Buddhism teaches that morality is something we create for ourselves based purely on what is found to be beneficial rather than objectively right or good. There is considerable controversy about the moral status of abortion in buddhist ethics, with the majority of writers taking a prolife position. There is no single buddhist view concerning abortion, although it is generally regarded. Buddhist temples are often used to store bodies prior to cremation but, with the local crematorium out of order, complaints about the smell. The buddhas way and abortion loss, grief and resolution a lecture by yvonne rand, a zen buddhist priest and meditation teacher in the san francisco bay area. If you like this free lesson, we hope you will check out our complete gcse religious studies units this fully resourced lesson is for those teaching buddhism as a comparative religion at gcse level. The dalai lama has said that abortion is negative, but there are exceptions. Abhidhamma studies researches in buddhist psychology nyanaponika thera a manual of abhidhamma abhidhammattha sangaha narada maha thera buddha abhidhamma ultimate science dr. There are various buddhists views on abortion but this article takes a more comprehensive or global view of the issue in perspective. The buddha came from a warrior caste and was naturally brought into association with kings, princes and ministers.
Abortion, has been practiced by societies for centuries, and within each society has been. As the title of the booklet suggests, we encourage the learning and use of pali words by learning one word each. In buddhist countries, abortion is not the controversial issue it is in the west. Scholar jeff wilson discusses his research on the history of prolife movements in north america and japan amid a renewed push for restrictions on abortion in the us. The entire book can be downloaded as a pdf for free. To this end he helps himself to the dubious assumption that any such proposed buddhist middle way must be distinctly or uniquely buddhist page 202 before going on to make some conceptual heavy weather of what the phrase middle way might meanhere surely just a. Enter your mobile number or email address below and well send you a link to download the free kindle app.
The number of induced abortions performed worldwide is very high. Christianity, islam, hinduism, buddhism, and judaism. Abortion, buddha and the dalai lama america magazine. The first page of the pdf of this article appears above. A 2007 study published in the lancet, one of the worlds bestknown and most respected general medical journals, found that the global rate of abortion was 45. Download book pdf buddhism and abortion pp 199218 cite as. There is a tendency to treat religious condemnations of abortion as.
Subscribe to this free journal for more curated articles on this topic. My job is not to make decisions or advice for others, but to give a pure classical buddhist explanation on abortion. Buddhism and bioethics damien keown palgrave macmillan. In buddhist beliefs, a life begins from the first moment of conception, therefore. Both the mother and whoever performs the abortion generate negative karma as. The buddhist ethics approach on abortion in thai society by. Laws and views on abortion vary greatly in theravada buddhist nations. Abortion is one of the most controversial moral issues for modern times. As buddhism continues to engage the attention of the west, the time is now opportune for its views on abortion to be heard.
Buddhists approach the issue through their belief in a continuous cycle of life, death and rebirth. Buddhism and bioethics discusses contemporary issues in medical ethics from a buddhist perspective. The indian term for ethics or morality used in buddhism is sila or sila. For one thing, it puts the question when does life begin. Mehm tin mon survey of the 52 mental factors cetasikas samatha and vipassana as presented in the theravada abhidhamma shi huifeng. As a buddhist, should i support the choice for an abortion. Buddhist ethics are traditionally based on what buddhists view as the enlightened perspective of the buddha, or other enlightened beings such as bodhisattvas. Each abortion takes life in a new direction and interferes with the destiny of innumerable individuals. Right and wrong are neither moral judgments nor arbitrary. The buddha and his teachings venerable narada mahathera reprinted for free distribution by the corporate body of the buddha educational foundation taipei, taiwan.
He said, i think abortion should be approved or disapproved according to each circumstance. According to buddhist teachings, liferebirthbegins at conception. As the consciousness is held to enter the embryo at conception, it is felt to be fully human at that moment. Then you can start reading kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer no kindle device required. Adopting a buddhist ritual to mourn miscarriage, abortion. However, approaching abortion as merely a rights issue doesnt seem to be getting us anywhere. Pdf buddhism, as with most other religions and spiritual traditions around the world, do not generally approve of killing. Arguments have been made for or against abortion by many groups from religious to feminists. This paper examines the abortion issue from a buddhist perspective.
First, the buddhist view of abortion does not include a concept of rights, either a right to life or a right to ones own body. Attitudes and laws in thailand are generally more liberal than in sri lanka. This text approaches abortion from the discipline of buddhist studies. Im concerned that it violates the first precept and will have negative karmic consequences, but in my heart, it feels more complicated than that. Though buddhism has clearly a prolife position on abortion, the final decision should be left to. All and all abortion has been very controversial in many peoples mind. To learn about our use of cookies and how you can manage your cookie settings, please see our cookie policy. As the con sciousness is held to enter the embryo at conception, it is felt to be fully human at that moment. The issues examined include abortion, embryo research and euthanasia. By closing this message, you are consenting to our use of cookies. Buddhism and the morality of abortion urban dharma. We need a fresh perspective, and i believe the buddhist view of the abortion issue may provide one. As buddhist scholar and activist thich nhat hanh says. Planned parenthood, abortion and buddhism hardcore zen.
