non-resistance
Refusal to oppose
Non-resistance is the principle or practice of not opposing force with force, especially refusing to resist authority or aggression through violence.
The term appears in religious and political contexts—Tolstoy advocated non-resistance to evil, and some Christian traditions interpret "turn the other cheek" as a doctrine of non-resistance.
It differs from passive resistance, which actively but nonviolently opposes: non-resistance simply does not resist at all.
Bending under pressure
- acquiescenceUnresisting acceptance
- complianceAdhering to requirements
- surrenderCease resistance, yield
- deferenceYielding to another's judgment
capitulation · submissiveness · docility · obedience · meekness · concession · subservience · tractability
Principled rejection of force
- satyagrahaNonviolent resistance philosophy
- ahimsaHindu principle of harmlessness
- civil disobediencePeaceful refusal to obey
- conscientious objectionMoral refusal to fight
peaceful protest · Gandhi · MLK · Quaker · antimilitarism · peacemaking · Tolstoy · noncooperation
Voluntary relinquishment of position
- letting goReleasing one's grasp
- equanimityUnshakable mental steadiness
- toleranceWillingness to accept difference
- forbearancePatient self-control, delayed enforcement
endurance · stoicism · detachment · serenity · composure · relinquishment · reconciliation · making peace
Deliberate nonmovement
- inertiaResistance to altered motion
- quiescenceState of being inactive
- apathyAbsence of feeling
- indifferenceLack of interest
lethargy · dormancy · stagnation · unresponsiveness · defeatism · fatalism · disengagement · withdrawal
yielding
Bending under pressure
- acquiescenceUnresisting acceptance
- complianceAdhering to requirements
- surrenderCease resistance, yield
deference · capitulation · submissiveness · docility · obedience · meekness · concession · subservience · tractability · bowing
nonviolence
Principled rejection of force
- satyagrahaNonviolent resistance philosophy
- ahimsaHindu principle of harmlessness
- civil disobediencePeaceful refusal to obey
conscientious objection · peaceful protest · Gandhi · MLK · Quaker · antimilitarism · peacemaking · Tolstoy · noncooperation · sit-in
resignation
Voluntary relinquishment of position
- letting goReleasing one's grasp
- equanimityUnshakable mental steadiness
- toleranceWillingness to accept difference
forbearance · endurance · stoicism · detachment · serenity · composure · relinquishment · reconciliation · making peace · coming to terms
inaction
Deliberate nonmovement
- inertiaResistance to altered motion
- quiescenceState of being inactive
- apathyAbsence of feeling
indifference · lethargy · dormancy · stagnation · unresponsiveness · defeatism · fatalism · disengagement · withdrawal · noninvolvement
- inactioninaction, passivity, doing nothing, stillness, immobility
- Tolstoyismnonviolence, pacifism, simple living, Sermon on the Mount, vegetarianism
- submissivenesssubmissiveness, docility, meekness, obedience, tractability
- shakerssalt shaker, pepper shaker, cocktail shaker, sugar shaker, parmesan shaker
- wuweieffortlessness, naturalness, spontaneity, flow
non-resistanceresistance
Capacity to withstand force
defiance · opposition · fighting back · aggression · counterattack
non-resistanceguerrilla warfare
Irregular combat using ambushes
insurrection · armed rebellion · direct action · sabotage · armed struggle
non-resistancedefiance
Open resistance to authority
rebelliousness · stubbornness · obstinacy · intransigence · contrariness