The Buddha and the TerroristNot 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. |
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abandoned Ahimsaka took Allan Hunt Badiner Ananda angry anguish Angulimala stood baby bamboo birth bleeding born bowl Brahmin breath Buddha looked Buddha smiled Buddha stood Buddhist caste citizens of Savatthi compassion compassionate criminals crowd death Dharma Eightfold Path enemy Enlightened evil eyes father fear feel finger necklace flower forest forgiveness Four Noble Truths friendship Gautama give happy healing honeybee human Jain Jeta Grove Jina killed King Lady Nandini Law Officer listen live Lord Buddha lotus Mahavira Majesty meditation mind monk mother murderer never nonviolence overcome pain peace person pond power of love punishment realize refuge in Buddha robe saffron Satish Kumar seek shaman shouted Siddhartha sitar someone sorrow speak spiritual spoke stopped story of Angulimala Sujata sword teachings tell terror terrorist Thank Thomas Moore thousand gold coins town transformed tree voice walked woman wonder words