Hinduism and abortion - Revision history

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	{{~~Hinduism~~}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=May 2022}}
	{{POV\|date=September 2013}}		{{EngvarB\|date=May 2022}}
	~~'''[[Abortion]] in''' '''[[~~Hinduism]]''' is governed by Garbha Upanishad, one of the four core [[Vedas]].<ref name="Garbha Upanishad" /> The verses in this Veda declared abortion of a jivan as a [[crime]], which is intelligence or soul that as per the verses does not come alive until the 7th month.<ref name="Garbha Upanishad" /> The [[Mahanarayana Upanishad]] lists the abortionist with actions such as breaking one's vow of [[chastity]].<ref name="Stephens, Moira 2010" /> Brahma Kumaris and ~~individual Hindus, hold varying stances about abortion.<ref name="Damian 125" /><ref>{{cite web\| url=https://abortions.co.il/abortions/ \|title= הפלה בכדורים~~ }} ~~Friday, 4 December 2020 </ref>~~		{{POV\|date=September 2013}}{{Hinduism and other religions}}

	== ~~Interpretation based on Hindu Texts~~ ==		'''Abortion in''' '''[[Hinduism]]''' is governed by Garbha Upanishad.<ref name="Garbha Upanishad">{{cite web \|url= http://www.vedarahasya.net/garbha.htm \|title=Garbha Upanishad }}</ref>{{better source needed\|date=March 2022}} The verses in this Upanishad declared abortion of a [[jivan]] as a crime, which is intelligence or soul that as per the verses does come alive at the start of conception.<ref name="Garbha Upanishad" />{{better source needed\|date=March 2022}} The [[Mahanarayana Upanishad]] lists the abortionist with actions such as breaking one's vow of [[chastity]].<ref name="Stephens, Moira 2010">Stephens, Moira, Christopher Jordens, Ian Kerridge, and Rachel A. Ankeny (2010). "Religious Perspectives on Abortion and a Secular Response". Journal of Religion and Health, 49 (4D), 513–535.</ref> Brahma Kumaris and individual Hindus, hold varying stances about abortion.

	~~In [[~~Garbha Upanishad~~]] one of the four core [[Vedas]] of Hinduism~~, it states "In the seventh month, fetus comes to life."		Following few paragraphs depict lack of understanding of Hindu religious concepts from Westerners. The interpretations are done based on Christian knowledge rather than actual understanding through natives who belong to the faith. “In the Garbha Upanishad, it states "In the seventh month, fetus comes to life." [1][better source needed] Jivan or intelligence or soul as referenced in the text does not come alive until the 7th month.[1][2] The preceding verses provide an anatomically correct version of growth post conception.[1][better source needed] The other texts cited above are also suggest abortion of a jivan is a crime.Though the soul is present from the beginning of conception, it becomes aware of oneself at the seventh month.
	~~<ref name="Garbha Upanishad">{{cite web \|url= http://www.vedarahasya.net/garbha.htm \|title=Garbha Upanishad }}</ref>~~ Jivan or intellige<ref>{{Cite web\|last=Apte\|first=Vaman Shivaram\|date=1957-1959\|title=Revised and Enlarged Edition of Prin. V. S. Apte's The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary\|url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/app/apte_query.py?qs=%E0%A4%9C%E0%A5%80%E0%A4%B5&searchhws=yes&matchtype=exact\|access-date=2021-03-18\|website=dsal.uchicago.edu}}</ref>nce or soul as referenced in the text does not come alive until the 7th month.~~<ref name="Garbha Upanishad"/>~~ The preceding verses provide an anatomically correct version of growth post conception.~~<ref name="Garbha Upanishad"/>~~ The other texts cited above are also ~~accurate when they~~ suggest abortion of a jivan is a crime. proper interpretation of verse means the development of conscious awareness at the seventh month of pregnancy.<ref>{{cite web\| url=https://vedabase.io/en/library/sb/3/31/1/ \| work=Bhaktivedanta Vedabase \| title=Canto 3:The Status Quo, Chapter 31 \| accessdate=1 May 2021}}</ref> Though the soul is present from the beginning of conception, it becomes aware of oneself at the seventh month~~.{{efn\|Srimad Bhagavatam also agrees with this.}} The other texts must be read in light of the Vedas containing the Garbha Upanishad to understand when such verses apply~~.

