Interesting comments from the Dalai Lama. I place them here for discussion.
As a human being, Bin Laden may have deserved compassion and even forgiveness, the Dalai Lama said in answer to a question about the assassination of the Al Qaeda leader. But, he said, "Forgiveness doesn't mean forget what happened. … If something is serious and it is necessary to take counter-measures, you have to take counter-measures."
LA Times: Dalai Lama suggests Osama bin Laden's death was justified
He also spoke of buddhism:
The Dalai Lama spoke about the importance of religious tolerance, and about the shared values of all major religions. But he said that people could not attain happiness through prayer, and that "this happy life is not a religious concept." Happiness, he said, is a secular concept, so "our aim is secular."
"I'm Buddhist," he said. "I respect religion. But I talk always about secularism."
LA Times: Dalai Lama suggests Osama bin Laden's death was justified
My own view is that the President did the right thing. There was a time a few years ago in which I disagreed on entering a sovereign nation for this pupose. But based on the Pakistani's inability or unwillingness to detain OBL, I think President Obama did the right thing.
Perhaps this will be a beginning of a return to normalcy. God knows, this nation needs it.
Just remember: Obama succeeded where Bush failed.
Obama = Competence, courage, strength and intelligence.
Bush and Republicans = failure, demogoguery, hate.
Spread the word.
Update I: Radio Girl in the comments adds more explanation as a Tibetan Buddhist practioner:
I am a Buddhist practitioner in (2+ / 0-)
Recommended by:Hill Jill, TomP
a Tibetan tradition, and this is exactly in line with teachings I have received and other things I have heard the Dalai Lama say.
Sometimes, the teachers say, force must be used to stop greater evil from happening. But the challenge always is to use just enough and not more force. The challenge is to never justify one's own aggression or violence by laying all responsibility on others. The challenge is always to work for the benefit of ALL beings, not just the ones we like the best.
I once was at an event where the Dalai Lama spoke of how Buddhism has a reverence for life and that killing contradicts this reverence. But sometimes, it isn't so simple, he said, and turned to a discussion of abortion. Buddhism, he said, understands abortion as a form of killing. Yet it is also a different form of killing to consign many unplanned/unwanted children to poverty, hunger, and too often, family violence. So, he said: the situation is complicated, and our responses must think deeply about these complications and avoid dogmatic answers and facile judgments that only reinforce one's own beliefs/prejudices.
My own experience of Buddhism is that the teachings are never presented as a blank check that on which we write the costs of our own situational ethics, but rather that my teachers have always emphasized deep consideration of a situation, possible consequences (for whom), etc. And then emphasize that the consequences of everything we say and do will remain with us, whether acknowledged or not.
Tom, this is a thoughtful posting, and I am grateful for it.
Teach us to listen to sounds larger than our own heartbeat; that endure longer than our own weeping in the dark. - Lillian Smith
by RadioGirl on Wed May 04, 2011 at 01:28:16 PM CDT
[ Reply to This | Recommend Hide ]
Radio Girl asked me to point out she is just one practioner. She provides insight, but so do others. I will add a critical comment also.
Update II:
Catnip has a different view:
From his site: (5+ / 0-)
Recommended by:joanneleon, Lady Libertine, liberaldemdave, SJerseyIndy, Support Civil Liberty
His Holiness then answered questions, some of which were submitted through the Internet. The first question was on His Holiness’ emphasis on compassion as a basis of ethics. It asked whether in some situation ensuring justice is more important than being compassionate to the perpetrator of a crime. It referred to the news of the death of Osama Bin Laden and the celebrations of it by some, and asked where compassion fit in with this and ethics. In his response, His Holiness emphasized the need to find a distinction between the action and the actor. He said in the case of Bin Laden, his action was of course destructive and the September 11 events killed thousands of people. So his action must be brought to justice, His Holiness said. But with the actor we must have compassion and a sense of concern, he added. His Holiness said therefore the counter measure, no matter what form it takes, has to be compassionate action. His Holiness referred to the basis of the practice of forgiveness saying that it, however, did not mean that one should forget what has been done.
Killing somebody in a firefight is hardly compassionate. And I don't think the LA Times interpretation of what HHDL said should be used to justify what happened or to back up the diarist's position that Obama "did the right thing". "Right", in buddhist circles, is about compassion.
Right Action and the Precepts
Right Action, Right Speech and Right Livelihood make up the ethical conduct part of the path. Most basically, Right Action refers to keeping the precepts. The many schools of Buddhism have various lists of precepts, but the precepts common to most schools are these:
1. Not killing
2. Not stealing
3. Not misusing sex
4. Not lying
5. Not abusing intoxicants
"I have lived with several Zen masters -- all of them cats." - Eckhart Tolle
by catnip on Wed May 04, 2011 at 01:38:58 PM CDT
[ Parent | Reply to This | Recommend Hide ]
Update III: Part of my response to Catnip re his accusation that I was using the Dalai Lama to promote my own views:
I think the headline [on the newspaper article] may go beyond what the Dalia Lama said, but I also think it is clear he did not denounce the killing of OBL.
snip
I was merely stating my own opinion. I was not using what "HHDL said should be used to justify what happened or to back up the diarist's position that Obama 'did the right thing'".
[In my view, President Obama did the right thing whether or not the HHDL approves.]
I found the comments interesting and then felt I should describe my own position. The only connections between what HHDL said and what I said are (1) it's about the killing of OBL and (2) it is in the same diary here.
The HHDL's views neither support or are relevant to my views. I came to my view on my own and would hold it even if HHDL said I was wrong.
Update IV: And to those few who attacked my motives, I reply as follows:
I just reported what was said and then presented my own position.
Do you really think people need the Dalia Lama to approve this?
Let me make this as clear as possible: I'm glad the US killed OBL. I am glad this President approved the attack resulting in his death (or assassination, if you prefer).
[As Deoliver points out:
As was pointed out in another diary MLK, JKF and RFK were assassinated.
ObL was not.
] She's right. This was not assassination. OBL made the world his battlefield and he died in combat.
Update V: More. Little brings this from the website of the Dalai Lama:
This is unambiguous: (1+ / 0-)
Recommended by:TomP
If something is serious and it is necessary to take counter-measures, you have to take counter-measures.
The website of HHDL, however, says this, which is ambiguous:
His Holiness then answered questions, some of which were submitted through the Internet. The first question was on His Holiness’ emphasis on compassion as a basis of ethics. It asked whether in some situation ensuring justice is more important than being compassionate to the perpetrator of a crime. It referred to the news of the death of Osama Bin Laden and the celebrations of it by some, and asked where compassion fit in with this and ethics. In his response, His Holiness emphasized the need to find a distinction between the action and the actor. He said in the case of Bin Laden, his action was of course destructive and the September 11 events killed thousands of people. So his action must be brought to justice, His Holiness said. But with the actor we must have compassion and a sense of concern, he added. His Holiness said therefore the counter measure, no matter what form it takes, has to be compassionate action. His Holiness referred to the basis of the practice of forgiveness
saying that it, however, did not mean that one should forget what has been done.
http://www.dalailama.com/....
Here, have some pandas.
by Little on Wed May 04, 2011 at 08:07:50 PM CDT
[ Reply to This | Recommend Hide ]