Tyrannenmord als Konfliktlösungsmodell? Zur Rechtfertigung der Ermordung des ›antibuddhistischen‹ Königs Langdarma in tibetisch-buddhistischen Quellen
Some Mahayana-Buddhist schools developed the idea that it is justified to kill a tyrant (defined as a militant enemy of Buddhism) out of »compassion«. They argued that an evil person, if killed without hate, can be »liberated« (tib. sgrol ba) from accumulating more bad karma that otherwise forces h...
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | German |
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Diagonal-Verlag
2012
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| In: |
Zeitschrift für Religionswissenschaft
Year: 2003, Volume: 11, Issue: 2, Pages: 167-183 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | Some Mahayana-Buddhist schools developed the idea that it is justified to kill a tyrant (defined as a militant enemy of Buddhism) out of »compassion«. They argued that an evil person, if killed without hate, can be »liberated« (tib. sgrol ba) from accumulating more bad karma that otherwise forces him to experience unlimited suffering of lower rebirths. Roots of this idea can be found in the teachings of the enigmatic school of the »liberators from samsara«, as well as in some early Mahayana teachings on the »liberation« of a mass murderer, and in the ritualistic teachings of Shivaitic tantrism. According to many sources one famous historical example of a »liberation-killing« is the murder of the last emperor of the early Tibetan dynasty, Glang dar ma, by the Buddhist monk dPal gyi rdo rje. A legendary description of this event is an essential part of nearly every book on Tibetan history. In relation to this killing the historical sources present different strategies in order to justify a violent conflict resolution. But the survey of the Tibetan sources shows that there is no sufficient evidence to assume that the assassination has taken place as a tantric rite of »liberation-killing«, implying a "spiritual well-being" for the victim and the perpetrator. If this killing took place at all, it seems to be more likely that it was essentially a "tyrannicide" (i. e. the killing of an opponent of the dominant religious institution), that later on Buddhist tantrists re-interpreted in order to fit into the scheme of the ritual of "liberation-killing". |
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| ISSN: | 2194-508X |
| Contains: | In: Zeitschrift für Religionswissenschaft
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1515/zfr.2003.11.2.167 |