[Assam] Just War?

[Ram Sarangapani]

Mukul da,

At least, you will acknowledge there is a lot of violence (from the
militants and from the armed forces).

The question, I pose is, is there a casus belli in the case of Assam (or
elsewhere)? Ie. is there a need for violence?

--Ram



On 10/29/06, mc mahant <mikemahant at hotmail.com> wrote:

>  In Assam it is not an War:
>
> "We want always to colonize you-how dare you leave us-we will kill you"
> That's what!
>
>  ------------------------------
> From:  *"Ram Sarangapani" <assamrs at gmail.com>*
> To:  *ASSAMNET <assam at assamnet.org>*
> Subject:  *[Assam] Just War?*
> Date:  *Sun, 29 Oct 2006 11:00:38 -0600*
>
> The experience in Iraq has been fiasco then, and fiasco now. While 3000
> people died on 9/11, the reponse from the US has killed more than
> 600,000 Iraqis, Afganis etc.
>
>  The month of Oct. has seen the highest number of US deaths in a while. In
> Assam too, Oct. has been a very bloody month - with the very high number of
> people (militants, soldiers, innocents) killed. (AT today)
>  Is there a justification?
>
>  The concept of a 'Just War' (ordained by providence) was somehow sold to
> the people during the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine (274-337) .
>
>  Today, any violence is justified as either coming down straight from God
> (God's will) or some other justification (cause) such as religious or
> ethinic loss of identity.
>
>  Most religions have dealt with war  - some have justified it (through
> their believers), while others like Emperor Ashoka have denounced was (after
> Kalinga).
>
>  Gandhi observed 'I object to violence because when it appears to do good,
> the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent.'
>
>  Was Gandhi right?
>
>  Below is a good topic for discussion. Hope you all enjoy it and join in.
>
>  --Ram
>  ____________________________________________
>  http://www.ppu.org.uk/learn/infodocs/st_religions.html
>  Many wars have been fought with religion as their stated cause, and with
> peace as their hoped-for end.
>
> What follows is a very brief summary of what the world's major religions
> say about war - and peace. Of course, religious beliefs are often
> complicated; individuals and groups within each religion often have
> different views; and religious affiliation is often closely associatedwith
> partisan emotions.
>
>  A summary can only give a very limited picture. But it can open a door to
> understanding the links between religion and war.
>
>  ------------------------------
>
> 1. War: wrong, just or holy?
>
> Put simply, there are three possible views of war that a religion might
> adopt.
>
> The pacifist view: all violence and killing is wrong.
>
>  Belief in 'a Just War': some wars, at least, are right because they are
> perceived to be in the interests of justice - and should therefore be fought
> according to just rules.
>
> Belief in 'Holy War': the God of a religion is perceived to ask, or
> command, its followers to make war on those who do not believe in that
> religion and who pose a threat to those who do.
>
>   ------------------------------
>
> 2. Supporting non-violence
>
> Three major world religons have their roots in India: Hinduism, Buddhism
> and Sikhism. Buddhism and Sikhism both grew from Hinduism. All three share
> the idea of non-violence (ahimsa).
>
>  The term 'non-violence' was actually coined in English (about 1920) by
> Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948) as a direct translation of 'ahimsa',
> 'avoiding harm to others'. The idea of non-violence was very important to
> Mahatma Gandhi's thinking and actions as a Hindu leader during India's
> approach to independence in 1947. He wrote:
>
> 'I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only
> temporary; the evil it does is permanent.'
>
>
> Hinduism
> Hinduism is perhaps the oldest world religion; in some of its writings
> ahimsa has been considered the highest duty from the beginning of time.
> Jainism also grew out of Hinduism; Jainists believe that people should
> strive to become detached from the distractions of worldly existence; and
> that the practice of ahimsa is an essential step on the way to personal
> salvation.
>
>  In Hinduism, however, there is another tradition. The Hindu scripture
> called the 'Bhagavad Gita' tells the story of Arjuna, who learns it is his
> duty to fight as a member of the soldier caste. Arjuna is told by his
> chariot driver Krishna, who is really the god Vishnu in human form, that:
>
>  'Even without you, all the soldiers standing armed for battle will not
> stay alive. Their death is foreordained.' Bhagavad Gita 11:32-3
>
> In the story Arjuna overcomes his doubts and fights, even though he knows
> it means killing some of his own family. Strict rules, however, are laid
> down for war: cavalry may only go into action against cavalry, infantry
> against infantry and so on. The wounded, runaways, and all civilians are to
