Buddhist Approaches to Human Rights - Dissonances and Resonances (Paperback)

The demonstrations of monks in Tibet and Myanmar (Burma) in recent times as well as the age-old conflict between a predominantly Buddhist population and a Hindu minority in Sri Lanka raises the question of how the issues of human rights and Buddhism are related. The question applies both to the violation of basic rights in Buddhist countries and to the defense of those rights which are well-grounded in Buddhist teachings.

The volume provides academic essays that reflect this neglected issue from the point of view of the three main Buddhist traditions: Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana. It provides multi-faceted and surprising insights into a rather unlikely relationship.

Carmen Meinert is a sinologist and tibetologist, currently working as a research fellow at the Institute of Advanced Studies in the Humanities (KWI) in Essen (Germany) and teaches at the University of Bochum.

Hans-Bernd Zollner teaches East Asian studies at the Universities of Hamburg and Passau.