Buddhist political thinking

by Sita Arunthavanathan
Buddha as a religious teacher confined his teachings strictly to
religious discipline and questions involving eschatology and
soteriology.
He refrained from making any pronouncement on the relative merits of
the political systems or the political theories that existed in his
time. However as Prince Siddhartha he was brought up to be a
universal monarch and was given an extensive training in statecraft
and military arts.
he Buddhist texts show that the style of language the Buddha used in
his conversations with kings such as Bimbisara and Pasenadi savouring
of military similes! metaphors! illustrations from the context of the
state! defence and martial arts! evinced a thorough knowledge of war
strategies.
Buddha appeared at a time of political evolution when the existing
republics were being swallowed up by the powerful neighbouring rulers
with the emergence of monarchies. he scattered references in the
suttas help us to gain an insight into the political power! authority
and duties of a temporal ruler.
"rigin of kingship
he myth prevailing at the time of the Buddha was that kingship was
of divine origin# it was war that necessitated a king to give
leadership. But the Buddhist concept as given in Agganna Sutta $%igha
&ikaya' is that kingship originated as a genuine political need of
the society as opposed to the Brahmin theory of divine origin and
divine creation of the society divided into four castes.
According to this sutta! at a certain (uncture of evolution! the
logical need to show what mother nature offered! to arrest the
diminishing of natural resources due to greed! to stop stealing and
other vices! prompted a genuine social need for a charismatic leader
to arbitrate whenever such a situation arose.
Hence the king was a figure chosen and approved by the people
$)ahasammata'# a logical outcome of a social need.
%efinition of a king
%efinition of a king as a given in the Agganna Sutta is! *one who
makes others happy by righteousness* $dhammena param ran(eti ti
ra(a'. Buddhist texts refer to ra(as! mahara(as and cakkavatti ra(as
but whatever the title was! a king had to honour! respect and hold
righteousness in high esteem. $+akkavatti Siha &ada Sutta , %igha
&ikaya'. +onsensus among people gave authority to the king and all
the power he had! was that of the people.
his was the emergence of democracy. )oral degeneration $adhamma' due
to fighting and friction necessitated a ruler for moral regeneration
$dhamma'. here were unwritten norms! political law,givers! chaplains
$purohita' and others to advise the king and keep him off from
indulging in excesses or becoming a despot-dictator. .n the Buddhist
tradition of social evolution! king was the first among all equals
and was not above the law.
/ualities of a king
A ruler was expected to have ten personal qualities such as
generosity! liberality! virtue and so on. 0our cardinal principles a
king had to possess were generosity $dana'! pleasant words $piya
vacana'! welfare of the sub(ects $atta cariya' and equal treatment of
all $Samanatmata'.
He was also to have the following five qualities1 $2' 3nderstanding
things with a clear vision $attannu'! $4' 5nowing that which is
righteous $dhammannu'! $6' Having a clear idea of limit and measure
with regard to punishment! fines and taxes! $7' 5nowing the right
time for action $5alannu' and $8' 5nowing the assemblages of men
$parisannu'.
%uties of a king
A king had to rule with (ustice and equity ensuring security from
within and without. Here it must be stressed that moral
responsibility lay not only with the ruler but also with the ruled.
9ach person in the society had a share of responsibility so that the
community could present a united front. According to +akkavatti
Sihanada Sutta a king:s duty could be summarised as protection of the
state! elimination of crime! effecting economic stability and ruling
in consultation with the clergy $samana , brahmana'. he Pali term
:dhammikam rakkhavaranam guttim: mean watch! ward and protection
righteously.
According to this Sutta protection had to be provided not only to the subjects, army,
religious bodies etc but even to beasts and birds. Here word 'dhammikam' is of
importance because a ruler can give protection even by unrighteous means
(adhammikam. !here is an illustration in Sutta "ipata where two men who had
committed murder being treated in two different ways. #ne was garlanded because he
killed an enemy of the king$ the other was bound with ropes because he was a foe of
the king. !his difference in treatment for the same charge % murder % shows that laws
of the state were not always impartial.