Zen Wisdom 325

BUDDHISM AND ABORTION


QUESTIO:

Abortion is a major issue that not only involves medical and social questions, but deeply moral ones as well. From the point of view of the Dharma, what is the correct view that Buddhists should have towards abortion?

SHIH-FU:

I know this is a touchy subject, especially in the United States. People are polarized into different camps of pro-choice and pro-life. I do not profess to be a legislator or judge. It is a very complicated issue in a very complicated and fast-changing society. I want to make it clear that by no means am I setting myself up as a moral mouthpiece or issuer of steadfast law. I am a Buddhist monk who has studied and practiced the Dharma for a long time. What I know is Buddhadharma, and that is the position I will speak from.

There is a sutra called the Sutra of the Womb, which talks about the moment of conception, when a sentient being enters a womb. It describes how it enters the womb, what it experiences, and how it is born. There are other sutras which talk about the intermediate state between death and rebirth.