Myanmar is taking significant strides towards political and economic liberalization after decades of military dictatorship, yet a series of violent attacks against Muslims is shaking confidence in the country. Surprisingly, Buddhist monks support much of the violence. Buddhism is widely perceived as a fundamentally peaceful religion. Thus, it has been a shock for many to see Buddhist monks in Myanmar (also known as Burma) take a prominent role in violence against the country’s minority Muslims . After all, it was less than a decade ago: in 2007 when tens of thousands of Buddhist monks and other anti-government protesters peacefully assembled on the streets of big Burmese cities in defiance of the Burmese generals. More recently, the world watched with astonishment and hope as Myanmar began to gradually emerge from decades of military dictatorship following elections in 2010 and 2012 . Yet the rise of right-wing religious nationalism is posing a serious obstacle to the country’s democr