Buddhist Leaders and Upasakas call for Peace

Hatred is never appeased by hatred in this world. By non-hatred alone is hatred appeased. This is an eternal law.” – Gautama Buddha

Buddhism, has a long and great tradition of Ahimsa (non-violence), and peace among world religions. At this time, on the world is on the brink of World War 3. There is an urgent need for Buddhists to lead a Global call for Peace– through balanced and negotiated conflict resolution in the Middle East. The conflict in that region is embedded in a staged Clash of Civilizations”, involving monotheistic Judeo-Christianity on the one hand and Islamic formations on the other.

The Buddhist tradition of Critical Thinking, based on Cultivation of Right View (sammadithi) and Right Understanding; through investigation and analysis of the facts and events for oneself may be recalled at this time.

Through study of a subject or problem and development of Right Understanding and Consciousness a strategy for Right Speech and Right Action to ameliorate a situation, whether local or global, may be arrived at, collectively, at this time of global emergency, although individually we may feel weak and unable to do much.

The Buddha’s message of Ahimsa or Non-Violence in a time of War-talk

The world is ‘millimeters’ way from nuclear catastrophe” in the Middle East, Russia has warned.  Israel’s United States-backed illegal attacks on Iran under international law, and counter-attacks by Iran, have already caused nuclear leakage and environmental harm in the past week. This escalation has also distracted from Israel’s genocide in Gaza against the Palestinian people.

At this time US President Trump is considering Striking Iran within two weeks– after moving troops to safety from America’s Middle East military bases. The Middle East is the center of global energy supply and another world war starting in the region could affect many debt-trapped countries in the Global South, including Sri Lanka—which is the historical repository of the teachings of the Enlightened One who perfected and taught the Nobel Eightfold Path.

Buddhism has a long tradition of peace-making with Social Justice. Peace-making without social justice is not sustainable and amounts to ‘passification of populations’ rather than genuine conflict resolution. It buries the problem, which resurfaces later. The ends do no justify the means.

Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violent resistance to end British Colonial Occupation of India was inspired by Buddhism. So too, South Africa’s Nelson Mandela who led non-violent resistance to end Apartheid in that country was strongly influenced by Buddhism.

With the world on the brink of unprecedented catastrophe is it not time for Buddhist leaders and assemblies / congregations (Upasakas and Upasikas) around the world to call for Peace?

Online Religiosity and Zionist Chabad Networks in Sri Lanka

The setting up and use of extremist religio-cultural networks during the Cold War and intervening years has escalated in recent times through digital religiosity and online social media platforms. Simultaneously, the staging of Culture Wars has enabled dividing and fragmenting historically plural and multicultural societies with shared traditions of community and co-existence.

The weaponization of world religion/s and use of extremist pseudo-religious organizations and networks like the Zionist Chabad Houses, as a strategy of warfare has been conducted by the same forces that promote wars and sell weapons and debt trap countries. The links of Chabad movement to US and Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad are well documented. Simultaneously, the legitimacy of global religious traditions of peace have been eroded.

In recent times, Israeli networks have set up Zionist Chabad Prayer Houses in Sri Lanka although there never was and is no Jewish community in the county. There are on-going attempts to convert people, once again escalate and weaponize religion/s, also through funding and using extremist organizations and groups to de-stabilize a historically multicultural and multi-religious county, and divide and distract citizens.

This constitutes a National Security Threat, especially given in the history of Islamic State (ISIS), claimed terror attacks at Easter Sunday in 2019 which were staged to trigger cascades of violence” and destroy the multi-faith social fabric of Sri Lanka.

Here, Right Understanding of the complexity and geopolitical economic dimensions of the problem and taking Right Action based on Right Understanding is required at this time to address this issue. Burying one’s head in the sand and saying that we see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil’ may not be a wise option even if understandable given the magnitude of the problem.

Another world war with religious under-tones triggered by nuclear-armed Israel backed by the United States would constitute a global environmental catastrophe. The United States and NATO has 750 military bases around the world to stage war.

Collective and Community-based Solutions based on Right Understanding

While we may feel that individually we have little or no power to change things collectively we may be able to make a difference. Or at least try. Sadly, the emphasis on community and the collective in Asian cultures, and the search for collective solutions have been undermined and atomized in recent times by advanced individualism and consumerism.  People are increasingly in their post-Covid-19 digital bubbles in the wake of Lockdowns and masking of truth.

Here, the promotion of on-line digital religiosity as a form of ‘passification of populations’ may give us pause. Simultaneously, there has been an over-psychologisation and perhaps a Western individualist approach to fundamentally Social and Collective problems that are shared by all and warrant collective action and solutions. Asian Buddhist Societies have historically valued community over individualism.

Right Action based on Right View and Right Understanding of What the Buddha Taught is needed at this time. We may be individually weak, but together, collectively, we may have the power to make a difference, if not change things for the better. Avoiding escalation of conflict in the Middle East and World War 3 would require non-violent global resistance based on Right Speech and Right Action arising from Right View and Right Consciousness – from a Buddhist Perspective- drawing on What the Buddha Taught.