Buddhist Warfare
by Michael Jerryson and Mark Juergensmeyer
Published by Oxford University Press
I was really interested in reading this book. I had read a couple reviews and thought it’d be worth checking out. I always prefer to hear both sides of a story, and as we all know, there are always two sides to a story.
The description, and intent, of the book says, “Though traditionally regarded as a peaceful religion, Buddhism has a dark side. On multiple occasions over the past fifteen centuries, Buddhist leaders have sanctioned violence, and even war. The eight essays in this book focus on a variety of Buddhist traditions, from antiquity to the present, and show that Buddhist organizations have used religious images and rhetoric to support military conquest throughout history.”
I did feel like this book was more of an attack on Buddhism than it was an exposè on violence in the Buddhist realm. I understand the idea behind it, to tear down the veil and mysticism and bring Buddhism down to earth for those that are “hypnotized” by the peacefulness of the religion. I also felt like the writers/ editors compiled this stuff to intentionally smear those involved in Buddhism. The funny thing is though, those “in the know” already know there is, and has been, violence in Buddhism.
