The Hindu View of Human Cloning

Excerpted from "Cloning Human Beings: Religious Perspectives on Human Cloning"-- a commissioned paper by Courtney S. Campbell, Ph.D. Oregon State University

“Hinduism” is a western term for a family of philosophies and religious practices that have their origins in the Aryan period of Indian history and the Vedic scriptures (1200 BCE). There is no formal teaching authority for the world’s one billion Hindus (Hindu population in the United States is estimated at two million). However, classical texts and commentary have offered four principal values: Dharma (virtue, morality); Artha (wealth, power); Kama (aesthetics, sexuality); Moksa (liberation) to guide Hindu life. Liberation from the cycles of rebirth is the ultimate goal within Hinduism, while Dharma regulates the pursuit of Artha and Kama. Using these values, scholars of Hinduism and Hindu practitioners have begun to initiate ethical discourse on a wide array of social practices in India and North America, including those of cloning. The most current and summational statement of Hindu thought on human cloning has been developed by the editors of Hinduism Today, an international journal published in ten languages, and was formulated in response to an inquiry regarding the preparation of this report. Entitled “For the President, Mr. Bill Clinton,” the statement of 1 April 1997 reads in part: “Hindu leaders applaud President Clinton’s call for a spiritual view on the human cloning predicament, noting that it shows his deep understanding of complex issues which cannot be resolved by science or politics alone. Hindu swamis appeal to the U.S. President, and indeed to all heads of state who will face this issue, for laws to restrain cloning of humans and emphatically urge him to engage spiritually minded people to guide and control the process. Good people are the best promise of a good outcome. It is our wish to inform the President that Hinduism neither condones nor condemns the march of science. If done with divine intent and consciousness, it may benefit; if done in the service of selfishness, greed, and power, it may bring severe negative karmic consequences. The simple rule is this: Cause no injury to others and let dharma— the law of good conduct and harmony with the universe and its many forces and creatures— be the guide for all such explorations” (Hinduism Today). Self. Classical Hinduism does not accept distinctions found in western thought between God, human beings, and other creatures, or between the supernatural, human nature, and nature. Rather, the self (atman) is part of the creative force (Brahman) and life energy residing in all creation. Hinduism affirms a oneness of self with divinity rather than separation. A person cannot “play God,” because in an ultimate sense the self is God. Hindu texts describe the atman as pure spirit. It is “eternal, free from disease, free from old age, deathless, free from decay; it cannot be pierced, cut or agitated” (Lipner). Two concepts of relevance for issues of cloning may be inferred from this religious anthropology. First, if the real self or true consciousness is radically distinct from the body, it is beyond the reach of material science and hence cannot be harmed by genetic manipulations or cloning. A second correlative principle is that scientific processes and methods (though not their practical application) manifest the workings of divine consciousness. Creation by Cloning. Values embedded in Hindu narrative tradition may offer the community analogues to human cloning. Hindu creation narratives are replete with references to the creation of a person, a deity, or social groups through cells of skin or drops of blood. However, in a classic narrative, the Ramayana, only demonic persons (asuras) come from divine blood. This suggests to some Hindu spiritual leaders that society has little control over ensuring only good outcomes of cloning. Cloning Research. The animating spirit is present from fertilization in classical Hindu thought. Biological development does not shape moral development, however, for the embryo is given the status of person throughout pregnancy. Hindu thought is thus concerned with moral attitudes toward research on the pre-embryo; in particular, such concerns would focus on exploitation of the vulnerable, and whether the underlying dispositions could be limited to the research setting or would influence how human beings treat each other and treat animals. The Dharma gives great authority to ahimsa, or the non-injury of sentient beings. This inclusive scope of beings within the moral community renders much contemporary animal research without justification. Animal research for the benefits of animals can be justified, but it is more difficult to justify when such research is conducted solely to advance human interests. Human Cloning. Some Hindu scholars may permit human cloning under very circumscribed or exceptional circumstances. The primacy of generational continuity, especially the establishment of father-son lineage, is underscored in the Mahabharata (an Indian epic analogous to the Odyssey). The continuation of generational lineage may take place through several different methods of having a son as offspring, including a “son by artifice, a son who comes by himself, ...[and] the son of unknown seed.” The epic also indicates that when a lineage is threatened by extinction, a different law— appaddharma— applies and permits production of offspring through relationships outside of marriage (Desai, 246, 247). Other scholars maintain that the four values of Hinduism would support human cloning when it is conducive to material or spiritual well-being, such as to alleviate infertility or for saving life through providing compatible bone marrow (Sharma). Life Priorities. Within any Hindu discussion of cloning, there is concern that scientific attention on cloning will divert attention from the true purpose of life, which is to become conscious of and actualize one’s self in union with the divine. Sri Easwaran has suggested that the question we need to ask in light of significant scientific discoveries such as the splitting of atoms or of cloning is: “Will this help me in my search for realizing God, who is enshrined in the depths of my consciousness?” Other Hindu spiritual leaders have posed the same question about what cloning reveals about human priorities: “Will [cloning] help us to draw nearer to God if we have such bodies? Will the soul’s evolution toward the goal of spiritual liberation be advanced one millimeter?...Will mankind’s inner consciousness be enhanced?” (Hinduism Today).P The cultivation of spiritual self-awareness, rather than manipulation of the external environment, or one’s biological self, which is no less an external organic environment, is the overriding concern of the Hindu tradition. While Hindu thought would not recognize any ontological distinction between the in-dwelling spirit of naturally born persons and of cloned persons, the latter is likely to experience discrimination because of embedded social bias. Human cloning thereby suggests that the wrong questions about life’s meaning and about social priorities are being asked.

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