The Buddha and the Terrorist: The Story of Angulimala - Softcover

Kumar, Satish

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1903998433 ISBN 13: 9781903998434

Publisher: Green Books, 2004

Synopsis

Once upon a time in northern India, there lived a violent and fearsome outcaste called Angulimala ('necklace of fingers'). He terrorised towns and villages in order to try to gain control of the state, murdering people and adding their fingers to his gruesome necklace.
The Buddha set out to meet Angulimala, and with the power of love and compassion he persuaded him to renounce violence and take responsibility for his past actions. Thus Angulimala was transformed.
The Buddha & The Terrorist brings a message for our time about the importance of looking for the root causes of violence, and of finding peaceful means to end terror.

About this title

Book Description

International terrorism may have become the central specter of our time, but the threat of violence is as old as history. Among all the experiences of the Buddha, perhaps this story of his eye-to-eye encounter with a fearsome terrorist is the one most relevant and vital for us today. What happens when a man committed to violence is confronted by a man committed to nonviolence? Who is more powerful? Who can influence whom? The Buddha, Jesus Christ, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., the Dalai Lama, have all sought to inspire us. Satish Kumar’s retelling of the ancient Buddhist tale of transformation speaks to the possibility of changing the world.

This small book contains an unassailable spiritual and practical message and inspired guidance in the use of nonviolent resistance in the quest for lasting peace. The Buddha’s approach is one of engagement and dialogue—even toward those with whom he disagrees. No one can read this tale without thinking about the root causes of terrorism, about good and evil, about justice and forgiveness, about the kind of place we want the world to be, and about the most productive and practical way to get there.

From the Inside Flap

Not every book will change your life, but any book can. Not every discussion will make a difference, but a conversation can change the world.

In this timely retelling of an ancient Buddhist parable, peace activist Satish Kumar has created a small book with a powerful spiritual message about ending violence. It is a tale of a fearsome outcast named Angulimala ("Necklace of Fingers"), who is terrorizing towns and villages in order to gain control of the state, murdering people and adding their fingers to his gruesome necklace. One day he comes face to face with the Buddha and is persuaded, through a series of compelling conversations, to renounce violence and take responsibility for his actions.

The Buddha and the Terrorist addresses the urgent questions we face today: Should we talk to terrorists? Can we reason with religious fundamentalists? Is nonviolence practical? The story ends with a dramatic trial that speaks to the victims of terrorism—the families whose mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters Angulimala has murdered. It asks whether it is possible for them to forgive. Or whether it is even desirable.

No one can read The Buddha and the Terrorist without thinking about the root causes of terrorism, about good and evil, about justice and forgiveness, about the kind of place we want the world to be, and, most important, about the most productive and practical way to get there.

Edition details

• Publisher: Green Books
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 1903998433
• ISBN 13: 9781903998434
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 80
• Illustrator: Harper Clifford