Buddhism and International Humanitarian Law

Andrew Bartles-Smith has many years of experience engaging with religious circles and non-state armed groups in Asia. He has pioneered ICRC efforts to promote research and debate on IHL and religious teachings and leads this project on Buddhism and IHL. Kate Crosby is Numata Professor of Buddhist Studies at Oxford University, UK. Her books include Santideva‘s Bodhicaryavatara with Andrew Skilton (1995), the Mahabharata’s The Dead of Night & The Women (2009), Theravada Buddhism: Continuity, Identity, Diversity (2014) and Esoteric Theravada: The Story of the Forgotten Meditation Tradition of Southeast Asia (2020). Peter Harvey is Emeritus Professor of Buddhist studies at the University of Sunderland, UK. His books include The Selfless Mind: Personality, Consciousness and Nirvana in Early Buddhism (1995), An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices (1990, 2013) and An Introduction to Buddhist Ethics: Foundations, Values and Issues (2000).Asanga Tilakaratne is Emeritus Professor of Pali and Buddhist Studies at the University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, and Founding Chairman of the Damrivi Foundation. He has published extensively on Buddhist philosophy, practical ethics and Buddhist epistemology, among other subjects. He is Editor-in-chief of the Encyclopaedia of Buddhism, Government of Sri Lanka.Daniel Ratheiser is a Regional Advisor for the ICRC. He studied economics and religious sciences at George Washington University and the Universities of Heidelberg and Maastricht, held consulting roles in India and China and taught at the Max Mueller Bhawan. His research focuses on cultural relations between China and India.Noel Maurer Trew is an international law adviser for the British Red Cross, a former US Air Force research psychologist and instructor and a former volunteer for the Buddhist chapel at the USAF Academy. He holds a PhD in Strategy and Security Studies from the University of Exeter, UK.Stefania Travagnin is Reader in Chinese Buddhism at SOAS University of London, UK. Her publications include the volume Religion and Media in China (2016), and three co-edited volumes on Concepts and Methods for the Study of Chinese Religions (2019-2020). She is Co-director of the research project Mapping Religious Diversity in Modern Sichuan (CCKF funding; 2017-2023).Elizabeth J. Harris is an honorary senior research fellow within the Cadbury Centre for the Public Understanding of Religion at the University of Birmingham, UK, and President of the UK Association for Buddhist Studies, on which she writes. Her latest monograph is Religion, Space and Conflict in Sri Lanka: Colonial and Postcolonial Contexts (2018).Venerable Mahinda Deegalle is Emeritus Professor of Religions, Philosophies and Ethics at Bath Spa University, UK; Visiting Scholar at the University of Cambridge, UK; and Executive Director of the Research Centre for Buddhist Studies, Kandy, Sri Lanka. He is the author of Popularizing Buddhism and editor of several other volumes.Christina A. Kilby is Associate Professor of Religion at James Madison University, Harrisonburg, USA. She earned her Master of Theological Studies from Harvard University, Cambridge, USA, and her PhD in History of Religions from the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA. She has conducted extensive fieldwork among Tibetan communities, and her current research focuses on Buddhism and displacement.

• Introduction: How Does Buddhism Compare with International Humanitarian Law, and Can It Contribute to Humanising War? Part 1: Situating Buddhism in Relation to IHL 1. Buddhist Motivation to Support IHL, From Concern to Minimise Harms Inflicted by Military Action to Both Those Who Suffer Them and Those Who Inflict Them 2. Implications of Buddhist Political Ethics for the Minimisation of Suffering in Situations of Armed Conflict 3. Two Dimensions of Buddhist Practice and Their Implications on Statecraft 4. The Paradox of the Buddhist Soldier 5. Buddhist Empirical Realism and the Conduct of Armed Conflict 6. Fundamental Intelligence, A Buddhist Justification for the Universal Principles Underlying IHL Part 2: The Military and the Conduct of War 7. The Buddhist Soldier: A Madhyamaka Inquiry 8. Limiting the Risk to Combatant Lives: Confluences Between International Humanitarian Law and Buddhism 9. ‘Not Knowing Is Most Intimate’: Koan Practice and the Fog of War 10. Siege Warfare and the Prohibition of Intentional Starvation of Civilians: The Convergence of IHL and Buddhist Ethics Part 3: Minimising Harm and Practical Values 11. ‘Freedom From Hatred’: The Role of Khanti in Complementing the Work of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) 12. Restraint In Warfare and Appamāda: The Concept of Collateral Damage in International Humanitarian Law in Light of the Buddha’s Last Words 13. The Gift of Fearlessness: A Buddhist Framework for the Protection of Vulnerable Populations Under International Humanitarian Law 14. Addressing the Causes of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence with the Buddhist Doctrine of Lack of a Permanent Self and Meditation Training 15. How Buddhist Principles Can Help the Practical Implementation of IHL Values During War with Respect to Non-Combatants Part 4: Buddhist Historical and Humanitarian Dimensions 16. Buddhism, The Royal Imaginary and Limits in Warfare: The Moderating Influence of Precolonial Myanmar Royal Campaigns on Everyday Warriors 17. Between Common Humanity and Partiality: The Chogye Buddhist Chaplaincy Manual of the South Korean Military and Its Relevance to International Humanitarian Law 18. International Humanitarian Law and Nichiren Buddhism 19. Socially Engaged Buddhism and Principled Humanitarian Action During Armed Conflict

"This book is an extraordinary collaboration between monastics, military chaplains, experts in international humanitarian law, and elite scholars of Buddhist ethics from diverse cultural contexts. As such, it is a valuable primary text that documents the current range of thinking about Buddhist conduct during warfare. The project produced broad intercultural and multi-perspectival cross pollination on this vital current topic, and it is essential reading for anyone working in this area. As in classical Buddhist texts, these rich studies recognise that the ethical conduct of war is as important to address as its prevention."Stephen Jenkins, Humboldt State University, USA"Though both Buddhism and international humanitarian law have exactly the same intention to reduce human suffering, this ICRC-supported book represents the first concerted effort to bring them together. Internationally well-known scholars of both Buddhism and IHL have now started to engage in open and enlightening dialogue between the two domains, and this breakthrough work shows what they have revealed so far."Khammai Dhammasami, Shan State Buddhist University, Myanmar"International humanitarian law (IHL) speaks profoundly to ideas of common humanity and the need for restraint during war. These concepts are found in religious and cultural teachings across the globe. ‘Buddhism and International Humanitarian Law’ is a unique, necessary and timely contribution to scholarship aiming to find stronger traction between religious principles, humanitarian norms and rules of IHL. In examining the interface between Buddhism and IHL, reflecting on warfare in Buddhist history, and looking at ways to explain and teach IHL differently, this important book adds weight to the aspiration of reducing suffering during times of armed conflict."Helen Durham AO, Geneva Call, Switzerland"As a religion of peace, there is a conundrum concerning whether Buddhism also has a message for the conduct of war. The rich panoply of articles in this volume shows that it does. Notions of compassion, kindness and tolerance emanating from Buddhist roots all help to undergird core IHL principles such as distinction, military necessity, proportionality and precaution, thereby helping to protect those not directly involved in hostilities. This pioneering book illustrates how the Buddhist middle-way and its mindfulness techniques can nurture the self-control and sense of moderation necessary to humanise war and prevent its worst excesses."Vitit Muntarbhorn, Chulalongkorn University, Thailand