Ethnoreligious violence stems from human social psychology, not Buddhism’s tenets

Evidence

Tessa Bartholomeusz (2002) claimed a strong just war doctrine exists within Theravada Buddhism. However, as Premasiri points out, Buddhism emphasizes nonviolence, but “considers conflict as an unavoidable evil in society” (Premasiri 2006: 82). Violence thus has little to do with Buddhism and much to do with the socio-psychological cravings of human society. — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 86

Categorization

• QUESTION: Challenges the common thesis that Theravada Buddhism legitimized the civil war; worth pursuing how much the Buddhist church’s wartime role actually diverged from the religion’s founding ethics.
• XREF: connects to: A religion’s violence depends on context, not inherent character; Popular blame of religious belief for violence remains scientifically untested; Cultural racism explains Muslim violence through religion rather than lived circumstances — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 621 (+14 more)

Broader Connections

• A religion’s violence depends on context, not inherent character #corroborates (0.92)
• Extremist Sinhalese parties weaponized Buddhism against Tamil devolution #exemplifies (0.85) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 157
• Ethnically absolutist communitarianism produces its own violence #corroborates (0.82)
• Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist ideology rests on mythic history yet betrays Buddhism’s core values #exemplifies (0.82) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 294
• Cultural racism explains Muslim violence through religion rather than lived circumstances #corroborates (0.80) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 621
• Sinhalese monks frame Buddhism’s status through territorial threat perception #exemplifies (0.80) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 153
• Popular blame of religious belief for violence remains scientifically untested #corroborates (0.78)
• Sinhalese nationalist identity is constructed as inseparable from Buddhism #exemplifies (0.78) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 193
• Belief in vengeful ancestral spirits sustained a society’s institutionalized warfare #corroborates (0.75)
• Societies that devalue and rarely model aggression produce nonviolent people #corroborates (0.72) — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 167
• Individual and collective violence operate through separate psychological mechanisms #corroborates (0.72) — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 382
• Acceptance of violence is a transmitted skill, not a cultural trait #corroborates (0.70)