Skip to main content

Search from vocabulary

Content language

Concept information

Preferred term

nonviolence  

Definition

  • Nonviolence has its roots in almost every religion in the world: Jainism, whose chief precept is ahimsa (non-harm); Judaism, which commands one to pursue peace; Christianity, whose three peace churches—the Society of Friends, the Mennonites, and the Church of the Brethren—have been witnesses to nonviolence for hundreds of years; Islam, whose nonviolent exemplar Badshah Khan (1890–1988) was an inspiration to Mohandas Gandhi (1869–1948); and Buddhism, one of whose most recent nonviolent exemplars is Thich Nhat Hanh (1926–). Nonviolence, however, is understood in various ways by various theorists: It is a way of living, a political strategy, and a moral or spiritual principle. [Source: Encyclopedia of Political Theory; Nonviolence]

Belongs to group

URI

https://concepts.sagepub.com/social-science/concept/nonviolence

Download this concept: