Buddhism’s doctrine-dependent-on-patronage structure justifies its state favoritism

Evidence

In any case, the Buddhist clergy and Buddhist politicians view the latter as a Western construct unsuited for Sri Lanka and Buddhism. They do have a point: Buddhism, as noted, has always had patrons, be they rich private individuals or the monarchy. The nature of the religion mandates that not all in society can practice its precepts at the same level. The perpetuation of Buddhism is thus dependent on patronage. The question, however, is whether the source of the patronage ought to be the state (with other religions not provided similar largesse) and whether Buddhist leaders should dictate the state’s decisionmaking processes, as at times does Sri Lanka’s sangha. — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 148

Categorization

• XREF: Causal mechanism linking religious doctrine to support for unequal institutions — relevant across religious-nationalist cases. — connects to: Political Buddhism elevates ethnonationalist politics above Buddhist doctrinal values — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist…, 51; Buddhist institutional survival depended on an interdependence between clergy and state. — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist…, 100; Buddhist precepts were classically individual commitments, not structural demands — , The Rod and the Child: A Global History…, 3984 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Buddhist institutional survival depended on an interdependence between clergy and state. #corroborates (0.92) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 100
• Buddhist precepts were classically individual commitments, not structural demands #corroborates (0.78) — , The Rod and the Child, 3984