In the last couple of weeks, we have seen the non-violent movement in Burma, a massive united stand against the military rule, virtually destroyed by arrests, interigation, night raids, and killings carried out by the government. The streets that were overflowing with monks and other citizens only a couple of weeks ago are now quiet as soldiers patrol them. It seems that this movement may be coming to a close with as little success in ending military rule as the 1988 movement. The only difference may be that fewer people died this time.

We like to look to those non-violent movements that ended with the overthrowing of dictators or the changing of unjust laws or policies, but it is much harder to look at those movements that ended in violence and the continuation of injustice. What do we say when non-violence does not succeed? What can we take away that is positive?

I think it takes situations in which non-violence does not succeed to realize that non-violence is not just a means to an end. If we only practice non-violence because it gets our goals achieved without using violence, we are ungrounded and will soon lose our motivation to continue struggling for non-violence in our world. Non-violence is a way of life. It is a counter-cultural, radical way of understanding our world. To truly be dedicated to non-violence even when it doesn’t work, non-violence must be something much deeper that we make integral to our very being. We must come to understand that, whether successful or not, non-violence is our hope for love and peace to prosper on Earth. We must continue in the struggle come good or bad, because it is the only thing we can do. Our faiths will allow us to do no other.