The Bodhisattva Peace Activist

This paper considers the challenge of transcending partisan and ideological attachments in the work of peace activism through the Buddhist hermeneutic of nonduality. The Diamond Sutra as well as the witness and teaching of Thích Nhất Hạnh form the foundation of the paper's argument. It first recalls Nhất Hạnh's contribution to peace activism, especially his radical stance of neutrality and peace at any cost, which caused him to be marginalized by the American peace movement during the Vietnam War. It then presents the teaching of the Diamond Sutra, where the Buddha challenges the bodhisattva to practice acts of generosity without being attached to the signs of self, person, living being, and life span. Nhất Hạnh's teaching of interbeing is invoked to help explain the dialectical logic of the Diamond Sutra. Finally, the same bodhisattva ideal is shown to be found in the teaching and example of Jesus in the New Testament. The paper concludes with the belief that both Christianity and Buddhism demand from their followers a radical transformation of consciousness that transcends egoism and dualism.