Bioethics - Religious & Spiritual Approaches -2

1. Bioethics Eastern
Perspective
Part 2

2. Bioethics
Eastern Bioethics
• Buddhist bioethics is characterized by a naturalistic
outlook.
• Natural law in Buddhism is slightly different from
Aristotle’s view in that it includes reincarnation and
presupposes less pronounced differences between
human and non-human life.
Buddhist ethics attempts to:
• Apply ancient Buddhist philosophy to current problems
• Apply thought that originated in an Eastern context to
problems that have largely arisen in the West, due to
technological developments
• Apply religious beliefs and values to scientific and secular
contexts

3. Bioethics
Eastern Bioethics
• A Sikh approach to bioethics stems from a deeply
religious sense of social responsibility.
• Sikhism emerged in the Punjab, which was populated
by both Hindus and Muslims.
• Guru Nanak proposed a new social order that was
not based on sectarian differences, but on devotion
to God who was pervasive in all people regardless of
race, class, caste, or gender. The universe and its
inhabitants are all an aspect of God’s truth.
• Thus Sikh ethics derive from devotion to the creation,
personal discipline, and political unity. The purpose
of life is to realize God within the world, through the
daily practices of work, worship, and charity, and
sacrificing love.

4. Bioethics
Eastern Bioethics
• Hinduism shares with other religious traditions a
positive attitude toward medicine and the healing arts,
but it is distinctive in that it has its own indigenous
system of medicine with written manuals that comment
on health issues.
• Hindu bioethics flows from three basic principles of
Hindu philosophy:
• Transcendent character of human life expressed through
principles of quality and sanctity of life
• The duty to preserve and guard individual and communal
health
• The duty to address imbalance in the processes of nature
that threaten the well-being of human and nonhuman
life.

5. Bioethics
Bioethical Issues
• Abortion • Infertility (Treatments)
• Artificial Insemination • Life support
• Artificial Womb • Life Extension
• Assisted Suicide • Organ Donation
• Blood/blood plasma (Trade) • Population Control
• Cloning • Procreative Beneficence
• Contraception • Procreative Liberty
• Euthanasia (human, animal) • Sperm & eggs (Donation)
• Gene Therapy • Stem cell
• Human Cloning • Suicide
• Human Genetic Engineering • Surrogacy

6. Bioethics
List of Bioethicists
• Abdulaziz Sachedina
• Arthur Caplan
• Barnard Nethanson
• Damien Keown
• James Hughes
• James Rachels
• John Robertson
• Joseph Fletcher
• Julian Savulescu
• Leon Kass
• Peter Singer
• Ruth Faden

7. Bioethics
Western Bioethics
• Aristotle equates ethical to being good and
being good is to become virtuous.
• Aristotle describes virtue as “Virtue of
course meaning moral virtue or excellence,
for it has to do with passions and actions”.

8. Bioethics
Jain Bioethics
• In Jainism virtues are not limited to becoming
good but are also helpful in spiritual pursuit
leading to liberation – moksha.
• Though Jainism originated in pre historical, pre
modern, pre-technological era, implied from
these foundations and moral doctrines we can
draw inferences relating to advances in
medicine, as there are no direct guidelines
described in scriptures.

9. Bioethics
Jain Bioethics
AHIMSA PERMO DHRAMA
• The cardinal virtue of Jainism ahimsa (do no
harm) should be the basic guide line for
understanding Jain view relating to bioethics.
• It is the motivation or the thought process
behind, rather than the actual act that is
deciding factor.

10. Bioethics
Jain Bioethics
Social, Personal and Spiritual Ethics or Virtues in Jainism
• All the virtues are based on the principal of
nonviolence.
• In Jainism same virtues are described with
different levels for deferent levels of spirituals
persuade (major and minor vows).
• Rather than separating virtues of
body, speech and mind all virtues
need to be followed with
body, speech and mind.

11. Bioethics
Jain Bioethics
Virtues for House Holders (Minor Vows)
• Non-Violence
• Non-Stealing
• Truthfulness
• Limiting Possessions
• Limited celibacy (No Adultery)

12. Bioethics
Questions to address?
• When does life begin, and when does it end?
• When is the quality of life so compromised that
doctors should cease further interventions?
• What is informed consent?
• What constraints should apply to research on human
subjects?
• And, above all, how can the sanctity of life be
preserved?

13. Bioethics
Claremont International Jain Conference
Keynote Speakers for August 24-25 2012
• Dr. Cromwell Crawford (Univ. of Hawaii),
• Dr. Brian Cummings (Univ. of California),
• Dr. James Hughes (Trinity College, CT),
• D.K. Bobra, M.D.

14. Bioethics
Claremont International Jain Conference
Paper Presenters for August 24-25 2012
• Predrag Cicovack • Inderpal Kochar
• Brianne Donaldson • Seth Clark
• Jain, Subhash C • Whitney Braun
• Robert Hesse • Ram Agarwal
• Peteet, John Ray • Chris Chapple
• Surendra Pokharn • Shugan Jain

15. Bioethics
Conference Details
Plenary sessions take place in Mudd Auditorium, Claremont
Lincoln University, 1325 N. College Ave., Claremont, CA 91711
(on the campus of Claremont School of Theology).
There is an inexpensive registration fee and a discount for
students. Early registration at a reduced rate will close on July
15th.
All meals at the conference will be creative and tasty Jain
vegetarian/vegan fare.
Register Here

16. Bioethics
Travel and Hotel Information
AIRPORTS
Ontario International Airport (ONT) is 15 minutes from Claremont. Taxis are
available outside the baggage area (approx. $20-25 for a ride to campus) or you
can book a shuttle here.
Los Angeles International Airport is 50 miles from Claremont. During peak traffic
hours (7am-9am; 3pm-6pm), this can be a very lengthy ride. You can book a shuttle
here.
HOTELS
The conference hotel is the Claremont DoubleTree, 555 W. Foothill Blvd. in
Claremont; (909) 626-2411. You can make reservations (at a reduced rate) at the
Jain Conference Group Page. The DoubleTree Hotel is 0.5 miles from campus, or a
10-minute walk.
Other accommodations can be found at Hotel Claremont; (909) 621-4831 (3 miles
from campus) or Casa 425; (866) 450-0425 (in Claremont Village, 1.3 miles from
campus). There are also lodgings in nearby cities.

17. Bioethics
August 24th and 25th , 2012
Venue:
Claremont Lincoln University
Mudd Auditorium,
1325 N. College Avenue,
Claremont CA 91711
Co-Sponsored by:
Claremont Lincoln University, the International School for Jain
Studies, Jain Center of Southern California, and the Federation of Jain
Associations in North America (JAINA)