---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is recorded in the monastic rules that…"
description: "\"“It is recorded in the monastic rules that a monk once performed an abortion on a girl; the Buddha judged his action seriously wrong, which incurred hi..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/soraj-hongladarom-279058_abortion_it-is-recorded-in-the-monastic-rules-tha_2588477.jpg"
---

#  It is recorded in the monastic rules that a monk once…

![“It is recorded in the monastic rules that a monk once performed an abortion on a girl; the Buddha judged his action seriously wrong, which incurred him the highest offense in the monastic rule. A monk committing this kind of wrongful deed must be expelled from the monastic community. The Buddha…” quote by Soraj Hongladarom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/soraj-hongladarom-279058_abortion_it-is-recorded-in-the-monastic-rules-tha_2588477.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/soraj-hongladarom-279058_abortion_it-is-recorded-in-the-monastic-rules-tha_2588477.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/soraj-hongladarom-279058_abortion_it-is-recorded-in-the-monastic-rules-tha_2588477.jpg)

> ““It is recorded in the monastic rules that a monk once performed an abortion on a girl; the Buddha judged his action seriously wrong, which incurred him the highest offense in the monastic rule. A monk committing this kind of wrongful deed must be expelled from the monastic community. The Buddha considered the embryo to be a person like an adult, so the monk who killed the embryo through abortion was judged by Buddhist monastic rules as having committed a crime equal in gravity to killing an adult. In the commentary on the rule stated above, it is stated clearly that killing a human being means destroying human life from the first moment of fertilization to human life outside the womb. So, even though the Buddha himself did not give a clear-cut pronouncement about when personhood occurs, the Buddhist tradition, especially the Theravada tradition, clearly states that personhood starts when the process of fertilization takes place.””

[Soraj Hongladarom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soraj-hongladarom/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Buddhist monastic rules deem abortion a grave crime, equating it with killing an adult.

**In simple terms:** Abortion is considered a severe moral violation.

Key Takeaway

Respect life from conception.

Themes

ethics life Abryo religion morality

Mood

serious ethical reflective

Type

Abortion:1 Buddhism:0 Human life:0 Embryo Abortion:0 Abortion Judged:0 Womb Buddha:0 Killed Embryo:0

When to use this quote

- medical practice
- legal policy
- personal decisions

Key Concepts

Buddhist doctrine bioethics human rights

Questions to Reflect On

- When does life begin?
- How should societies address abortion?

A Different Perspective

Deb be debate on personhood.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Abortion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abortion/) [Abortion Judged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abortion-judged-1840065/) [Buddhism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buddhism/) [Embryo Abortion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/embryo-abortion-1840064/) [Human life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-life/) [Killed Embryo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/killed-embryo-1840067/) [Womb Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/womb-buddha-1840066/)

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