> be respected. The idea of a Just War is represented here.
>
>  How did Gandhi deal with this story in a scripture he loved? He thought
> of it as an allegory, and interpreted it as meaning that one should
> certainly engage in struggle, but only by means of non-violence. Certainly
> one should not kill anyone. However, not all Hindus interpret the story in
> Gandhi's way.
>
>
> Buddhism
> 'Hatred is never appeased by hatred in this world; it is appeased by
> love.' (Dhammapada I 5)
>
>  Buddhism developed from the teaching of Siddhartha Gautama, called the
> Buddha (c.563 - 483 BC), who believed that human suffering could be
> overcome by following a particular way of life. The first precept of
> Buddhism is 'non-harming' (ahimsa): Buddhists reject violence. Buddhism is
> clearly pacifist in its teaching, and many Buddhists say quite bluntly that
> it is 'better to be killed than to kill'. Some Buddhists have been very
> active in promoting peace, particularly during the Vietnam War (1961- 1975),
> when they offered a 'Third Way' of reconciliation between the American and
> Communist armies. Some Buddhist monks burned themselves to death in
> self-sacrificing protest against the war.
>
>  Buddhism perhaps has the best record of all religions for non-violence.
> However, Buddhists in Sri Lanka have been criticised for oppressing the
> Tamil minority there (Tamils are a mostly Hindu people whose origins are in
> southern India)
>
>  Buddhism, like all religions, seeks to be ethical. Confucianism and
> Taoism, which both developed in China, also share similar principles with
> Buddhism. For example, they seek to adjust human life to the inner harmony
> of nature (Confucianism) and emphasise mediation and non-violence as means
> to the higher life (Taoism). The founders of these religions, Confucius and
> Lao-Tsze, lived in the same period as Buddha, the 6th century BC.
>
>
> Sikhism
> Guru Nanak (1469-1534), the first Sikh Guru (a guru is a spiritual
> teacher, a revered instructor) wrote this hymn:
>
> 'No one is my enemy
> No one is a foreigner
> With all I am at peace
> God within us renders us
> Incapable of hate and prejudice.'
>
> He too emphasised the importance of non-violence and the equality of all
> humans whatever their religion (he was particularly concerned to reconcile
> Hinduism and Islam). But this pacifist emphasis changed as persecution
> against the Sikhs developed. The sixth Guru said:
>
>
> In the Guru's house, religion and worldly enjoyment should be combined -
> the cooking pot to feed the poor and needy and the sword to hit oppressors.
>
> The tenth and last Guru, Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) was a general as
> well as a Guru. In order to strengthen the courage and military discipline
> of the Sikhs at a time of great persecution, he organised the Khalsa - the
> Sikh brotherhood. Guru Gobind Singh expressed the idea of 'Just War' as
> follows:
>
>
> 'When all efforts to restore peace prove
> useless and no words avail,
> Lawful is the flash of steel,
> It is right to draw the sword.'
>
> But the idea of 'Holy War' is not found in Sikhism. A central teaching of
> Sikhism is respect for people of all faiths.
>
>    ------------------------------
>
> 3. Holy Warriors
> Three world religions with their roots in the Middle East adopted, at some
> stages of their history, the idea of a 'Holy War', as well as that of a
> 'Just War'.
>
>
>
> Judaism
> They shall beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into
> pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall
> theylearn war any more'. (The Old Testament: Isaiah 2:4)
>
>  Peace is the central teaching of rabbinical Judaism (teachings based on
> the writings of early Jewish scholars). However, Judaism is not a pacifist
> religion. The idea of Holy War occurs in the Hebrew Bible, but it was not
> about making others Jewish, but about survival.
>
>  The idea of 'Just War' is clearly expressed both in the Old Testament
> (see Deuteronomy 20:10-15,19-20) and in the later rabbinical tradition. So
> while revenge and unprovoked aggression are condemned, self defence is
> justified. Jews have been victims of dreadful persecution, usually at the
> hands of Christians, for nearly two thousand years, culminating in the
> Holocaust during the Second World War (1939-1945). On the other hand,
> defending modern Israel and dealing justly with the Palestinians places
> thoughtful Jews in difficult dilemmas.
>
>
>
> Christianity
> Christianity, during its 2,000 year history, has taken up all three
> positions on war: Pacifism, Just War and Crusade or Holy War. Jesus'
> teachings in the Sermon on the Mount (The New Testament: Matthew 5 - 7) are
> very clearly non-violent: for example, 'blessed are the peacemakers, for
> they shall be called the children of God' (Matthew 5:9) and 'love your
> enemies' (Matthew 5:44).
>
>  Pacifism was the teaching and practice of the Christian Church until the
