Buddhist Political Thought
The Encyclopedia of Political Thought, First Edition. Edited by Michael T. Gibbons. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Published 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
6 Pages Posted: 24 Oct 2014
Date Written: October 22, 2014
Abstract
This entry discusses Buddhist teaching or the philosophy of Buddhism in practices found in mainland Southeast Asia, South Asia, and East Asia, as a political theory. Buddhist political thought dominates the daily lives of several Asian societies. The key difference between Buddhist political thought and Hobbesian political thought lies in how each school perceives the notion and the existence of the individual. Because the epistemic and ontological foundation of political thought in both schools is the existence of the individual, it is important that we properly understand how the individual is perceived to be existing in the world and how associational life emerges in both conceptions.
Keywords: Karma, Intention, Action, Theory of Emptiness, Ten Duties of State
JEL Classification: B1, B3, A1
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation