[Buddha-l] Buddhist pacifism

[Franz Metcalf]

Gang,
(in my town, we have plenty of women gang members)

On buddha-l we've had several discussions much like this. Looking 
through posts I've saved from those threads, I find several references 
given by various members of buddha-l. I've been thinking of collecting 
them and I do so now, ad majorem buddhi gloriam. (Diversionary note: 
Here I've assigned the masculine gender to "Buddha," despite its "a" 
ending indicating the feminine gender in Latin. Perhaps I should I have 
written "buddhae." How *is* "Buddha" written in Latin, anyway?)

First, though James was too genteel to mention it, if you'd like to 
read more of his convincing analysis of this issue, see James Stroble, 
"Buddhism and War: A Study of the Status of Violence in Early Buddhism" 
at http://www2.hawaii.edu/%7Estroble/BUDDWAR.HTM

For an opposing view, see _The Budhha Taught Nonviolence, Not Pacifism_ 
by Paul Fleischman, M.D. published by Pariyatti Press; 
http://www.pariyatti.com. I've not read the book, but the excerpt is 
available online at 
http://www.dharma.org/ij/archives/2002a/nonviolence.htm is plenty 
maddening enough for me.

A classic article by Paul Demieville was first published as “Le 
bouddhisme et la guerre," postscript to _l'Histoire des moines 
guerriers du Japon_ by Gaston Renondeau, _Mélanges publiés par 
l’Institut des Hautes Etudes chinoises_, v1, Paris, 1957, p347-385. It 
might be easier to find in Paul Demiéville, _Choix d'Etudes bouddhiques 
(1929-1970)_, Leiden, E. J. Brill, 1973, p261-299.

When we discussed this issue on buddha-l in 2003, Nobu Iyanaga promised 
he would try to except and comment on Demiéville's article. He more 
than fulfilled his promise, also including lengthy and articulate posts 
from buddha-l (back when there was a high proportion of Buddhist 
scholars on it). You can read his good work at: 
http://www.bekkoame.ne.jp/~n-iyanag/buddhism/buddhism_war.html

For those who care about contemporary Sri Lankan positions: "In Defense 
of Dharma: Just-War Ideology in Buddhist Sri Lanka" By Tessa 
Bartholomeusz, http://jbe.gold.ac.uk/6/bartho991.htm

Schmithausen, Lambert. 1999.  "Aspects of the Buddhist Attitude to War" 
in _Violence Denied: Violence, Non-Violence and the Rationalization of 
Violence in South Asian Cultural History_, edited by J. E. M. Houben 
and K. R. van Kooij (Leiden: Brill), pp. 45–67.

"Can a Buddhist Join the Army?" 
http://www.saigon.com/~anson/ebud/whatbudbeliev/290.htm

Buddhism & The Soldier, by Major General Ananda Weerasekera, 
http://www.beyondthenet.net/thedway/soldier.htm

Can We Justify War? 
http://www.saigon.com/~anson/ebud/whatbudbeliev/287.htm

And, from the Pali Canon, SN III.15: Sangama Sutta, SN XLII.3: 
Yodhajiva Sutta, and SN III.14:Sangama Sutta. (For canonical Mahayana 
sources, see Iyanaga-sensei's article, cited above.)

Peacefully,

Franz