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As someone living in Myanmar (Burma) nobody justifies being poor with Buddhism. > wholesale enslavement and transport of complete populations such as in Thaila

As someone living in Myanmar (Burma) nobody justifies being poor with Buddhism. > wholesale enslavement and transport of complete populations such as in Thailand not too long ago and in present day Burma. Nobody is being enslaved because of Buddhism in present day Myanmar. That’s ridiculous. The violence here has very little to do with religion. None of the ethnic independence armies are theological (like ISIS for example). Nobody is picking up guns because they read some sutras. The emperor that had a huge influence marrying Buddhism with government in Myanmar and Thailand and who at one time ruled the Indian subcontinent, Ashoka the Great, abolished the slave trade (3rd century BCE). Slavery was practiced throughout the subcontinent before Buddhism became intertwined with the state.

kranner 6y ago
The same Ashoka continued to slaughter en masse people who seemed to disagree with him, even after his conversion to Buddhism and taking up ahimsa (nonviolence) as a governing principle [1]. Except after his conversion he restricted the genocide to non-Buddhists. Though this may have been an improvement from before his conversion to Buddhism when he executed or enslaved the entire population of Kalinga [2]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashokavadana https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashokavadana > Ashokavadana mentions two incidents of Ashoka turning towards violence after adopting Buddhism. In one instance, a non-Buddhist in Pundravardhana drew a picture showing the Buddha bowing at the feet of Nirgrantha Jnatiputra (identified with Mahavira, the founder of Jainism). On complaint from a Buddhist devotee, Ashoka issued an order to arrest him, and subsequently, another order to kill all the Ajivikas in Pundravardhana. Around 18,000 followers of the Ajivika sect were executed as a result of this order. [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalinga_War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalinga_War
- alexmingoia 6y ago
  Yes, he was a warring bloodthirsty emperor that used the popular religion at the time to consolidate his power. Like most other empires on the planet two thousand years ago. I’m not sure what that is supposed to prove about Buddhism in particular.
  - kranner 6y ago
    It doesn't prove anything about Buddhism. I only meant Ashoka is constantly put up as an example of someone whose conduct improved after conversion to Buddhism, but that is a very selective reading.

kranner 6y ago

The same Ashoka continued to slaughter en masse people who seemed to disagree with him, even after his conversion to Buddhism and taking up ahimsa (nonviolence) as a governing principle [1]. Except after his conversion he restricted the genocide to non-Buddhists. Though this may have been an improvement from before his conversion to Buddhism when he executed or enslaved the entire population of Kalinga [2]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashokavadana https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashokavadana > Ashokavadana mentions two incidents of Ashoka turning towards violence after adopting Buddhism. In one instance, a non-Buddhist in Pundravardhana drew a picture showing the Buddha bowing at the feet of Nirgrantha Jnatiputra (identified with Mahavira, the founder of Jainism). On complaint from a Buddhist devotee, Ashoka issued an order to arrest him, and subsequently, another order to kill all the Ajivikas in Pundravardhana. Around 18,000 followers of the Ajivika sect were executed as a result of this order. [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalinga_War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalinga_War

alexmingoia 6y ago
Yes, he was a warring bloodthirsty emperor that used the popular religion at the time to consolidate his power. Like most other empires on the planet two thousand years ago. I’m not sure what that is supposed to prove about Buddhism in particular.
- kranner 6y ago
  It doesn't prove anything about Buddhism. I only meant Ashoka is constantly put up as an example of someone whose conduct improved after conversion to Buddhism, but that is a very selective reading.