Self-Defense in Asian Religions
Liberty Law Review, Vol. 2, p. 79, 2007
86 Pages Posted: 17 Oct 2007
Abstract
This Article investigates the attitudes of six Far Eastern religions - Confucianism, Taoism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism, and Buddhism - towards the legitimacy of the use of force in individual and collective contexts. Self-defense is strongly legitimated in the theory and practice of the major Far Eastern religions. The finding is consistent with natural law theory that some aspects of the human personality, including the self-defense instinct, are inherent in human nature, rather than being entirely determined by culture.
Keywords: Confucianism, Taoism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism, Buddhism, self-defense, self-defence, natural law
JEL Classification: K33,K40
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation