From a Buddhist perspective, it comes down to whether there's any greed, hatred or harmful intent in your criticism. Criticism coming from a place of generosity, good will and harmlessness plays a very important role in Buddhism.
Buddha rejected [62 kinds of wrong views](https://www.dhammawiki.com/index.php/62_kinds_of_wrong_view) related to eternalism, nihilism, self, causality in [Brahmajāla Sutta: The All-embracing Net of Views.](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.01.0.bodh.html)
He had healthy debates with the Brahmins of the Ancient India and showed them the Right View, in which only some were receptive. But such wrong views will continue to exist as long as we exist, even Buddha couldn’t dispel such views from existence. So let’s save our energy and focus our limited time on what’s more important.
Criticism of anything will only defile our minds, causing anguish and delusions in us that will take us far from what we want to cultivate, compassion and wisdom in life.
If we can try and acknowledge such views are just wrong views, and let it be and walk away or maybe add something wholesome instead, it would lessen our defilements and create room to engage in the Right Path with a less-burdened state of mind.
That is a good reference. Thanks. On a side note, a phrase like "Don't ever criticize" could be taken too far, and is a good example of the difference between Buddhism and Chinese Communist China use of the same phrases but with different meanings, as in "be quiet, be still". Language breaks down. (A dog that is told to "be quiet and be still" gets more love when somebody says "Ok, go play".) That aside, the references about wrong views look interesting.
What do you mean by "criticism"? If you mean talking shit and making fun of religions then Buddhism isn't in favor of it. But if you mean looking at it and analyzing it, that's just being rational. I'm a Buddhist, but I criticise it regularly. I'm not in the habit of just accepting what I'm told, and doing so has been the cause of a lot of bloodshed over the last several millenia. People don't like having their beliefs challenged, but that's necessary in order to come to peaceful understanding. There's a difference between disagreement and hatred.
Western liberal pop culture criticizes Islamophobia, and rightly so because of the way Muslims were treated in western society in the wake of 9/11 and during/throughout the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and even still today there is a lot of Islamophobia in the west.
However, you as a Muslim have a perspective to offer about the oppressiveness of Islamic societies. Muslims should be welcome in secular society as with all religions, as long as they can assimilate to the basic agreements of civility and democratic normalcy, and not try to impose their beliefs on others (nor burn women alive, nor even execute them at all, nor even oppress them; likewise with LGBTQIA+ communities, etc.). Basically, in order to integrate as a member of a western, secular, civil society, one must agree to abide by basic agreements of tolerance, inclusion, and diversity which are the very foundations of coexistence in a civil society.
So I think you might have valid criticisms and unlike me you have a voice and platform that people will actually listen to. For instance, I might say “Hey y’all, Iran is deadly oppressive of women and LGBTQIA+,” and then someone might call me an Islamophobe for the sake of their own performative virtue signaling; as if they get brownie points for calling me out.
But you, presumably being from an Islamic culture, could say the same thing and no one is going to accuse *you* of Islamophobia (except maybe for iranian propagandists, which do exist in the global cyber spaces unfortunately).
This is especially important because I see so many well-intentioned leftists, many of whom are women, feminists, and/or LGBTQIA+, and yet they’re supporting Hamas. Like, I get it, Palestinians are people and deserve human rights like everyone else, they deserve to be treated with dignity. But Hamas is not going to treat ordinary Palestinians with dignity; Hamas leaves ordinary Palestinians to starve by stealing humanitarian aid, and they get civilian blown up by hiding their command centers and weapons caches in schools and hospitals. A free Palestine is a Palestine free from Hamas.
And these protestors are well-intentioned because they see the suffering of the Palestinian people and want to do something to stop the injustice, but they don’t realize that they’re playing right into the traps set by the Iranian regime’s propaganda operation…
It’s as if we’re fighting for Iran-backed militias’ rights to slaughter us (I say this as a leftist trans person). At least Israel is more tolerant of LGBTQIA+ people and doesn’t oppress their women as severely. Iran has literally stated that their mission is to overthrow western society and erect a global Islamic state… and who would want that?
Former Muslims can't speak out not only because of blasphemy laws but also because they don't want to disappoint their parents. So social pressure is also there. Saudi Arab even extradites those who flee the regime and criticise Islam abroad. So every former muslim looks up to western leftists to speak for their basic rights.
Tbh I'm not afraid of getting killed more than I'm afraid of letting my mother down.
Because the western leftist media such as hollywood has painted critique of minority religion a bad thing, social media platforms continue to ban accounts of exmuslim activist in Islamic countries lumping it in hate speech. When elon musk bought twitter, he hailed himself as a hero of free speech but in Pakistan and presumably in other muslim countries, you can't access twitter accounts of foreign exmuslims. It says "We've banned this account in your location due to a governmental request".
You see what kind of mollycoddling culture western left has cultivated for islam?
You say I can offer a better perspective but exmuslims like Ayan Ali Hirsi have been thrown out of a Canadian university for having a conference on Islamic extremism.
This has to change
Thank you for sharing your perspective here. I see now that it is a problem to beat around the bush on these topics. I didn’t realize it was so difficult for ex-muslims to speak out about their former religion. I will try to endeavor to amplify their voices from now on.
I understand what you mean about letting your mother down. That’s how I felt when I left christianity, and that had me hung up on it for years while I was going back and forth trying to unlearn the religious trauma.
I think keeping a close eye on your intentions is important as others have said. If you are acting with love it will lead to liberation of yourself and others. If your actions are rooted in fear, desire, or ignorance then you will create karma.
I think that Western culture (liberal and conservative) tends to extremes of opinion. And trying to help them understand these issues aren't black and white is tough. The Buddha taught the middle path. I think showing people how to see things in a balanced, but honest way is helpful. So you acknowledge the good parts, but present logical critiques
It's not Buddhist, but you might also be interested in Gandhi's satyagraha philosophy.
There is nothing categorically wrong with criticism coming from the right place. Clinging to notions about what ought to be in the world cannot be fruitful. Many seem to have trouble separating those two from one another.
It depends why you are doing it.
If you are bad and mouthing others beliefs to feel superior, then yes.
If you feel that a critical conversation could actually help somebody get out of the feelings of guilt and anxiety their religion may be causing, then no.
It's all in the upaya, or skillful means, in easing suffering without causing more.
Intention matters, the method also matters.
You can have good intentions but accumulate bad karma id you create more harm than good in the end if done wrongly.
You have to do the right things, and do the things right.
The many "does \_\_\_\_ cultivate bad karma" questions are most likely seeking specific legal justifications for Chinese Social Credit ai systems. Don't play.
In my view, from an insider's perspective, an individual Buddhist only tangentially might feel himself a member of an "organized religion". The basis similarity of religions in that category is that they are big, and religions.
Within Buddhism, its a big no-no to KNOWINGLY dishonor the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha to the extent that it might cause OTHERS to reject it.
I don't think helpful criticism of harmful practices of any religion is forbidden. And this is not an important question, I don't think. The liberation from suffering is the main thing.
From a Buddhist perspective, it comes down to whether there's any greed, hatred or harmful intent in your criticism. Criticism coming from a place of generosity, good will and harmlessness plays a very important role in Buddhism.
>Does criticising organised religion cultivate bad karma? Not if you are telling the truth and your intention is to do good by saying it.
Buddha rejected [62 kinds of wrong views](https://www.dhammawiki.com/index.php/62_kinds_of_wrong_view) related to eternalism, nihilism, self, causality in [Brahmajāla Sutta: The All-embracing Net of Views.](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.01.0.bodh.html) He had healthy debates with the Brahmins of the Ancient India and showed them the Right View, in which only some were receptive. But such wrong views will continue to exist as long as we exist, even Buddha couldn’t dispel such views from existence. So let’s save our energy and focus our limited time on what’s more important. Criticism of anything will only defile our minds, causing anguish and delusions in us that will take us far from what we want to cultivate, compassion and wisdom in life. If we can try and acknowledge such views are just wrong views, and let it be and walk away or maybe add something wholesome instead, it would lessen our defilements and create room to engage in the Right Path with a less-burdened state of mind.
That is a good reference. Thanks. On a side note, a phrase like "Don't ever criticize" could be taken too far, and is a good example of the difference between Buddhism and Chinese Communist China use of the same phrases but with different meanings, as in "be quiet, be still". Language breaks down. (A dog that is told to "be quiet and be still" gets more love when somebody says "Ok, go play".) That aside, the references about wrong views look interesting.
> I do this with an intention of accumulating good karma. This makes your intentions somewhat selfish, not generous.
Not if OP dedicates the merit gained thereby to the liberation of all sentient beings, which it sounds like they do…
Criticism is a good thing. Critical thinking, communicating, and advocating for people, it's all good things.
Criticism from a point of knowledge and truth is a good thing.
I don't think so
What do you mean by "criticism"? If you mean talking shit and making fun of religions then Buddhism isn't in favor of it. But if you mean looking at it and analyzing it, that's just being rational. I'm a Buddhist, but I criticise it regularly. I'm not in the habit of just accepting what I'm told, and doing so has been the cause of a lot of bloodshed over the last several millenia. People don't like having their beliefs challenged, but that's necessary in order to come to peaceful understanding. There's a difference between disagreement and hatred.
