In recent years, Buddhism — globally perceived as a peaceful, nonviolent faith — has undergone a troubling transformation in parts of South and Southeast Asia, with its spiritual values being co-opted by nationalist movements seeking political dominance. What once was a philosophy centered on compassion and non-harm is now being wielded as a tool of sectarian influence, as a new breed of militant monks trades the pursuit of nirvana for earthly power.
Journalist Sonia Faleiro, in a long-form report, chronicles her journey across the Buddhist world — from the quiet streets of Dharamshala to the turmoil in Sri Lanka — to unpack how this shift came to be. Her travels reveal a disturbing reality: in countries like Sri Lanka and Myanmar, conservative Theravada Buddhism has become deeply intertwined with political extremism. Monks who should embody the foundational Buddhist principle of ahimsa — non-violence — are instead cultivating hatred and mobilizing communities against religious minorities.
Faleiro revisits the ideal of non-harm, citing the influential Sri Lankan monk Walpola Rahula, who argued that true ahimsa means preventing violence by others, not just personal abstinence. Buddhist philosophy once captivated the West through the Dalai Lama’s peaceful resistance, meditation, and chants — images that reshaped the religion in the global imagination. But these images often gloss over a more complicated history: instances of militarization in Tibetan monasteries, rivalries between monastic orders, and previous Dalai Lamas raising armies.
What shocks many in the West is the idea of Buddhist militancy. Yet, Faleiro shows how nationalist Buddhist factions in Sri Lanka and Myanmar have adopted fear-mongering and militant organizing to deepen communal divides. In Sri Lanka, groups like the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), led by monk Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara, frame themselves as protectors of Buddhism, but their rhetoric often demarcates minorities as a threat. In Myanmar, similar figures like Ashin Wirathu have stoked hatred toward the Rohingya.
Faleiro points out that this radical turn is shaped by social and historical forces: colonial legacies, entrenched economic inequality, and the social prestige of monks. These conditions have allowed militant monks to amass outsized political influence and become kingmakers in the political sphere.
A major element of the crisis is also gender: in many Buddhist communities, male clergy wield systemic power, while Buddhist nuns challenge not just political repression but patriarchal norms. Their courage stands in stark contrast to the silence or complicity of powerful monks who hide behind robes but push aggressive agendas.
One of the most chilling details in Faleiro’s account is her meeting with Lhakpa Tsering, a Tibetan refugee in Dharamshala. In 2006, he had self-immolated in protest. He compares his sacrifice to an old Buddhist fable about a prince saving a starving tigress by offering his body — and argues that such acts, though violent, reflect a deeply rooted Buddhist tradition of sacrifice for the greater good. Yet, Faleiro warns that extremists now co-opt these narratives to justify aggression, claiming their violence is similarly in service of protecting Buddhism.
The story takes a darker turn in Sri Lanka, where Faleiro meets Fazeena Fihar, a Muslim woman whose life was upended by anti-Muslim riots ignited by Gnanasara’s speeches. In 2014, Gnanasara rallied thousands, calling on Buddhists to “fight” minorities, triggering widespread violence. Fihar’s family fled into the jungle, returning later to find their home burnt and destroyed. Though the death toll was low, critics point to deep-seated economic envy and long-standing sectarian fears as driving motivations.
Despite his extremist politics, Gnanasara has never lost his monastic status. His rise was backed by powerful political figures, including the Rajapaksa dynasty, and he has repeatedly leveraged his religious authority to sway public policy. When questioned about his extremist activities, he has defended himself by saying that his fight is for Buddhism, not for violence — famously declaring, “Attaining nirvana can wait.”
Faleiro’s account suggests that the biggest threat is not the few radical monks, but the widespread complacency of the majority. She quotes the scholar Geshe Lhakdor, who warns that silence from the moderate clergy is deeply dangerous. The moral accountability, she argues, does not lie solely with the extremists — it raises uncomfortable questions about how faith, power, and politics collide in the modern Buddhist world.
In sum, the piece is a powerful exploration of how a religion once synonymous with peace is being reshaped into a force for division, aggression, and political control. It is not just a story about extremism — it is a cautionary tale about how even the most spiritual traditions can be weaponised when they become entangled with nationalism.
