Violence in the name of moral principle is very sad, the Dalai Lama
Thursday, September 08, 2011
DHARAMSHALA, September 8: “If you criticize Islam due to a few mischievous Muslims, then you have to criticise all world religions,” the Dalai Lama said in a keynote address at an interfaith meet explaining that “all religions – including his own – have faithful who carry the seeds of destructive emotions within them.”
His Holiness the Dalai Lama speaking at the World Religions After 9/11 Conference in Montreal, September 7, 2011. (Photo/ John Mahoney, The Gazette)
The Tibetan spiritual leader was speaking Wednesday in Montreal at a conference examining how religions can foster peace in the post-9-11 world. The event, Second Global Congress on World’s Religions after September 11 took place just days before the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
“Violence in the name of moral principle is very sad,” the Dalai Lama said, comparing it to a “medicine that is supposed to cure you but only makes you sicker.”
Stressing on the need to promote dialogue as the only means to resolve conflict, the Dalai Lama said that the bloodshed of 20th century failed to resolve human problems.
“We will not achieve understanding through prayers to God or Buddha,” the Dalai Lama said. “We have to make an effort to talk to each other.”
Talking on the role of individuals in building a better world, the Dalai Lama said that individuals, not governments, have the power to bring more honesty into the world.
“The practice of compassion must start with one individual, then share with your own family members,” said the Dalai Lama, who was granted honorary Canadian citizenship in 2006.
The Nobel laureate shared his views on how to tackle global challenges like climate change and corruption.
“Corruption is some new kind of disease on the planet,” the Dalai Lama said.
The Dalai Lama also chided Chinese communism for having “no ethics” and warned against mining in the Himalayas. “You can change political mistakes, but for ecology it is more difficult,” he said.
The Tibetan exiled spiritual leader was quoted by AFP as saying that China should allow information to flow more freely and to create an independent judiciary.
A quick transition in China from communism to democracy “would create many problems. For now, what China needs is free information and an independent judiciary,” the Dalai Lama was quoted as saying.
The one-day conference also featured a panel discussion by prominent religious scholars and spiritual thinkers — including Oxford University Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan and author Deepak Chopra along with experts representing Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism.
Source: http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=29973
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All religions emphasis love, compassion and peace. If there are violence imposed, I believe it most probably are the wrong view of the practitioners. Hence it is NOT right to impose violence in the name of moral principle. Having the right understanding is very important to mold a peaceful and harmony world. For a start we as individual have to understand, accept and practise it in our daily life. No point talking and not putting it into action.
All religions are basically the same that all religions basically teach the same that’s for sure. They seem to all be saying the same thing in different ways. All religions teach the practice of loving kindness, compassion, caring, respectful and tolerance within each other. HH Dalai Lama spoke powerfully in a keynote address at an interfaith Conference sharing his views on how to tackle global challenges like climate change and corruption. When we observe good faith and justice toward all nations we will live harmoniously and peacefully. Great religious acceptance and tolerance, a very necessary aspect in keeping peace and harmony.
As Rinpoche always say, no religion teach you something bad. I truly believe so. How can religion teach us to harm other people or say bad things about other religion? Please never say that your God taught you such things. It is our own deception and ignorance that create so much problems among ourselves.
I love it when Dalai Lama said this “medicine that is supposed to cure you but only makes you sicker.” So how can religion teach us to harm others?
In almost all situations, people are quick to pass judgement on a group for mistakes done by of a few members of that group. It is similar in the 9/11 incident. Not all Muslims are terrorists! There are good and bad people in all religions.
Terrorists are not born naturally to be terrorists. They could have been trained from very young. When their minds were habituated with negative values e.g. hatred, discrimination, violence, racial prejudice etc, naturally when they grow up they become very dangerous and harmful persons like the terrorists.
All the authentic religions in the World teaches good ethics. If all the children of the different religious faiths everywhere in the World are trained from young with good ethical values then there will be World Peace. There will be harmony among all religious faiths.
Very few simple sentences yet very profound. Friends or enemies, we divide the people around us into 2 groups of people, friends or enemies. If we don’t shared the same belief, priorities, or point of view, automatically we treat them as enemies, and we talk and negotiate as enemies. We lose when we give in, and the enemy wins.
At an interfaith conference held at Montreal on Sept.8, 2011, His Holiness The Dalai Lama, together with other World religious leaders examined how religions can foster Peace in Post-9-11 world. World peace is not only possible, but inevitable. People of all nations not only proclaim their deepest desire and readiness for world peace, but also for an end to the harrowing sufferings caused by destructions, conflicts and aggressions of its wars and terrorisms. No serious attempts to achieve world peace without killing, can ignore Religion. Historians have described religion as a falculty of “Human nature”which is said to have demonstrated its direct effect of its laws on ethics, morality and social order. Religion is also said to be the greatest of all means for establishment of order and for the peaceful contentment of Humanity. If therefore humanity has come to a point of paralyzing conflict, it must look to itself and its own negligence for the source of its own misunderstandings and confusion, said to be perpetrated in the name of Religion! arm,
I have a question… There is a Jataka Tale (Pannasa Jataka althought I have yet to actually find this tale online but many people say it exists) where the Buddha killed a pirate because the pirate was going to kill everyone on the ship. Is this a moral killing? I’m going to answer my own question but I want others’ feedback as well. I think it was justified because out of his great compassion the Buddha would have him take the negative karma rather than the pirate who would have accumulated more negative karma for killing more than one person.
When Osama bin Laden was killed, I knew that no more people would die by his hand. However I did not agree with the sentiment of how he was killed. I felt it was more out of vengence instead of compassion. I was saddened that it had to come to this.
I would like to know the views of others. Thanks.
“We will not achieve understanding through prayers to God or Buddha,” the Dalai Lama said. “We have to make an effort to talk to each other.” – this should be obvious but how many do take it up in times of crisis, or when a perceived threat is felt. There are times that people simply do not want to have a dialogue they just want to start a fight!