	According to the Hinduism Today website, "Several Hindu institutions have shared their positions on abortion recently. The Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University does not take a formal unchanging political or religious stance on the issue of abortion. They advise that each case requires unique consideration... The Brahma Kumaris view the body as a physical vehicle for the immortal soul, and therefore the issue is not "pro-life" or "anti-life" but a choice between the amount of suffering caused to the souls of the parents and child in either course, abortion or motherhood" and later states that "[[ISKCON]] calls the 1.3 million abortions done in America last year 'a kind of doublethink', whereby people deny the status of humanity to the fetus...According to Vedic literature an eternal individual soul inhabits the body of every living creature...The soul enters the womb at the time of conception, and this makes the fetus a living, individual person."<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.hinduismtoday.com/archives/1985/09/1985-09-07.shtml \|title=Hindus In America Speak out on Abortion Issues \|work=Hinduism Today \|date=7 September 1985 \|access-date=14 September 2010}}</ref>		According to the Hinduism Today website, "Several Hindu institutions have shared their positions on abortion recently. The Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University does not take a formal unchanging political or religious stance on the issue of abortion. According to Vedic literature an eternal individual soul inhabits the body of every living creature...The soul enters the womb at the time of conception, and this makes the fetus a living, individual person."[3] Some Hindu theologians believe personhood begins at 3 months and develops through to 5 months of gestation, possibly implying permitting abortion up to the third month and considering any abortion past the third month to be destruction of the soul's current incarnate body.[4] The Hindu teaching of the word Karma, the result of good and bad actions, makes abortions improper. In this teaching, the opposite of life is thought to be rebirth. Abortion causes termination not only to the unborn, but also to the unborn child's karma. It is believed that negative karma goes to those who interrupt karma's continuing cycle.[5]” Many Hindus have complained about the lack of knowledge and misinformation in these texts.
	Some Hindu theologians believe personhood begins at 3 months and develops through to 5 months of gestation, possibly implying permitting abortion up to the third month and considering any abortion past the third month to be destruction of the soul's current incarnate body.<ref>{{cite book \|chapter=The Ethics of Abortion \|title=Dilemmas of Life and Death: Hindu Ethics in a North American Context \| year=1995 \|author=Crawford, S. Cromwell \|publisher=State University of New York Press \|isbn=0-7914-2165-1}}</ref> The Hindu teaching of the word Karma, the result of good and bad actions, makes abortions improper. In this teaching, the opposite of life is thought to be rebirth. Abortion causes termination not only to the unborn, but also to the unborn ~~child’s~~ karma. It is believed that negative karma goes to those who interrupt ~~karma’s~~ continuing cycle.~~<ref name="Stephens, Moira 2010"/>~~

