Was Buddhism really a religion of peace compared to other religions?

>>2453313
Not really. Westerners just dont understand how much political and sometimes military power various Buddhist groups possessed

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>>2453313
When push comes to shove, the Buddhists will start killing like everyone else.

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2016/06/24/471909/Myanmar-Muslims-Rakhin-rights-Budhist-violence

Religion is nice and all, but pragmatism almost always wins out over it. I suppose there's been one or two religions where this was not the case, but as you may suspect, they went extinct along with those that preached absolute abstinence (and sometimes were one in the same).

>>2453335

Jainism still exists afaik

Overall yes. Used to be big in india, pakistan and a lot of other places but got btfo by more violent religions over time.

Exceptions off the top of my head:

>Ashoka (but i think he became a pacifist in the end? )
>military buddhist sects in medieval japan that nobunaga btfo eventually because they stood in the way of unification
>buddhist establishment complicit with juntas in asia presently
>zen monks unanimously endorsing killing in ww2

>>2453313
Is there even a religion that legit supports war? I guess Islam does it in some circumstances, but apart from that all the other world religions are in theory pacifist,.

>>2453481
Ashoka converted to buddhism after he saw the suffering his conquests and massacres caused, so his pacifism and buddhism went hand in hand and he can't really be considered a counterexample.


In general i would say all religions that teach nonviolence run the risk of losing their values when they become part of the establishment or forge alliances with people holding political power since religious doctrine and practice is always also influenced by the societal context in which the religion is practiced.
This is what happened in Japan and also myanmar (>>2453335) and probably tibet as well

>>2453610
This also happened with christianity btw. Early christians refused military service in the roman empire whereas later christians waged war in the name of god

>>2453313
Buddhism in Japan, China, and Korea was extremely violent. The Buddhist temples were powerful and wealthy, and among its numbers were ambitious sons of lords who were skilled in arms. In Korea, Buddhists led suicide brigades of righteous peasant armies that attacked Japanese formations with stupendous courage, inevitably getting rekt.

Wonder what the Buddha had to say about that one.

>>2453335
Buddhism went extinct in India/Afghan/Pakistan/Central Asia due to its pacifistic approach. Myanmar Rakhine conflict is buddhist pushing back against muslim migrants.

https://vividness.live/2015/09/26/buddhist-morality-is-medieval/

>>2454374
I just read through most of it, it seems the author really wants to put a spin on Buddhism in a negative light.

>Buddhism moral is medieval
I'm assuming medieval here means primitive/old-fashioned. Not european period of time. Either way, old doesn't mean bad. Nor modern any good.

>It comes from feudalistic theocratic cultures
Buddhism developed under monarchies, under kings and then empires. Only feudalistic theocratic culture it moved to was Tibet. Tibet before Buddhism was a typical steppe empire that waged war against China and others on the borders. Once Buddhism was introduced, Tibet gradually shifted towards pragmatic pacifism. When the mongols conquered Tibet, mongols took the role of protectors. Tibet then switched mainly towards a monastic policy. Where instead of conscript system for military, it was conscript for full monastic life. Not everyone liked it, but since the country was mostly religious, it was seen as something to take pride in and seen as a religious right of manhood.

I won't go into most others since most are fairly weak arguments. The thing about slavery part is just pure dishonest spin. Buddha telling his monks not to participate in slavery is a support of slavery? What the fuck.

>http://www.buddhisma2z.com/content.php?id=384

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>>2453555

Arjun: “Will I not incur sin by slaying my friends, relatives and my teachers?”
Krishna: “Hey Arjun, if you refuse to fight this righteous war and shy away from your innate duty, you will lose your reputation as a warrior and thus you will definitely incur sin.”
Arjun: “How can we be happy by slaying our own friends, relatives or even the noble elders. Because even after killing them, we will only enjoy the blood stained pleasures in the form of wealth and sense-enjoyments.”
Krishna: “Happy are the warriors who obtain such an unsolicited opportunity for war which opens the door to heaven. Stand up and perform your duty and, therefore, fight with peace in thy soul.”

>>2453321
>the religion is identical to those who practice it incorrectly

OP, yes, Buddhism is a pacifist religion, but obviously people don't always adhere to it.

>>2454443
>it seems the author really wants to put a spin on Buddhism in a negative light.
He's a Buddhist.

>>2454777
Buddists are immune to negative bias?

>>2454789
You're denying Buddhists to tell you bad things are part of the history of their religion because of your bias.

>>2453313
it's worse than Christianity actually
I basically tell you to get rid of your "self", even the will to leave sth meaningful behind via no DESIRE. All for a promise to another fairly land/or a state of existence depend on your interpret. It's inhuman as fuck and goes against the very basic of any living being.
At least christ cuck still want to have children and continue their bloodline

>>2454814
>thinks humanity is about being a hedonist
t.unenlightened

>>2454823
It's not.

But your dark Dionysian impulses are very much a part of being human, and to totally deny them is a disservice to yourself.

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I did not want to destroy the Bamiyan Buddha. In fact, some foreigners came to me and said they would like to conduct the repair work of the Bamiyan Buddha that had been slightly damaged due to rains. This shocked me. I thought, these callous people have no regard for thousands of living human beings -- the Afghans who are dying of hunger, but they are so concerned about non-living objects like the Buddha. This was extremely deplorable. That is why I ordered its destruction. Had they come for humanitarian work, I would have never ordered the Buddha's destruction.[29]
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhas_of_Bamiyan

"Do you see all these things?" he asked. "Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down."

>>2454844
Buddhism advises a middle way between aestheticism and hedonism. Likewise Christianity has the tenets a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

Both don't advocate completely denying desires.

>>2454941
>>2454844
My point being you seem to lack understanding what's being asked in the two religions (especially among laypeople). This being said, aestheticism is hard work which should be praised. It's not for the faint of heart. That doesn't make it a bad thing.

>>2454806
You're confused and bit stupid, to tell you the truth.

It doesn't matter if someone is buddhist or not to point out when the "negative bias". Pointing out the negative bias doesn't show a "bias".

>>2453610
Ashoka was violent as fuck and killed anyone who mocked the buddha, he went as far as to kill thoudands of Jains.

>>2455159
The bias is only in your imagination, child.