feel that many Buddhists have missed the mark when they come to protecting themselves and others.
I can see Muslims strongly protect the Muslim community using their brotherhood concept. They are fighting all over the world to protect their identity. I see that Christians also do lots of social services via schools, hospitals many projects to protect the poor.
Even atheist nations like the Chinese do many projects to protect their people.

However Buddhists do not think twice to kill another Buddhist. You can find the evidence by looking at Myanmar and Sri Lanka. Buddhists discriminate against their own people by way of caste, wealth, sex and wealth, etc. Buddhist monk in Sim Nikaya in Sri Lanka does not ordain low-caste people.
However, if you read Tipitaka and Buddhist texts you find what Buddha instructed Buddhists was completely different.

[santa100]

Why Buddhist are so hopeless when they come to protect themselves and others?

I feel that many Buddhists have missed the mark when they come to protecting themselves and others.
I can see Muslims strongly protect the Muslim community using their brotherhood concept. They are fighting all over the world to protect their identity. I see that Christians also do lots of social services via schools, hospitals many projects to protect the poor.
Even atheist nations like the Chinese do many projects to protect their people.

However Buddhists do not think twice to kill another Buddhist. You can find the evidence by looking at Myanmar and Sri Lanka. Buddhists discriminate against their own people by way of caste, wealth, sex and wealth, etc. Buddhist monk in Sim Nikaya in Sri Lanka does not ordain low-caste people.
However, if you read Tipitaka and Buddhist texts you find what Buddha instructed Buddhists was completely different.

Guess you can't have it all. At least Buddhists didn't have to come up with excuses for the 8 bloody Crusades, the burning alive of heretics, the ~ 20 war campaigns the Islamic prophet conducted, etc...

If you have solid evidence about the misconduct of that Sri Lankan monastery, make sure to publicize the story to all the news media, national and international. That way, their donators/patrons could cut off their support, which will force a change to how they're conducting their affair.

[SarathW]

Hi Santa
I do not dispute that Christians protect Christians and Muslims protect Muslims.
Sometimes I wonder why the atomic bomb was dropped in Japan, not in Germany. Even though Japan is responsible for Perl Harber, Germans start the war and did lots of damage to Europe. Not to mention the rivalry between Muslims and Christians. Not I am justifying the use of atomic weapons though.

My point is why Buddhist do not protect Buddhists.

[santa100]

Hi Santa
I do not dispute that Christians protect Christians and Muslims protect Muslims.
Sometimes I wonder why the atomic bomb was dropped in Japan, not in Germany. Even though Japan is responsible for Perl Harber, Germans start the war and did lots of damage to Europe. Not to mention the rivalry between Muslims and Christians. Not I am justifying the use of atomic weapons though.

My point is why Buddhist do not protect Buddhists.

That's what I just said, the obvious excuse to the 8 Crusades was to "protect" fellow followers, same thing for the ~20 war campaigns the Islamic prophet engaged in, also either in the name of Allah or to "protect" his believers. Not to say there's no violent episodes in Buddhist history. But it's been quite benign, relatively speaking.

Regarding the use of atomic bomb, it was because the bomb design and testing was not ready yet by the time Germany surrendered. So yeah, sometimes, it's just a mater of timing and luck, I guess...

[Kusala]

Why Buddhist are so hopeless when they come to protect themselves and others?

I feel that many Buddhists have missed the mark when they come to protecting themselves and others.
I can see Muslims strongly protect the Muslim community using their brotherhood concept. They are fighting all over the world to protect their identity. I see that Christians also do lots of social services via schools, hospitals many projects to protect the poor.
Even atheist nations like the Chinese do many projects to protect their people.

However Buddhists do not think twice to kill another Buddhist. You can find the evidence by looking at Myanmar and Sri Lanka. Buddhists discriminate against their own people by way of caste, wealth, sex and wealth, etc. Buddhist monk in Sim Nikaya in Sri Lanka does not ordain low-caste people.
However, if you read Tipitaka and Buddhist texts you find what Buddha instructed Buddhists was completely different.