	~~The~~ Mahanarayana Upanishad lists the abortionist with actions such as breaking one's vow of chastity.~~<ref name="Stephens~~, ~~Moira 2010">Stephens~~, ~~Moira, Christopher Jordens, Ian Kerridge, and Rachel A. Ankeny (2010). “Religious Perspectives on Abortion and~~ a ~~Secular Response”~~. ~~Journal of Religion and Health~~, ~~49 (4D), 513-535~~.~~</ref> Individual~~ [~~[Hindu~~]]s hold varying stances on abortion. For this reason it has become common to not state the Hindu view on abortion but rather one Hindu view on abortion. Even with a high rate of abortion in India statistics showed 80 ~~percent~~ of Indian women disapproved and 56 ~~percent~~ consider it a heinous crime.<ref name="Damian 125">{{cite journal\|last=Damian\|first=Constantin-Iulian\|title=Abortion from the Perspective of Eastern Religions: Hinduism and Buddhism\|journal=Romanian Journal of Bioethics\|date=January–March 2010\|volume=8\|issue=1\|page=125\|url=http://bioetica.ro/index.php/arhiva-bioetica/article/view/149/227\|access-date=February 3, 2014\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221215708/http://bioetica.ro/index.php/arhiva-bioetica/article/view/149/227\|archive-date=February 21, 2014\|url-status=dead}}</ref> Hindus go as far as to make clear distinctions in their sacred texts between abortions and miscarriages. The text goes as far as stating that killing a male embryo who could have been a Brahmin the same as killing an adult Brahmin which is considered one of the worst sins one can commit.~~<ref name="Damian 125"/>~~		Disclaimer, the information provided here are by Western authors who are not native. Hence, they do not correctly represent the Hindu teachings. This is a following example, “The Mahanarayana Upanishad lists the abortionist with actions such as breaking one's vow of chastity.” As referenced in the Vedas and Bhagavad Gita, while cheating is a form of sin, sex before marriage remains to be a largely believed Christian concept. Although it might be cultural, it is not Hindu. [5] Individual Hindus hold varying stances on abortion. For this reason it has become common to not state the Hindu view on abortion but rather one Hindu view on abortion. Even with a high rate of abortion in India statistics showed 80 per cent of Indian women disapproved and 56 per cent consider it a heinous crime.[6] “Hindus go as far as to make clear distinctions in their sacred texts between abortions and miscarriages. The text goes as far as stating that killing a male embryo who could have been a Brahmin the same as killing an adult Brahmin which is considered one of the worst sins one can commit.”is an example of Western propganda. [6]

	The [[British Broadcasting Corporation]] writes, "When considering abortion, the Hindu way is to choose the action that will do least harm to all involved: the mother and father, the fetus and society... Classical Hindu texts are strongly opposed to abortion." The BBC goes on to state, "In practice, however, abortion is practiced in [[Hindu culture]] in India, because the religious ban on abortion is sometimes overruled by the cultural preference for sons. This can lead to abortion to prevent the birth of girl babies, which is called '[[female feticide ~~in India\|female feticide]]~~'.~~"<ref name=BBC1>{{cite web \|url=http://www~~.~~bbc~~.~~co.uk/religion/religions/hinduism/hinduethics/abortion_1.shtml \|title=Hinduism and abortion \|publisher=BBC \|date=25 August 2009 \|access-date=14 September 2010}}</ref>~~ Hindus generally tend to support abortion in cases where the mother's life is at risk or when the fetus has a severe developmental abnormality. Sex-selective abortion is banned in India and Hindu scholars and women's rights advocates have supported these bans ~~on [[sex-selective abortion]].<ref>{{cite news\| url=http://www.hindu.com/2009/07/30/stories/2009073060530400.htm \| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107104333/http://www~~.~~hindu.com/2009/07/30/stories/2009073060530400.htm \| url-status=dead \| archive-date=7 November 2012 \| location=Chennai, India \| work=[~~[~~The Hindu~~]~~] \| title=A warning for doctors doing sex selection \| date=30 July 2009}}</ref>~~		A prime example of Western media manipulating and promoting agenda on abortion in Hinduism (inaccurately): The British Broadcasting Corporation writes, "When considering abortion, the Hindu way is to choose the action that will do least harm to all involved: the mother and father, the fetus and society... Classical Hindu texts are strongly opposed to abortion." The BBC goes on to state, "In practice, however, abortion is practiced in Hindu culture in India, because the religious ban on abortion is sometimes overruled by the cultural preference for sons. This can lead to abortion to prevent the birth of girl babies, which is called 'female feticide'. While feticide is an issue,this article takes a Western stance and is written by a non-Hindu. Many British sources can also be referred to colonial era."[7] Hindus generally tend to support abortion in cases where the mother's life is at risk or when the fetus has a severe developmental abnormality. Sex-selective abortion is banned in India and Hindu scholars and women's rights advocates have supported these bans.[8]

