Hinduism: Ethics

By: Camille Lee, Shaina Geyer, and Skyler Genelly

Animal Ethics

The right way to treat

animals varies among
cultures; therefore, Hindus
demeanor towards cows in
particular is quite
reverent.
Most Hindus are
vegetarian
No Hindu will eat beef

Come together,
talk together,
Let our minds be

War

in harmony.
Common be our
prayer,
Common be our
end,
Common be our
purpose,

Hindus condemn war and violence,

as well as teachings that promote it
as a moral duty.

Common be our
deliberations,
Common be our

The teachings that condemn

desires,

violence are contained in the

United be our

doctrine of ahimsa, while those that

hearts,
United be our
intentions,
Perfect be the

permit it centre around the

Kshatriyas - the warrior caste.

union among us.

Hinduism contains the early writings

Rig Veda 10 -

of the Rig Veda.

191:2

Abortion
When considering abortion, the Hindu way is to
choose the action that will do least harm to all
involved: the mother and father, the foetus and
society.
Hindus believe that all life is sacred, to be loved and
revered, and therefore practice ahimsa or
nonviolence. All life is sacred because all creatures
are manifestations of the Supreme Being.

Capital Punishment
There is no official Hindu line on capital punishment.
However, Hinduism opposes killing, violence and
revenge, in line with the principle of ahimsa (nonviolence).
The Indian Supreme Court has ruled that the death
penalty should only be used in the rarest of rare
cases.

An eye for an eye ends up

making the whole world
blind - Ghandi

Contraception
There is no ban on birth control in Hinduism.
Because India has such a high level of population,
much of the discussion of birth control has focussed
on the environmental issue of overpopulation rather
than more personal ethics, and birth control is not a
major ethical issue.

Organ
Donation
Life after death is a strong belief of Hindus and is an ongoing
process of rebirth. The only constraint on the idea of organ
donation is imposed by the very nature of Dharma.
The Hindus believe every act or intention of anyone should be
dharmik. Therefore, it is right to donate organs, only if the act
of donating an organ has beneficial results.
The principle of karma means the recipient will have to
return the favour in the donor's next life.

Euthanasia
sannyasin - one who has renounced everything
There are two Hindu views on euthanasia: By helping to end
a painful life a person is performing a good deed and so
fulfilling their moral obligations and by helping to end a life,
even one filled with suffering, a person is disturbing the
timing of the cycle of death and rebirth. This is a bad thing to
do, and those involved in the euthanasia will take on the
remaining karma of the patient, keeping a person artificially
alive on a life-support machine would also be a bad thing to
do.

Suicide
Prayopavesa, or fasting to death, is an acceptable way for
a Hindu to end their life in certain circumstances. It's
only used when it's the right time for this life to end when this body has served its purpose and become a
burden.
Prayopavesa is a gradual process, giving ample time for
the patient to prepare himself and those around him for
his death, while suicide is associated with feelings of
frustration, depression, or anger
Prayopavesa is only for people who are fulfilled, who
have no desire or ambition left, and no responsibilities
remaining in this life.

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Works Cited

BBC. "Hinduism - Ethics." BBC. BBC, 2016. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.

Canopy with Colorful Deities and Sacred Cows. Digital image. Alamy. N.p., 6 Jan. 2015. Web. 28 Mar. 2016.
Express News Service. 72 Muslims Hanged in India Against 1342 Hindus and Others. Digital image. The Sunday
Standard. The New Indian Express, 2016. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.

"Animal Ethics." BBC. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2016.

"Euthanasia, Assisted Dying, and Suicide." BBC - Religions - Hinduism. BBC, 25 Aug. 2009. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.

Gopal, G. Mohan. In Bangalore, a candle light protest against capital punishment. Digital image. Frontline. The
Hindu, 2016. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
HHR. Hindu Religious Quotes on Abortion. Digital image. Hindu Human Rights - Serving Hindus Worldwide. Hindu
Human Rights - Serving Hundus Worldwide, 2012. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.

Hindu cow taboo. ReligionFacts.com. 10 Nov. 2015. Web. Accessed 29 Mar. 2016.

Works Cited Contd

"Hinduism and War." BBC. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2016.
"Hinduism - Death." Hinduism - Death. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2016
Kader, Esoofi. "Hindu Ethics - Esoofi Kader Videos 136." YouTube. YouTube, 07 Dec. 2012. Web. 28 Mar. 2016.
N.A. Abortion - Hinduism. Digital image. Modie Johnson. Tripod, 2016. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
Peace Sign. Digital image. Google Images. N.p., Mar. 2015. Web. 28 Mar. 2016.
Pradesh, Andhra. FOR A CAUSE: Women from the Jain community taking part in a rally organised to create awareness
against abortion, on Thursday. Digital image. The Hindu. The Hindu, 2016. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
Staff Correspondent. Hinduism and Capital Punishment. Digital image. Daily Sun. The Daily Sun, 2015. Web.
27 Mar.
2016.

Works Cited Contd

"Organ Donation." BBC - Religions - Hinduism. BBC, 25 Aug. 2009. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
Surahmanyam, C. V. Volunteers of Voice of Vizag and members of Surajya Movement taking out a rally from the Beach
Road to Collectorate Bunglow paying condolence to the Delhi gang-rape victim. Digital image.The Hindu.
The Hindu, 2016. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.

The Rig Veda. Digital image. Detechter. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2016.