"Moral Respect" of the Body

I am usually a fan of Buddhist ideologies, but I am inclined to disagree with the argument that “the intentional hastening of death is…morally unacceptable in all circumstances.”  Keown notes that according to Buddhist principles, all humans have the right to life.  To Buddhists, life is sacred.  I don’t disagree with either statement.  Life is to be treasured, respected and not trivialized.  I do not agree with Buddhist ideology about the lack of agency a person has in the use of their own body.  Kewon notes that Buddhists operate under the assumption that every individual is “entitled to full moral respect” while they are alive.  I must have a vastly different definition of “moral respect.”  I agree it is morally disrespectful to end a live without an individual’s permission.  If someone’s suffering is so great that they wish to end their life, I would say it is their human right to do so.  I do not find it morally impermissible to make informed, personal choices to remove pain, and quicken the process of death.  The Buddhist ideology lacks support for the argument that it is morally impermissible to quicken or assist death. The individual deserves life, and the right to choose to shorten their life based on the physical pain they feel.

An individual’s spiritual destiny should not be dictated by how much pain they can withstand before death.  Removing that choice removes the individual’s control over their body.  I find it morally disrespectful to watch physical suffering and refuse the individual the right to choose what to do with their body based on the physical pain they endure.  Kewon explicitly states that making “death the aim” is partly why euthanasia is morally impermissible according to Buddhist principles.  If this is the case, Buddhists misinterpret the intent of euthanasia.  It is a human right to ask for medication to end excruciating pain.  Euthanasia is not “killing rather than caring.”  It would be unfair to compare euthanasia to a suicide or killing because the factor of pain is very important.  If one is suffering so much physically that they think it would be better for them to die, it is not morally impermissible to allow them to make a decision about their body.  It is not disrespectful, and does not trivialize the importance of the body.