	==Amount of suffering==		==Amount of suffering==
	If the mother's life is at risk, Hinduism permits abortion. The Vedic texts compare abortion to the killing of one's own parents.<ref name=BBC1 /> The general value system of Hinduism teaches that the correct course of action in any given situation is the one that causes the least harm to those involved. Thus in the case where the mother's life is at risk, abortion is considered acceptable.<ref name=BBC1 />{{~~bcn~~\|date=April 2020}}		If the mother's life is at risk, Hinduism permits abortion. The Vedic texts compare abortion to the killing of one's own parents.<ref name=BBC1>{{cite web \|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/hinduism/hinduethics/abortion_1.shtml \|title=Hinduism and abortion \|publisher=BBC \|date=25 August 2009 \|access-date=14 September 2010}}</ref> The general value system of Hinduism teaches that the correct course of action in any given situation is the one that causes the least harm to those involved. Thus in the case where the mother's life is at risk, abortion is considered acceptable.<ref name=BBC1 />{{better source needed\|date=April 2020}}

	~~==Notes==~~
	~~{{notelist~~}}

	==References==		==References==

>Matilda Maniac: fixed reference; move another to a note; add notelist

2021-05-01T02:04:41Z

fixed reference; move another to a note; add notelist

New page

{{Hinduism}}
{{POV|date=September 2013}}
'''[[Abortion]] in''' '''[[Hinduism]]''' is governed by Garbha Upanishad, one of the four core [[Vedas]].<ref name="Garbha Upanishad" /> The verses in this Veda declared abortion of a jivan as a [[crime]], which is intelligence or soul that as per the verses does not come alive until the 7th month.<ref name="Garbha Upanishad" /> The [[Mahanarayana Upanishad]] lists the abortionist with actions such as breaking one's vow of [[chastity]].<ref name="Stephens, Moira 2010" /> Brahma Kumaris and individual Hindus, hold varying stances about abortion.<ref name="Damian 125" /><ref>{{cite web| url=https://abortions.co.il/abortions/ |title= הפלה בכדורים }} Friday, 4 December 2020 </ref>

== Interpretation based on Hindu Texts ==

In [[Garbha Upanishad]] one of the four core [[Vedas]] of Hinduism, it states "In the seventh month, fetus comes to life."
<ref name="Garbha Upanishad">{{cite web |url= http://www.vedarahasya.net/garbha.htm |title=Garbha Upanishad }}</ref> Jivan or intellige<ref>{{Cite web|last=Apte|first=Vaman Shivaram|date=1957-1959|title=Revised and Enlarged Edition of Prin. V. S. Apte's The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary|url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/app/apte_query.py?qs=%E0%A4%9C%E0%A5%80%E0%A4%B5&searchhws=yes&matchtype=exact|access-date=2021-03-18|website=dsal.uchicago.edu}}</ref>nce or soul as referenced in the text does not come alive until the 7th month.<ref name="Garbha Upanishad"/> The preceding verses provide an anatomically correct version of growth post conception.<ref name="Garbha Upanishad"/> The other texts cited above are also accurate when they suggest abortion of a jivan is a crime. proper interpretation of verse means the development of conscious awareness at the seventh month of pregnancy.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://vedabase.io/en/library/sb/3/31/1/ | work=Bhaktivedanta Vedabase | title=Canto 3:The Status Quo, Chapter 31 | accessdate=1 May 2021}}</ref> Though the soul is present from the beginning of conception, it becomes aware of oneself at the seventh month.{{efn|Srimad Bhagavatam also agrees with this.}} The other texts must be read in light of the Vedas containing the Garbha Upanishad to understand when such verses apply.

