[Buddha-l] Religious violence, Buddhist violence

[JKirkpatrick]

 .....As a Buddhist, I am not especially drawn to Aum Shinrikyo.
But as a professor in a secular university that has courses on
Buddhism, I cannot and should not pass judgment on what is
authentically Buddhist and what is not. .....

Richard P. Hayes <rhayes at unm.edu>



As I have pointed out recently on this list when I wrote about
emics and etics, cultural critique is both emic and etic, both by
insiders and outsiders. The emic critiques, so far as cults go,
usually come from ex- members. Or, at least, they get published
so we know about them, as contrasted with the others who get
assassinated.  As an example, see the recently re-published
_Monkey on a Stick_, by an ex-member of ISKON. 

When it comes to Aum Shinrikyo, I'd etically critique its goals,
practices and values without feeling any necessity to allude to
its self-description as Buddhism. Toxicity to human life and/or
to the environment cannot be ignored. That cult is/was so toxic
to life on this planet that their beliefs can easily be
criticised whether or not they claim to be Buddhist, Christians,
or anything else. Such a critical practice can work for any human
production, religious or not, political or not.

Joanna