[Buddha-l] Dharmapala

[JKirkpatrick]

On Behalf Of andy
Sent: Thursday, July 15, 2010 6:28 PM


.......Jenkins piece in the volume is the one I found most
disturbing.   He says:

>The violence of Satyavaca's situation is typical and shows how
>dangerous the world of the Indian ascetics was imagined to be.
Those who lost debates were often described as being swallowed up
by the earth, drowning in the Ganga, or spitting up blood and
dying. It was not uncommon for the stakes to be death or
conversion.  (Buddhist Warfare, p. 62)
_________________

Since I don't have this book, and since I suspect that many of us
on the list don't have it either-----would you please clarify if
(and when) you, or the quoted author, is referring to the Pali
texts, or to Mahayana texts???

Should be obvious but they definitely aren't the same.
Presupposing that Buddhism is a monolithic entity is simply
pointless, yet this is the slant that seems to be central in this
thread (except for Lance's contributions).  

Cheers, JK