Preaching in a Time of Declining Dharma: History, Ethics and Protection in Sermons to the Sri Lankan Army
This article examines two Buddhist ceremonies sponsored by the Sri Lankan Army, a flag blessing in 2005 and a lamp lighting ceremony in 2007. I argue that, while the monks officiating at these ceremonies encourage the soldiers to fight, they do not justify war in any way. On the contrary, these prea...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Routledge
[2015]
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| In: |
Contemporary buddhism
Year: 2015, Volume: 16, Issue: 1, Pages: 188-223 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | This article examines two Buddhist ceremonies sponsored by the Sri Lankan Army, a flag blessing in 2005 and a lamp lighting ceremony in 2007. I argue that, while the monks officiating at these ceremonies encourage the soldiers to fight, they do not justify war in any way. On the contrary, these preachers employ an ethical imagination more dependent upon eschatological factors than upon individual obligations. Specifically, they take for granted that ideal Buddhist moral behaviour is almost impossible in a world where the Dharma is in decline. In a world of declining Dharma, they assert that Buddhists must sometimes engage in unwholesome activities in order to preserve the possibility of Buddhist practice in the future. They do not justify these compromises according to a hierarchy of moral duties or a metaphysical ideal of justice, but rather they accept them as markers of the corrupt nature of the world. The monks thus advise soldiers to protect the Dharma that remains in the country, preserving the possibility of Buddhist ethical activity and the possibility of re-establishing Dharma in the future. |
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| ISSN: | 1476-7953 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Contemporary buddhism
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/14639947.2015.1008122 |