pericles said:
To be so simplistic in an argument is often incorrect. . Buddhist countries have commited tremendous atrocities against their own people . The killing fields of Cambodia is just one and then Burma and the list goes on and on. Yes all societies are capable of tremendous brutality and to say that buddhism shows differently and are more moral than catholics is a shallow argument.
I am afraid you missunderstood me. Yes, all societies are capable of tremendous brutality. Yes, many budhist countries had a past of tremendous violence. Today as well there are a lot of conflicts inside budhist societies and other conflicts wich involve budhists. But was it pure violence? Were they burning people on a stake in the name of religion?
The chinese war in tibet, the "khmers rouges", "pathet lao", the vietnam war have other origins that do not have much to do with religion. Of course there where and are a lot of conflicts involving budhist people.
I really don't know in what Dalai Lama was or wasn't involved. I read the press as everybody else and some things are obvious, while others aren't.
I've never been in Tibet. But during my stay in Mcleod Ganj, I was surprised not to feel hate converted to violence from the tibetan people towards the chinese.
What I was saying is that in christian countries, violence was done in the name of the religion to inocent people.
And again you missunderstand what I'm saying. I'm not saying budhist people are more moral than catolics. I'm saying that too often, representants of the catholic church are not leaving models of what they are preaching. Of course, this might happen with budhist monks as well, but I saw more humility and tolerance in them than in the christian priests.
Why is that? I think portena gave a peace of the answer.
For example, in which christian country the priests wake up at 6 and start walking barefoot into the city so that people may give them food?
Or which christian priest keeps calm and smiling when a drunk us tourist adresses him like "come over here, you monkey, I want a picture with you!" ?
All from above are considerations from a religious point of view. Now from a social point of view, I think both societies have their good and bad parts. I don't see one better than the other, just different. very different.
But, based on my own experience, I see budhist countries less violent than christian ones.
