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to buddhists, war is akusala aka unskillful, evil. yet buddhists sometimes fight in wars. is war always wrong? Is there such a thing as a "just war" theory in buddhism? 
buddhists at War
buddhist scholars say there is no justification for war in buddhist teaching. yet buddhism has not always separated itself from war. there is historic documentation that in 621 CE monks from the shaolin temple of china fought in a battle that helped establish the tang dynasty. in centuries past, the heads of tibetan buddhist schools formed strategic alliances with mongol warlords and reaped benefits from the warlords' victories.
the links between zen buddhism and samurai warrior culture were partly responsible for the shocking collusion of zen and japanese militarism in the 1930s and 1940s. for several years a virulent jingoism seized japanese zen, and teachings were twisted and corrupted to excuse killing. zen institutions not only supported Japanese military aggression but raised money to manufacture war planes and weapons.
observed from a distance of time and culture, these actions and ideas are inexcusable corruptions of dharma, and any "just war" theory that arose from them were the products of delusion.
in recent years buddhist monks have been leaders of political and social activism in asia. the Saffron revolution in burma and the march 2008 demonstrations in Ttbet are the most prominent examples. more troubling are the monks of sri lanka who lead the jathika hela urumaya, "national heritage party," a strongly nationalist group that advocates a military solution to sri lanka's ongoing civil war. so you you still think buddist and monkss are peacefull ppl ?
buddhists at War
buddhist scholars say there is no justification for war in buddhist teaching. yet buddhism has not always separated itself from war. there is historic documentation that in 621 CE monks from the shaolin temple of china fought in a battle that helped establish the tang dynasty. in centuries past, the heads of tibetan buddhist schools formed strategic alliances with mongol warlords and reaped benefits from the warlords' victories.
the links between zen buddhism and samurai warrior culture were partly responsible for the shocking collusion of zen and japanese militarism in the 1930s and 1940s. for several years a virulent jingoism seized japanese zen, and teachings were twisted and corrupted to excuse killing. zen institutions not only supported Japanese military aggression but raised money to manufacture war planes and weapons.
observed from a distance of time and culture, these actions and ideas are inexcusable corruptions of dharma, and any "just war" theory that arose from them were the products of delusion.
in recent years buddhist monks have been leaders of political and social activism in asia. the Saffron revolution in burma and the march 2008 demonstrations in Ttbet are the most prominent examples. more troubling are the monks of sri lanka who lead the jathika hela urumaya, "national heritage party," a strongly nationalist group that advocates a military solution to sri lanka's ongoing civil war. so you you still think buddist and monkss are peacefull ppl ?
