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Fiction. Literature. Mythology. HTML: A Buddhist parable on confronting violence offers "a profound message about hope in the midst of seemingly hopeless terrors" (Robert Thurman, author of Man of Peace). In this timely retelling of an ancient Buddhist parable, peace activist Satish Kumar has created a small book with a powerful spiritual message about ending violence. It is a tale of a fearsome outcast named Angulimala ("Necklace of Fingers"), who is terrorizing towns and villages in order to gain control of the state, and murdering people and adding their fingers to his gruesome necklace. One day he comes face to face with the Buddha and is persuaded, through a series of compelling conversations, to renounce violence and take responsibility for his actions. The Buddha and the Terrorist addresses the urgent questions we face today: Should we talk to terrorists? Can we reason with religious fundamentalists? Is nonviolence practical? The story ends with a dramatic trial that speaks to the victims of terrorism�??the families whose mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters Angulimala has murdered. It asks whether it is possible for them to forgive. Or whether it is even desirable. No one can read The Buddha and the Terrorist without thinking about the root causes of terrorism, about good and evil, about justice and forgiveness, about the kind of place we want the world to be, and, most importantly, about the most productive and practical way to get there. The wisdom within this book provides "a crucial alternative to the unending cycle of bloodshed and retaliation" (Booklist). "This kind of parable has a calming effect on the mind. The change in outlook from anger to compassion is also contagious, also powerful." �??Los Angeles Times Book Review "A challenging story, beautifully written, most pertinent and relevant to our time." �??Deepak Ch… (more)
User reviews
Read it slowly and thoughtfully and question yourself why we don't hear more guidance toward peace and love such as this.
The positive: The book recognizes that people who have done evil aren't necessarily destined to do evil forever. They can in some cases be rehabilitated. And it also teaches to forgive people who have reformed. This is all good by me.
The negative: The idea that "violence begets violence" is true in some cases, but not in others. If the first person Angulimala killed had fought back and killed him instead, would this violence have beget new violence? Quite simply, no. It would have ended the violence and saved many lives. And the person who killed him would have lived out the rest of his or her life in peace. There are many reasons for someone to do violence to another. Not all of these reasons have to do with craving power or having a thirst for revenge or a cruel heart. Sometimes violence is done in self-defense, sometimes it is done to euthanize the suffering, sometimes it is in recognition that human beings need to eat.
We should do our best to annihilate the LOVE of violence, and I appreciate the Buddha's devotion to this cause, but a dogmatic rejection against all forms of violence can be a form of cruelty in and of itself: as an example, letting your dog die a slow painful death of leukemia rather than having her put down. And again, in what possible way could this act of violence beget new violence? These mantras are well-intentioned and sound good, but they don't always make a lot of sense.