Buddhism and Abortion

ROBERT FLORIDA Professor of Religion and Dean of Arts, Brandon University, Manitoba, Canada CLEO ODZER Researcher and Webmaster, Daytop Village, New York PINIT RATANAKUL Director of the Centre of Human Resources Development, Mahidol University, Bangkok WILLIAM R.LAFLEUR Professor of Japanese and the Joseph B. Glossberg Term Professor of Humanities, University of Pennsylvania ELIZABETH G.HARRISON Assistant Professor, Department of East Asian Studies, University of Arizona FRANK TEDESCO Teacher, Sejong University, Seoul, Korea JAMES P.MCDERMOTT Professor and Chair, Department of Religious Studies, Canisius College, Buffalo, New York JAMES HUGHES Assistant Director of Research, MacLean Centre for Clinical Medical Ethics, University of Chicago

Abortion is arguably the most controversial and divisive moral issue of modern times, but up until now the debate has taken place almost exclusively within a Western cultural, religious and philosophical context.Abortion is arguably the most controversial and divisive moral issue of modern times, but up until now the debate has taken place almost exclusively within a Western cultural, religious and philosophical context. For the past three decades in the West arguments both for and against abortion have been mounted by groups of all kinds, from religious fundamentalists to radical feminists and every shade of opinion in between. Rather than mutual understanding, however, the result has been the polarisation of opinion and the deepening of entrenched positions. In the face of this deadlock a new perspective is urgently required. 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. As Buddhism continues to engage the attention of the West, the time is now opportune for its views on abortion to be heard. This is the first book to explore the abortion question from a range of Buddhist cultural and ethical perspectives. The approach is interdisciplinary and will be of relevance to those working in fields such as law, ethics, medicine, philosophy, religion, the social sciences and women's studies.