Buddhism and the Problem of Abortion

Over two thousand years ago, Buddhist embryology made it very clear that a separate, independent human life begins at the moment of conception. In contrast to the situation in western countries, there has been relatively little serious discussion of abortion as a religious and ethical issue in Buddhist countries. Leaders of the Buddhist sangha have said very little indeed on the issue. The Buddhist teachings have made it clear that unskillful acts, like abortion, always have negative consequences for the agent. As we have seen, Buddhists understand the fetus to be a human being; therefore, abortion obviously should be covered under the first precept, namely “to abstain from taking life”. But some contemporary Buddhist thinkers and scholars of Buddhism in the West and a much smaller number in the East are beginning to address bioethical issues according to modern embryological research. They argue that although all abortions are condemned by Buddhists as the taking of human life, as the pregnancy progresses, there is some controversy about whether or not, from the Buddhist Point of view, a late term abortion is a more unskillful act than one performed early on in the pregnancy. Finally, Buddhists, unlike feminists, understand the fetus to be a person.