It also serves as an introduction to buddhism for ethicists. Global impact of abortion essays abortion is a very sensitive subject no matter where you go in the world. Thus, buddhism strongly discourages abortion except in the situation of an immediate threat to the mothers life. Inducing or otherwise causing an abortion is regarded as a serious matter in the monastic rules. Sila in buddhism is one of three sections of the noble eightfold path, and is a code of conduct that embraces a commitment to harmony and selfrestraint with. Despite his origin and association, he never resorted to the influence of political power to introduce his teaching, nor allowed his teaching to be misused for gaining. Buddhism abortion, buddhism and abortion, dr anthony. A friend of mine is considering getting an abortion. There is no single buddhist view concerning abortion, although it is generally regarded negatively. Buddhism is an ancient tradition which over the centuries has refined its distinctive beliefs and values in the course of a long interaction with the major cultures of asia. A selection of pali words for daily reflection 39 pages 402 kb free. The buddhist belief in rebirth introduces a new dimension to the abortion debate.
Request pdf buddhism, abortion and the middle way what have modern buddhist ethicists to say about abortion and is there anything to be learned from it. My blog post about abortion abortion and buddhism 6163 to donate by paypal my patreon page s. Buddhism and abortion buddhism oxford bibliographies. Abortion reform is up against buddhism in thailand. What the buddha said about abortion essence of buddhism. Adopting a buddhist ritual to mourn miscarriage, abortion more americans are using mizuko kuyo to grieve the loss of a child, whether it be from a miscarriage or an abortion. This booklet aims to assist new buddhist students who are unfamiliar with some of the pali words often used in the study of buddhism. In the traditional view, whether or not an embryo or fetus can survive on its own, it is a sentient being whose spiritual progress is thwarted by an abortion. A buddhist view of abortion buddhist publication society.
There can be no standard outside ourselves and no one to hold us to it. The buddha had gone beyond all worldly affairs, but still gave advice on good government. It is suggested that buddhism takes a middle way on abortion, i. The act of abortion becomes a grave sin and a complicated problem in hinduism because of its belief in karma and rebirth. In brief, the theravada buddhist texts and probably all other schools believe that an unborn child after conception is a living human being. Pages in category buddhism and abortion the following 5 pages are in this category, out of 5 total.
Problems at the time of abortion are not very common but are even less likely when the abortion is carried out early in pregnancy and when it is performed by an experienced doctor or nurse. Buddhist views on abortion about buddhist views on abortion. July 1998 namo tassa bhagavato arahato sammasambuddhassa homage to him, the exalted, the worthy, the fully enlightened one. The actual line is, the monastic code recognizes human life as starting at. Aborting it with intention is the same as killing a human living being.
Published by brad on november 30, 2015 63 responses. He was very clear about this in the pali suttas the teachings of the elders, the mahayana sutras the great vehicle and in the vinaya the rules of disicipline for monks and nuns that abortion is the taking of a life killing. Abortion is an emotive and challenging subject for every religion. Drawing on ancient and modern sources, the book shows how buddhist ethical principles can be applied consistently to a range of. The basic premise of the traditional understanding of abortion in buddhism is that reincarnation is a discrete event which happens at the time of conception. Wikipedia seems to be paraphrasing a line that appears early in the chapter on abortion and contraception. Attitudes about abortion have given birth to heartbreaking polarization and violence.
She asked me for advice, but as a buddhist, i dont really know what to say. Religion and abortion many religious traditions have taken a stance on abortion, and these stances span a broad spectrum from acceptance to rejection. There is comparatively little public debate surrounding it, and, in marked contrast to the voluminous multidisciplinary literature available in the west, little has been published on the subject from a buddhist. Email alerting receive free email alerts when new articles service cite this article. It is imperative to note that buddha tried to avoid making rules and told buddhist believers not to believe. Buddhism and abortion damien keown palgrave macmillan. Of course, abortion, from a buddhist viewpoint, is an act of killing and is negative, generally speaking. Why would a country strongly influenced by buddhism s reverence for life allow legalized, widely used abortion. In part, this is because buddhism is a very old religion, and the concept of human rights is relatively recent. Pdf buddhism, as with most other religions and spiritual traditions around the. Kingsborough, cuny i it is quite clear from a variety of sources that abortion has been severely disapproved of in the buddhist tradition.
369 826 169 541 379 1211 313 4 863 1398 151 560 188 725 795 1385 837 813 1 823 193 342 315 827 941 373 1517 625 783 434 724 1254 1222 412 751 915 887 504 250 1271 127 424 511