Press Abdomen to Kill Sin

Original text from Section One of the Upāsaka Five Precepts Sūtra: Crushing the abdomen refers to making a pregnant woman perform heavy labor, or carry heavy objects, instructing her to walk in front of a cart, or making her climb a steep bank, with the thought: 'May this woman die.' If the woman dies, the Upāsaka commits an unpardonable offense. If she does not die immediately but later dies because of this, this offense is also unpardonable. If she does not die because of it, this is a medium offense that can be repented. If it is done for the fetus, it is as stated above. This is called killing by crushing the abdomen.

Explanation: The method of killing by causing external objects to crush the abdomen is to make a pregnant woman engage in heavy physical labor, or make her carry heavy objects, have her walk in front of a cart, or make her climb a steep cliff bank, with the thought: 'May this woman die.' If the woman actually dies, the Upāsaka commits an unpardonable offense. If the woman does not die immediately but later dies because of this, he also commits an unpardonable offense. If the woman does not die immediately and later does not die because of it, the Upāsaka commits a medium offense that can be repented.

If the Upāsaka causes her to bear such a heavy load in order to kill the fetus, and the fetus dies, the Upāsaka commits an unpardonable offense. If the fetus does not die, he commits a medium offense that can be repented. If the mother dies, he commits a medium offense that can be repented. If both die, he commits an unpardonable offense. This is the method of killing by crushing the abdomen.

Original text: Even in the mother's womb, when the fetus first obtains the two roots—the root of physical form (body) and the root of life—during the kalala (fertilized ovum) stage, if one arises with the intent to kill and employs means intending to cause death, and the fetus dies, one commits an unpardonable offense. Other offenses are the same as explained above.

Explanation: Even when the fetus in the mother's womb has just obtained the two roots—the root of physical form (the fertilized ovum) and the root of life—during the initial kalala stage (first week after conception), if one arises with the intent to kill and seeks by various means to cause the fetus to die, and the fetus actually dies, the Upāsaka commits an unpardonable offense. If the fetus does not die immediately but later dies because of this, he also commits an unpardonable offense. If the fetus does not die immediately and later does not die because of it, he commits a medium offense that can be repented.