> Roman Emperor Constantine (274-337) made Christianity the official religion
> of the Empire. Pacifism then largely gave way to the development of the
> 'Just War' doctrine. Politics and religion were able to endorse each other
> in going to war.
>
>  In the Middle Ages the Crusades were fought mainly to recover the Holy
> Land (the area between the Mediterranean and the river Jordan) from Muslim
> rule. Today most Christians would be ashamed of the terrible cruelty and
> injustice to which the Crusades gave rise. Most Christians would also be
> ashamed of the later persecution of heretics (people who did not accept the
> official teachings of the Christian church) and non-Christians (such as
> Jews).
>
>  The majority of present-day Christians support the idea that war is
> regrettable but unavoidable and should be fought according to 'Just War'
> rules. Pacifism is a minority position held by some Christians in the larger
> denominations (Roman Catholic, Church of England, Methodist, etc.). The
> Quakers, Mennonites, Amish and Hutterites together make up the historical
> 'peace churches', with a long tradition of pacifist belief and action.
>
>  The question remains: which position on war is the most faithful to the
> teaching of Jesus, who advised his followers to 'turn the other cheek' and
> who, when arrested, forbade a disciple to use a sword?
>
>
>
> 3. Islam
> 'Islam' means 'submission' or 'surrender' to the will of God (Allah). Its
> founder was the prophet Mohammed (c.570-632), who recorded his
> understanding of the word of Allah in the Islamic sacred book, the Qur'an.
>
>  Islamic teaching is often misunderstood in the West, particularly on the
> matter ofJihad. What does Jihad mean? One scholar wrote: 'Jihad means to
> 'strive' or 'struggle' in the way of God.' Jihad has two further meanings:
>
>  - the duty of all Muslims, as individuals and as a community, to exert
> themselves to realise God's will, to lead good lives, and to extend the
> Islamic community through such things as preaching and education,
>
>
> and :
>
> - 'Holy War' for, or in defence of, Islam.
>
> In the West Jihad has retained only the meaning of 'Holy War'.
>
> However, it is more correct to say that there are four different kinds of
> Jihad::
>
> - personal spiritual and moral struggle in order to overcome
> self-centredness and follow the teachings of the Qur'an;
> - calm preaching and
> - righteous behaviour that witness to the unbeliever about the
> way of Islam; and
>
> - war against those who oppress or persecute believers.
>
> All faithful Muslims are thus involved in a continuous 'greater jihad'
> which is largely non-violent. 'The lesser jihad', war, is commanded by Allah
> but must be carried out acording to strict rules.
>
>  There is a sense in which the lesser jihad is both 'Holy War' and 'Just
> War'. But it is not about making others Muslim, although some Muslims
> believe it is. The Qur'an says: 'There shall be no compulsion in religion'.
>
>  One Muslim became widely known for his practice of non-violence. Abdul
> Gaffar Khan, a member of the often warlike Pathans on the north-west
> frontier of India, adopted Gandhi's ideas in leading his people to
> independence with the establishment of Pakistan. He became known as 'the
> Frontier Gandhi'. Like Gandhi, he was often imprisoned.
>
>
>  ------------------------------
>
> 4. The Humanist View
> In recent times religion has played a decreasing role in many societies,
> particularly in the West. Many people have consciously rejected the notion
> of a spiritual and sacred religion or god. This does not necessarily mean
> the rejection of ethical principles. Some people have developed a philosophy
> of 'humanism'. This is based on humanitarian ideals, such as individual
> responsibility for one's actions, respect for others, co-operating for the
> common good, and sharing resources.
>
>  Some humanists would accept the 'Golden Rule', a term first used by
> Confucius: 'Do as you would be done by', or 'Treat others as you would wish
> them to treat you'. Some see the natural or logical conclusion of such a
> principle to be the rejection of all war and violence. Others, who have
> reservations about pacifism, argue for 'Just War' rules similar to those
> based on religious law.
>
>  5.Pacifism
> The Peace Pledge Union campaigns against war and promotes peace.Wechallenge the values and attitudes which are a serious obstacle to action
> for peace. As a non-sectarian organisation we welcome co-operation with a
> variety of other groups, religious or non-religious, who share our aims.
>
>
> 'I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only
> temporary; the evil it does is permanent.'
> Was Gandhi right?
>
>
>
>  ------------------------------
>
> >_______________________________________________
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>
>
> ------------------------------
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