ISJS Jainism Study Notes E5 Vol 04

Author(s): International School for Jain Studies
Publisher: International School for Jain Studies

Page 463

specially in the interest of domestic felicity and welfare of society, along with minimizing bondage of additional karma with the soul (sanvara).
4.2 Ethics of Womb and Embryo Methods of artificial procreation
• In-vitro fertilization • Surrogate motherhood
4.2.1 In vitro fertilization: When a female is given hormone treatment to stimulate ovarian follicles and eggs are produced, these eggs are surgically removed. Sperms are then added to the eggs and fertilization occurs in the laboratory. Fertilized egg is then implanted in the uterus to grow till delivery of the baby. Sperm for this process of fertilization is usually obtained from sperm bank; some times husband's sperms are also used.
A recent story of a sperm donor in US was shocking where this medical student's sperms were picked by at least 20 women and had 20 successful pregnancies. These 20 children found out about this, through internet and had a union. They felt a different type of relationship though they never met the sperm donor. Question is as to which family do they belong? Jain literature while talking of celibacy refutes unnatural sex and polygamy and hence does not support this form of fertilization.
4.2.2 Surrogate Motherhood The female egg is fertilized in the laboratory using donor sperm or the egg and sperm are taken from couples implanted in the uterus of some other female who is willing to have the child for some one else grow in her womb and deliver the child to give the child away to the donor couple at a price. There is one good side of this process that some one who really wants a child and cannot have of their own, can have with their own egg or sperm. There are rare cases where such child is conceived for the purpose of bone marrow transplant or other such reasons. But I see many issues:
Purpose of institution of marriage & meaning of family. Exploitation of poor women for money. Question of successes in full implantation of fertilizes egg or the women naturally got pregnant due to her sexual activity. Is it buying or selling children. Are we making child a commodity? Should the child be told of real mother or what if child finds out later in life?
Jainism probably will not care how the child was brought into this world because this child was to be born regardless of the ways and means. There is mythological story concerning transfer of Mah vira's embryo from the womb of Devaki to Trishla in vet mbara tradition, Digambaras question the validity of the story. The question is, 'Will Jainism considers this to be a physical and emotional violence to the surrogate mother?'
Jain view on artificial procreation would point us to the fact that children are the cause of attachments and aversions leading to influx of karmas and therefore a follower should be satisfied if they can have children by natural means. If not, then they have to accept it as a result of their past karmas and childless experience provides them a chance to accumulate less karma to improve future and future births like we see the life of a monk or a Sadhvi is of renunciation of family and children for spiritual progress.
4.3 Ethics of Abortion, Birth Defects and Sex Selection In general Jainism prohibits abortion because of the basic principal of non-violence regardless of the reasons. As there are possibilities of life to be born, killing that life is high level of violence (equal to killing a human being) especially if abortion is done for the reasons of sex selection (elimination of female child to be born). Though statistics are mounting towards shortage of females of marriageable age by year 2010, this issue of sex selection will hopefully disappear.
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STUDY NOTES version 4.0