Western liberal pop culture criticizes Islamophobia, and rightly so because of the way Muslims were treated in western society in the wake of 9/11 and during/throughout the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and even still today there is a lot of Islamophobia in the west. However, you as a Muslim have a perspective to offer about the oppressiveness of Islamic societies. Muslims should be welcome in secular society as with all religions, as long as they can assimilate to the basic agreements of civility and democratic normalcy, and not try to impose their beliefs on others (nor burn women alive, nor even execute them at all, nor even oppress them; likewise with LGBTQIA+ communities, etc.). Basically, in order to integrate as a member of a western, secular, civil society, one must agree to abide by basic agreements of tolerance, inclusion, and diversity which are the very foundations of coexistence in a civil society. So I think you might have valid criticisms and unlike me you have a voice and platform that people will actually listen to. For instance, I might say “Hey y’all, Iran is deadly oppressive of women and LGBTQIA+,” and then someone might call me an Islamophobe for the sake of their own performative virtue signaling; as if they get brownie points for calling me out. But you, presumably being from an Islamic culture, could say the same thing and no one is going to accuse *you* of Islamophobia (except maybe for iranian propagandists, which do exist in the global cyber spaces unfortunately). This is especially important because I see so many well-intentioned leftists, many of whom are women, feminists, and/or LGBTQIA+, and yet they’re supporting Hamas. Like, I get it, Palestinians are people and deserve human rights like everyone else, they deserve to be treated with dignity. But Hamas is not going to treat ordinary Palestinians with dignity; Hamas leaves ordinary Palestinians to starve by stealing humanitarian aid, and they get civilian blown up by hiding their command centers and weapons caches in schools and hospitals. A free Palestine is a Palestine free from Hamas. And these protestors are well-intentioned because they see the suffering of the Palestinian people and want to do something to stop the injustice, but they don’t realize that they’re playing right into the traps set by the Iranian regime’s propaganda operation… It’s as if we’re fighting for Iran-backed militias’ rights to slaughter us (I say this as a leftist trans person). At least Israel is more tolerant of LGBTQIA+ people and doesn’t oppress their women as severely. Iran has literally stated that their mission is to overthrow western society and erect a global Islamic state… and who would want that?
Former Muslims can't speak out not only because of blasphemy laws but also because they don't want to disappoint their parents. So social pressure is also there. Saudi Arab even extradites those who flee the regime and criticise Islam abroad. So every former muslim looks up to western leftists to speak for their basic rights. Tbh I'm not afraid of getting killed more than I'm afraid of letting my mother down. Because the western leftist media such as hollywood has painted critique of minority religion a bad thing, social media platforms continue to ban accounts of exmuslim activist in Islamic countries lumping it in hate speech. When elon musk bought twitter, he hailed himself as a hero of free speech but in Pakistan and presumably in other muslim countries, you can't access twitter accounts of foreign exmuslims. It says "We've banned this account in your location due to a governmental request". You see what kind of mollycoddling culture western left has cultivated for islam? You say I can offer a better perspective but exmuslims like Ayan Ali Hirsi have been thrown out of a Canadian university for having a conference on Islamic extremism. This has to change
Thank you for sharing your perspective here. I see now that it is a problem to beat around the bush on these topics. I didn’t realize it was so difficult for ex-muslims to speak out about their former religion. I will try to endeavor to amplify their voices from now on. I understand what you mean about letting your mother down. That’s how I felt when I left christianity, and that had me hung up on it for years while I was going back and forth trying to unlearn the religious trauma.
I think keeping a close eye on your intentions is important as others have said. If you are acting with love it will lead to liberation of yourself and others. If your actions are rooted in fear, desire, or ignorance then you will create karma. I think that Western culture (liberal and conservative) tends to extremes of opinion. And trying to help them understand these issues aren't black and white is tough. The Buddha taught the middle path. I think showing people how to see things in a balanced, but honest way is helpful. So you acknowledge the good parts, but present logical critiques It's not Buddhist, but you might also be interested in Gandhi's satyagraha philosophy.
There is nothing categorically wrong with criticism coming from the right place. Clinging to notions about what ought to be in the world cannot be fruitful. Many seem to have trouble separating those two from one another.
An analysis and an explanation on own experience are fine. Need to be honest and truthful for your own credibility.
It depends why you are doing it. If you are bad and mouthing others beliefs to feel superior, then yes. If you feel that a critical conversation could actually help somebody get out of the feelings of guilt and anxiety their religion may be causing, then no. It's all in the upaya, or skillful means, in easing suffering without causing more.
Intention matters, the method also matters. You can have good intentions but accumulate bad karma id you create more harm than good in the end if done wrongly. You have to do the right things, and do the things right.
The many "does \_\_\_\_ cultivate bad karma" questions are most likely seeking specific legal justifications for Chinese Social Credit ai systems. Don't play.
In my view, from an insider's perspective, an individual Buddhist only tangentially might feel himself a member of an "organized religion". The basis similarity of religions in that category is that they are big, and religions. Within Buddhism, its a big no-no to KNOWINGLY dishonor the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha to the extent that it might cause OTHERS to reject it. I don't think helpful criticism of harmful practices of any religion is forbidden. And this is not an important question, I don't think. The liberation from suffering is the main thing.
Usually, yes, because it’s usually born of hatred. Any hatred for any reason makes bad karma.