ABSTRACT
This chapter examines some influential religious and philosophical views on the moral status of the foetus. It systematizes the views of the moral status of the foetus in four categories. In the Jewish moral tradition, the foetus is not granted the status of a full human life. However, the exact moral status of the foetus is a matter of dispute that is illustrated by different views on the permissibility of abortions. The Talmud makes a difference in the moral status of the foetal development prior to forty days gestation. Before forty days the foetus was considered “mere water”. The Hindu view of the moral status of the foetus and of abortion has its origin in the classical Sanskrit texts ranging from about 600 bc to 600 ad. These include canonical and epical works and writings on law and morals. Together, they form a basis for Hinduism, both as a religion and as a moral and social system of thought.
