RSS
Home
Buddhism and capital punishment
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
What does Buddhism have to say about capital punishment? With Washington area sniper John Allen Muhammad set to be executed tonight, the death penalty is at the top of the news today. Marion Lewis, father of one of Muhammad's victims, plans to attend the execution; he knew from the start that he wanted to witness it. An op-ed piece by journalist Naseem Rakha in today's Washington Post, "Muhammed and the 'closure' myth," disputes the common belief that capital punishment provides closure for victims' families.
Another Post article, on the front page, with the provocative headline "Detecting glimpses of humanity in D.C. sniper," by Maria Glod, examines the situation from the view of Muhammed's defense attorney Jon Sheldon, who has spent enough time with the sniper and other convicted murderers as their counsel to feel some empathy for them.
That's where the Buddhist part comes in -- compassion even for the seemingly unlovable. It's natural to feel compassion for the murderer's victims. But Buddhism invites its followers also to feel compassion for those who are difficult. When practicing compassion and its close relative, lovingkindness, toward a person who has caused you difficulty, you can focus on what has made the individual act as he or she does. You can wish difficult people to be free from suffering -- everyone deserves that. And there's a side benefit: When they're free from mental and physical suffering, they have no reason to cause harm.
This is a Cliff's Notes version of a complicated topic, but one worth further thought (and meditation). Future articles will explore the Buddhist practices of compassion and lovingkindess in more detail. In the meantime, please feel free to post a comment below with your own thoughts.
Related Articles:
Comments
