Introduction

The news media are full of reports of angry xenophobic nationalism linked to religious identities. Televised pictures of torture committed by Islamic State and bombings perpetrated by militant Christians give a bloody image to religiosity in the contemporary age. In Christianity, for instance, there are pacifist sects such as the Mennonites, but there are also the vengeful incidents of the Inquisition and the Crusades. The images of most religious figures that are portrayed in the iconic histories of religion are nonviolent. The admonition that individuals should not kill is a basic principle in the Abrahamic faiths. It is even more prominent in the Indic faiths, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and to some extent, Sikhism. Buddhism also provides room for a degree of violence in the cause of nonviolence, to stop an act of violence in progress. The dozens of Tibetan nuns who have immolated themselves in protest against Chinese incursions into Tibet may also be regarded as nonviolent activists.