The contention over the abortion

The abortion debate is often regarded as one of the most contentious issues affecting both law and religion today. There is virtually always a debate between theological perspectives and scientific evidence. While the debate normally centers on whether life begins at conception, birth, or somewhere in between, the religious perspective is mainly based on morality and the sanctity of life. Yet, the moral implications of the practice and religious ideas from the baseline for public consciousness and the attachment of moral significance to human existence are significant. Hinduism is a world-renowned religion whose influence on the abortion debate may be traced back to ancient times. A look from a global perspective reveals that the Hindu beliefs are fundamentally shaped by its original cultural context which tends to support life, peace, and non-violence as some of its core values. The principles of non-harm (Ahimsa) is central to the Hindu belief and teaching system. As such, abortion in the Hindu perspective does not fall under the social aspects of women freedom or socio-political ideology. On the contrary, it is both a moral and a spiritual issue just because the practice negates the basis of creation as well as the protection and preservation of life and existence. In other words, abortion is an act that surmounts to attacking Nature (Prakriti). In fact, the British Broadcasting Corporation mentions that the Hindu way of considering abortion strives to choose the action that will culminate into the least harm to the parties involved namely the father, mother, the baby and the society as a whole. In this regard, the classical Hindu teaching is strongly opposed to abortion except in instances where the mother is in grave danger or the fetus has extensive developmental abnormalities that pose future adverse implications.

According to Gowri abortion involves the artificial ending of a fetus’ life in the womb. Natural abortions may also take place and are termed as miscarriages (1). In nations such as England and Wales, abortion has been legalized while other countries still have restrictive laws on the same. Religious views have a significant impact on the practice as well as legislative advancements concerning abortion. For this reason, Hindu teachings on abortion go a long way in illustrating the rationale behind the minimal support for abortion. An in-depth outlook on Hinduism and abortion reveals that the beliefs are founded on the principles of Ahimsa, the sinful nature of the act, abortion prevents the progress of a soul towards God, and interference with the spiritual journey of ancestors.

A central theme in the Hindu theology is non-violence which prescribes that the action chosen must at all times cause the least harm to the parties involves. This ideology forms the foundation for the Hindu rejection of abortion except in particular circumstances. This perspective is what facilitates the relatively liberal opinion that when deemed necessary, abortion can be conducted to preserve the pregnant woman’s life. However, traditional, Hinduism still supports the view that abortion is equivalent to discarding the duty to reproduce and introduce new members to the society. One scholar by the name Svetasvatara Upanishad explains that God’s presence is present in all things that have life and He watches over all of them. This illustration implies that the killing of the fetus surmounts to the murder of a living being, comparable to killing the parents (Hindu Human Rights). Additionally, Vedic resources illustrate that the spirit enters into the zygote immediately following conception, hence making fertilization a sacred process that involves unification between the spirit and matter. For this reason, abortion destroys a living organism with a soul or spirit, an act that is entirely against the Ahimsa teaching (Gowri 1). The Himalayan Academy of San Francisco further purports that all life is sacred and requires love and reverence as these beings are all manifestations of the Supreme Being. Failure to practice non-violence is, therefore, going against the will of the Supreme one.

A prominent Hindu teaching is that of rebirth and incarnation. Dr. T. K. Venkateswaran, a renowned Hindu leader in his writings, outlines that the destiny of an individual is determined by the ethical and physical laws of cause and effect (Kaza 48). This statement parallels the Hindu teaching that all living things, whether plant, insects or animals tent to perpetually take birth based on their desires. In other words, transmigrations from one body to another take place through the direction of the minds of these beings into newer and different forms. These souls evolve and progress towards a state of unification with God, and in the process, the soul reincarnates through subsequent births and deaths to the point where the karmic consequences have been resolved. Abortion, therefore, renders this rebirth of souls inconsistent and thus the spiritual progress and cleansing of karmas become interfered. Additionally, abortion seems to have both physical and spiritual implications both for the perpetrators and those who ignore it. Specifically, the killing of an unborn child simply due to social and economic challenges is seen as an attack on God’s creation and his will which is characterized by progression of life in an orderly manner. As such, Hinduism position against abortion is established on this ideology that taking life changes the direction of being and interferes with the destiny of countless people hence hindering successive incarnations and the resolution of karma which determines whether an individual will experience happiness or suffering in the next embodiments (Himalayan Academy).