According to the Hinduism Today website, "Several Hindu institutions have shared their positions on abortion recently. The Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University does not take a formal unchanging political or religious stance on the issue of abortion. They advise that each case requires unique consideration... The Brahma Kumaris view the body as a physical vehicle for the immortal soul, and therefore the issue is not "pro-life" or "anti-life" but a choice between the amount of suffering caused to the souls of the parents and child in either course, abortion or motherhood" and later states that "[[ISKCON]] calls the 1.3 million abortions done in America last year 'a kind of doublethink', whereby people deny the status of humanity to the fetus...According to Vedic literature an eternal individual soul inhabits the body of every living creature...The soul enters the womb at the time of conception, and this makes the fetus a living, individual person."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hinduismtoday.com/archives/1985/09/1985-09-07.shtml |title=Hindus In America Speak out on Abortion Issues |work=Hinduism Today |date=7 September 1985 |access-date=14 September 2010}}</ref>
Some Hindu theologians believe personhood begins at 3 months and develops through to 5 months of gestation, possibly implying permitting abortion up to the third month and considering any abortion past the third month to be destruction of the soul's current incarnate body.<ref>{{cite book |chapter=The Ethics of Abortion |title=Dilemmas of Life and Death: Hindu Ethics in a North American Context | year=1995 |author=Crawford, S. Cromwell |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=0-7914-2165-1}}</ref> The Hindu teaching of the word Karma, the result of good and bad actions, makes abortions improper. In this teaching, the opposite of life is thought to be rebirth. Abortion causes termination not only to the unborn, but also to the unborn child’s karma. It is believed that negative karma goes to those who interrupt karma’s continuing cycle.<ref name="Stephens, Moira 2010"/>

The Mahanarayana Upanishad lists the abortionist with actions such as breaking one's vow of chastity.<ref name="Stephens, Moira 2010">Stephens, Moira, Christopher Jordens, Ian Kerridge, and Rachel A. Ankeny (2010). “Religious Perspectives on Abortion and a Secular Response”. Journal of Religion and Health, 49 (4D), 513-535.</ref> Individual [[Hindu]]s hold varying stances on abortion. For this reason it has become common to not state the Hindu view on abortion but rather one Hindu view on abortion. Even with a high rate of abortion in India statistics showed 80 percent of Indian women disapproved and 56 percent consider it a heinous crime.<ref name="Damian 125">{{cite journal|last=Damian|first=Constantin-Iulian|title=Abortion from the Perspective of Eastern Religions: Hinduism and Buddhism|journal=Romanian Journal of Bioethics|date=January–March 2010|volume=8|issue=1|page=125|url=http://bioetica.ro/index.php/arhiva-bioetica/article/view/149/227|access-date=February 3, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221215708/http://bioetica.ro/index.php/arhiva-bioetica/article/view/149/227|archive-date=February 21, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> Hindus go as far as to make clear distinctions in their sacred texts between abortions and miscarriages. The text goes as far as stating that killing a male embryo who could have been a Brahmin the same as killing an adult Brahmin which is considered one of the worst sins one can commit.<ref name="Damian 125"/>

The [[British Broadcasting Corporation]] writes, "When considering abortion, the Hindu way is to choose the action that will do least harm to all involved: the mother and father, the fetus and society... Classical Hindu texts are strongly opposed to abortion." The BBC goes on to state, "In practice, however, abortion is practiced in [[Hindu culture]] in India, because the religious ban on abortion is sometimes overruled by the cultural preference for sons. This can lead to abortion to prevent the birth of girl babies, which is called '[[female feticide in India|female feticide]]'."<ref name=BBC1>{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/hinduism/hinduethics/abortion_1.shtml |title=Hinduism and abortion |publisher=BBC |date=25 August 2009 |access-date=14 September 2010}}</ref> Hindus generally tend to support abortion in cases where the mother's life is at risk or when the fetus has a severe developmental abnormality. Sex-selective abortion is banned in India and Hindu scholars and women's rights advocates have supported these bans on [[sex-selective abortion]].<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.hindu.com/2009/07/30/stories/2009073060530400.htm | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107104333/http://www.hindu.com/2009/07/30/stories/2009073060530400.htm | url-status=dead | archive-date=7 November 2012 | location=Chennai, India | work=[[The Hindu]] | title=A warning for doctors doing sex selection | date=30 July 2009}}</ref>

==Amount of suffering==
If the mother's life is at risk, Hinduism permits abortion. The Vedic texts compare abortion to the killing of one's own parents.<ref name=BBC1 /> The general value system of Hinduism teaches that the correct course of action in any given situation is the one that causes the least harm to those involved. Thus in the case where the mother's life is at risk, abortion is considered acceptable.<ref name=BBC1 />{{bcn|date=April 2020}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

{{Abortion}}

[[Category:Religion and abortion]]
[[Category:Abortion in India]]
[[Category:Gender and Hinduism|Abortion]]