According to Islam, the fetus does not have a soul until 120 days after conception.[58] After this point, abortion would be considered murder; however Islam provides exceptions for rape and for when the woman’s life or health is in danger.
In Buddhism, there are many views concerning abortion. In Japan, Buddhist women who have induced abortion or have had a spontaneous miscarriage sometimes participate in special rituals called Mizuko kuyo to appease the aborted fetus.[59] The 8th-10th century poems written by Buddhist monks comment on the problem of unlimited reproduction: “Domni is giving birth to innumerable children like tadpoles, so she is faced with the problem of feeding them.”[60] However, today, Buddhism holds that abortion is a negative. The Dalai Lama holds this view, however he believes there should be exceptions that should be considered on a case by case basis.[61]
Hinduism considers the fetus a living, conscious person deserving of protection, however some contemporary Hindu theologians have stated that the fetus develops personhood sometime between the third and fifth month.[62] Old Hindu scriptures allowed abortion until the fifth month, and the ancient Vedic Atharva Veda Samhita, considered by some orthodox Hindus to be one of the most mystical of scriptures, recognized the value of fertility regulating plants: “Thou art listened to, O herb, as the most best of plants; make thou now this man for me impotent...”[63]
Modern denominations of Judaism often have fairly liberal interpretations of traditional Jewish texts related to abortion issues. However, according to orthodox Jewish law, abortion is prohibited 40 days after conception. Before 40 days, however, there is some leniency. If the life of the woman is threatened by the pregnancy, abortion is always allowed to save the woman’s life.
In the United States, the practice of religion is guaranteed by the Constitution. A woman’s religious beliefs may affect whether or not she wishes to exercise her right to an abortion. Her right to refuse to abort may be considered part of her practice of religious freedom. Her right to choose not to have an abortion should be protected with as much passion as the right for a woman to choose to exercise her right to have an abortion. No woman should be forced to have an abortion, and no woman should be denied the choice to have a safe abortion.
A free people [claim] their rights aived from the laws of nature, and not as the gift of their chief magistrate.
The right to abort may be variously defined as a religious practice, but for all women the right to an abortion may be considered a natural liberty. A natural liberty is an absolute freedom, limited only by the laws of nature, exercised on one’s private property. What private property is more private than a woman’s body? What is more natural than a plant that a woman could simply walk up to and consume? All women have the inherent rights to carry out all acts that preserve their lives and the natural liberty to exercise those rights without any restrictions.
Simple physical biology indicates that the choice regarding a pregnancy lies inherently with the woman, as almost all pregnancies in the animal kingdom are carried by females. Inherently in the woman’s biology is a mechanism of spontaneous abortion which is not completely understood, however the mechanism appears to trigger an abortion when the woman feels stress and depression. Factors such as depression and stress are often experienced by women faced with an unwanted pregnancy, and in one study, women who experienced stress or depression in pregnancy and showed signs of high cortisol levels were found to be 90% more likely to have a spontaneous miscarriage in the first three weeks of pregnancy.[64]
Just as a woman’s stress and depression can lead to a spontaneous abortion, estrogenic substances can also interfere with the ability of the body to continue a pregnancy.[65] Over 300 plants have been found to contain estrogenic substances, and it has been suggested that all plants that grow have estrogenic substances in them, often concentrated in the sprouts and seeds in plants.[66]
Some plants historically used for fertility regulation have significant amounts of estrogen in the mature growth. Plants with estrogenic substances in the mature growth have been suggested to have co-evolved with humans in a synergistic relationship enabling population control and evolution.[67] Given sufficient dosage of any plant part containing estrogenic substances, an abortion is likely to occur, especially in the early stages of pregnancy. Plants that can potentially cause abortion are everywhere. They are the rule not the exception; dosage and timing are the ruling factors.
…Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, —That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.
The deepest and most passionate reason we, as Sage-femme Collective, wrote this book is philosophical. We believe that by placing this information back into the hands of women, to whom the knowledge rightfully belongs, women will rediscover that abortion is an inalienable natural liberty that a just government cannot legislate. We believe the inevitable conclusion to this empowering foundational concept is a renewed focus on reproductive rights to ensure that every woman has access to the best possible abortion experience: one which is safe, effective, legal, and available without restriction in a supportive environment.
The historical and scientific documentation of self-induced abortion is important and fascinating. We have exhaustively compiled this material over many years, searching through thousands of references and talking with many herbalists, healers, and women while participating in the self-help movement. This information on self-induced abortion, now recovered, should never be forgotten, but we hope women will demand that they never have to resort to using any of it!
By far, the modern system for delivering an abortion in a medical clinic setting by trained health professionals is safer and more effective than self-induced abortion. There have been few studies on negative side effects of self-induced abortion methods, and most self-induced abortion methods are dubious regarding effectiveness. The support networks that exist in a clinical setting to counsel and medically serve the women who seek services are not usually available for most women who attempt self-induced abortion.
The object of the book is to provide the most accurate and up to date information on self-induced abortion available, not to promote self-induced abortion. In a world that respects and loves women, safe legal clinical services with the support of counselors and trained doctors would be available without difficulty. However, if these services are unavailable to women, it is better for women to have some knowledge of possible alternatives than to act with desperation on rumor without understanding the possible side effects.
58
Sahih Muslim,
59
Elaine Martin, “Rethinking the Practice of Mizuko Kuyo in Contemporary Japan: Interviews with Practioners at a Buddhist Temple in Kyoto,” http://bama.ua.edu/~emartin/publications/mkarticl.htm (accessed July 2, 2008).
60
Haraprasad Shastri, ed.,
62
S. Cromwell Crawford,
64
Pablo A. Nepomnaschy, “Cortisol Levels and Very Early Pregnancy Loss in Humans,”
65
David E. Samuel, “A Review of the Effects of Plant Estrogenic Substances on Animal Reproduction,”
66
T.S. Rumsey, T.H. Elsasser, and S. Kahl, “Roasted Soybeans and an Estrogenic Growth Promoter Affect Growth Hormone Status and Performance of Beef Steers,”
67
John A. McLachlan, “Environmental Signaling: What Embryos and Evolution Teach Us about Endocrine Eisrupting Channels.”