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Unlock This CourseThe lesson Sin and Crime: What Is the Difference? explained that a sin is an act against God and a crime is an act against the law. Buddhists do not believe in a creator God who judges, so they do not use the word sin in the same way. Instead they speak of unskilful actions (actions that come from greed, hatred or ignorance and cause suffering) and of broken precepts. The precepts are the five guidelines Buddhists try to follow, such as not harming living beings, not taking what is not given and not taking drink or drugs that cloud the mind.
This changes how Buddhists see wrongdoing. There is no God to be angry with the offender. Instead, Buddhists believe the harm is to the people hurt and to the person who acts, because of kamma (karma): unskilful actions bring unhappy results. Some crimes, such as theft and violence, are also broken precepts, while some crimes, such as driving offences, may not involve a precept directly.
Key terms:
Crime hurts victims, offenders, families and the whole of society. For Buddhists this is a problem of dukkha (suffering). The victim suffers from the harm, and the offender suffers too, because actions that come from the three poisons keep a person trapped in unhappiness. Buddhists therefore ask a practical question: what causes people to act this way, and can those causes be ended?
Buddhists look for causes, because the Buddha taught that things happen for reasons (the lesson The Four Noble Truths: Dukkha and Tanha showed this for suffering). The spec lists several.
Buddhists teach that people are responsible for their choices. Dhammapada verses 162-163 (paraphrased) say that harmful actions, which hurt the person who does them, are easy to do, while what is good and helpful is very hard to do. A person who gives in to greed or anger takes the easy road.
A person with too little money may steal to feed or protect their family. Greed can also make people steal, but poverty adds real need.
Unfair laws, corruption or leaders who ignore the poor can leave people with little hope, and some turn to crime.
Hatred of a group of people can lead to hate crimes. Racism can also leave people shut out of jobs and fair opportunities, which may push some towards crime.
Drug use clouds the mind and can lead to crime, for example theft to pay for drugs. This is why the fifth precept asks Buddhists to avoid intoxicants.
A child who grows up around violence may learn that it is normal. A person who feels worthless may not care about harming others or themselves.
Buddhists would say that behind all of these lie the three poisons. Greed, hatred and ignorance are the roots of unskilful action, while the causes above are the conditions that make it more likely.
Buddhists believe in acting with compassion (karuna) as well as understanding. Actions by individual Buddhists can include:
Buddhist groups work on a larger scale. As in the lesson Buddhist Peacemaking and the Buddhist Peace Fellowship, many Buddhists practise socially engaged Buddhism, which means taking their beliefs into the problems of the wider world.
The Prison Dharma Network was founded in 1989 by Fleet Maull, a Buddhist. It began as a way of sharing Buddhist teaching and practice with people in prison, and it is now also known as the Prison Mindfulness Institute. It teaches meditation and mindfulness to prisoners.
Meditation helps a person notice anger before they act on it, which tackles hatred, one of the three poisons.
Learning kindness to oneself and others can help a person with low self-esteem to see that they can change.
The aim is that prisoners learn a better way to live, so that they do not harm others again when they are released.
This links to the Buddhist belief that people can change. Because kamma depends on actions, a person who chooses skilful actions now can build a happier future.
Paper 1 (a) [AO1] Identify three reasons why crime might occur. [3 marks]
Paper 1 (b) [AO1] Choose one religion. Outline two ways in which followers of this religion try to end the causes of crime. [4 marks]
Paper 1 (d) [AO1, AO2] "Religious groups can do more than the government to reduce crime."
Evaluate this statement, showing you have considered different points of view. In your answer you should refer to at least one religion. [12 marks]
(a) 1. Poverty (1) 2. Drug use (1) 3. Low self-esteem (1)
(b) (Buddhism) Buddhists may give to charity, as dana, to help people in poverty (1), because poverty can make people turn to crime (1). The Prison Dharma Network, now Prison Mindfulness, teaches meditation to prisoners (1), which helps them to calm anger so they do not offend again (1).
(d) Plan. For: Buddhist groups such as Prison Mindfulness reach prisoners and teach calm and self-worth, which tackles hatred and low self-esteem; religious groups can offer friendship and a reason to change, not just rules; Buddhists believe in compassion and generosity, so they help people in poverty. Against: the government makes the laws and runs the police, courts and prisons, and has far more money to tackle poverty, education and housing; religious groups cannot reach everyone, and many people are not religious; some causes, such as unfair laws and politics, can only be changed by governments. Possible conclusion: the government must lead, because only it can change laws and spending, but religious groups do something it cannot, which is change how a person thinks and feels, so the best result comes from both working together.
In (b), give each way as a point plus a reason. Name a Buddhist action, such as the Prison Dharma Network teaching meditation, and then say what it achieves.