"...in the course of the future there will be monks who won't listen when discourses that are words of the Tathagata — deep, deep in their meaning, transcendent, connected with emptiness — are being recited. They won't lend ear, won't set their hearts on knowing them, won't regard these teachings as worth grasping or mastering. But they will listen when discourses that are literary works — the works of poets, elegant in sound, elegant in rhetoric, the work of outsiders, words of disciples — are recited. They will lend ear and set their hearts on knowing them. They will regard these teachings as worth grasping & mastering."

https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitak ... .than.html

[cappuccino]

[dharmacorps]

Come and visit a majority christian country, Sarath. You will easily see what you are describing is a problem with people in general. The grass is always greener.

[Bundokji]

It is difficult to explain people's behavior based on their religions. When such connections are made/attempted, usually holy texts are compared with the actions of their followers. The fact that the Buddhist suttas have little room to justify violence, it makes them appealing to people who have little inclination to violence.

[thomaslaw]

Mahayana Shaolin Kung Fu Buddhists in history used Kung Fu skills to protect themselves and others.

[confusedlayman]

Buddhist are supposed to protect themef by 5 precepts, jhana attainment and sotapanna at minimum.. buddhist shouldnt worry about human life , they should worry whenever life ends are we safe at any scenario?

Earth is a plce to gain good karma

After doing your job, go to heaven and rejoice for long long time eventually go to nibbana

[Johann]

Why Buddhist are so hopeless when they come to protect themselves and others?

Ariya Silas (metta), good householder, are the wise's protection as well as Sammasati. Nobody could protect yours better then in this way.

[stan g]

Islam and Buddhism are completely incompatible.

They can't live together.

Buddhist nationalism that arises because of the threats from Islam or a future invasion or growing population of Muslim migrants isn't in the best interest of Buddhists.

I don't agree with violence, but then again I'm not living among Islam which I find to be the most terrifying ideology on the planet. Islam is war, it is subjugation, designed to crush under threats of violence.

I could easily live among nationalist Buddhists, but I would never want to live in a country under Islam.

So I think Buddhist can protect themselves. There's nothing noble about lining up to have someone take your life.

This is probably where Zen is better, it has little problem with compartmentalizing the necessity for violence when it has to be carried out as long as you don't carry that around with you when the need is over. Violence that isn't clung to, that isn't born of anger, but simply to protect life and freedom.

That said Buddhism teaches non-violence in every form, but Islam didn't exist during the Buddha's time and I can't see that someone as smart as the Buddha wouldn't have seen the virtue in self defense if someone is threatening to amputate your head.

Of course the far left has organized a smear campaign against nationalist monks. There appears to be this idea that anyone that cares about their cultural heritage and is the least bit protective of it, that this is somehow wrong. That you shouldn't care about Buddhist culture being threatened and erased and that this is the greatest virtue one can have when you let it all go to pot.

I will always stand by orthodox Buddhist that live in countries with a long cultural heritage defending that culture from all threats. This isn't what the far left wants to hear, but this is what is needed.

[SarathW]

Buddhist are supposed to protect themef by 5 precepts, jhana attainment and sotapanna at minimum.. buddhist shouldnt worry about human life , they should worry whenever life ends are we safe at any scenario?

Earth is a plce to gain good karma

After doing your job, go to heaven and rejoice for long long time eventually go to nibbana

This is one of your best posts.
Buddhist should help by others observing five precepts and practicing Brahama Vihara. However Buddhist seems to not practice this.
The question is why Buddhist do not practice.

[cappuccino]

The question is why Buddhist do not practice.

Same reason people do not run

[confusedlayman]

Buddhist are supposed to protect themef by 5 precepts, jhana attainment and sotapanna at minimum.. buddhist shouldnt worry about human life , they should worry whenever life ends are we safe at any scenario?

Earth is a plce to gain good karma

After doing your job, go to heaven and rejoice for long long time eventually go to nibbana

This is one of your best posts.
Buddhist should help by others observing five precepts and practicing Brahama Vihara. However Buddhist seems to not practice this.
The question is why Buddhist do not practice.

Buddhist are practicing but non buddist who are buddhist just by birth alone are creating troubles