The Hindu argument against abortion is also supported by the teaching that this practice complicates the parent selection process by the soul. Based on the previous explanations above, abortion is indeed a grave sin that breaks the consistency of karma and rebirth. Hindu theology claims that during the rebirth, the soul chooses the parents based on their own karma. This means that parents must be in a state where they deserve their children. Likewise, the children must be in a position where they deserve their parents. Performing an abortion creates an intrinsic complication to this occurrence by hindering the selection of the right parents, and thus the rebirth of souls become limited. The sacredness of the unborn as part of God’s creation and continuity of life is an element that remains irrefutable in Hindu belief which is why the disruption of rebirth is regarded as a sinful act against God’s purpose for living (Hindu Human Rights).

One of the most adverse consequences according to the Hindu theology is the interruption of the soul’s journey into the world of mortality. Apparently, the willful abortion following conception is wrong and unacceptable because the embryo has living attributes and thus possesses a soul. The teachings further elucidate that souls descend from ancestral heavens and into the earth where they are reborn into the mortal world through the birth of a child. Both parents play a crucial role in the rebirth where the fathers host the soul, and the mothers nurture the unborn until birth. This occurrence is established as what God purposes for all human beings through reproduction (Gowri 2). The killing of the fetus, therefore, ruins the soul’s progress towards the knowledge of God.

Finally, the abortion issue interferes with the ultimate spiritual destiny of ancestors of whom each Hindu has obligations. Notably, the Hindu scripture explains that deceased individuals will live again through rebirth and abortion will not only cause grief but also inconvenience to the ancestors who may have been in the process of renewal. Such an action grieves the ancestors, and they can torment the family with a multitude of problems. In summary, the Hindu perspective against abortion is centered on the adverse consequences which involve Going against God’s will, practicing violence which is against the moral and ethical principle of non-harm, aggrieving the ancestors and most of all, interference with the process of rebirth and karma (Himalayan Academy).

Conclusion

Abortion in Hinduism is more than just a human rights, women’s autonomy, political or a gender-related issue. On the contrary, it encompasses a much broader perspective. The duty of a Hindu both as an individual and a parent towards the unborn becomes imminent beginning from conception to birth. The theology of karma and rebirth informs the believer that parents are the channels through which souls can enter the world and resume their journey towards God. The continuous link of births and rebirths is God’s plan and also the avenue for completing karmas. As such, breaking this sequence leads to grave repercussions for the souls who were supposed to be in this process. The karmic and spiritual consequences of willful abortion are too complicated and abundant to the extent that any devout Hindu cannot just ignore. Instead, all must strive to maintain this chain and avoid the delusion offered by the contemporary secular ideas concerning abortion.

Works Cited

British Broadcasting Corporation. “Hinduism and abortion.” BBC, 25 August 2009, http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/hinduism/hinduethics/abortion_1.shtml. Accessed 20 October 2017.

Gowri, Vaidyanathan. “Abortion and Ensoulment.” Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal (2013): 1-2.

Himalayan Academy. “How Hindu Dharma Addresses 25 Controversial Medical Issues Frequently Encountered by Physicians.” Hinduism Today Magazine March 2013. Retrieved from: https://www.hinduismtoday.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=5340.

Hindu Human Rights. “Hindu Religious Quotes on Abortion.” Hindu Human Rights, 12 October 2012, http://www.hinduhumanrights.info/hindu-religious-quotes-on-abortion/. Accessed 20 October 2017.

Kaza, Stephanie. “Comparative Perspectives of World Religions: Views of Nature and Implications for Land Management.” Driver, B.L., et al. Nature and the Human Spirit: Toward an Expanded Land Management Ethic. Burlington, Vermont: U.S. Forest Service: Venture Publishing, 1996. 41-60.