Dabbagh Soroush, Aramesh Kiarash
Assistant Professor, Iranian Institute of Philosophy;
J Med Ethics Hist Med. 2009 Dec 24;2:21. Print 2009.
Euthanasia is one of the controversial topics in current medical ethics. Among the six well-known types of euthanasia, passive voluntary euthanasia (PVE) seems to be more plausible in comparison with other types, from the moral point of view. According to the Kantian framework, ethical features come from 'reason'. Maxims are formulated as categorical imperative which has three different versions. Moreover, the second version of categorical imperative which is dubbed 'principle of ends' is associated with human dignity. It follows from this that human dignity has an indisputable role in the Kantian story. ON THE OTHER HAND, THERE ARE TWO MAIN THEOLOGICAL SCHOOLS IN ISLAMIC TRADITION WHICH ARE CALLED: Ash'arite and Mu'tazilite. Moreover, there are two main Islamic branches: Shiite and Sunni. From the theological point of view, Shiite's theoretical framework is similar to the Mu'tazilite one. According to Shiite and Mu'tazilite perspectives, moral goodness and badness can be discovered by reason, on its own. Accordingly, bioethical judgments can be made based on the very concept of human dignity rather than merely resorting to the Holy Scripture or religious jurisprudential deliberations. As far as PVE is concerned, the majority of Shiite scholars do not recognize a person's right to die voluntarily. Similarly, on the basis of Kantian ethical themes, PVE is immoral, categorically speaking. According to Shiite framework, however, PVE could be moral in some ethical contexts. In other words, in such contexts, the way in which Shiite scholars deal with PVE is more similar to Rossian ethics rather than the Kantian one.
安乐死是当前医学伦理中颇具争议的话题之一。在六种著名的安乐死类型中，从道德角度来看，被动自愿安乐死（PVE）相较于其他类型似乎更具合理性。根据康德的框架，伦理特征源自“理性”。准则被表述为绝对命令，它有三个不同版本。此外，被称为“目的原则”的绝对命令第二个版本与人类尊严相关。由此可见，人类尊严在康德的理论中有着无可争议的作用。另一方面，伊斯兰教传统中有两个主要的神学流派，即艾什尔里派和穆尔太齐赖派。此外，伊斯兰教有两个主要分支：什叶派和逊尼派。从神学角度看，什叶派的理论框架与穆尔太齐赖派的相似。根据什叶派和穆尔太齐赖派的观点，道德的善恶可凭理性自行发现。因此，生物伦理判断可基于人类尊严这一概念做出，而不仅仅依赖于《圣经》或宗教法学的考量。就被动自愿安乐死而言，大多数什叶派学者不承认个人有自愿死亡的权利。同样，从康德的伦理主题来看，绝对地说，被动自愿安乐死是不道德的。然而，根据什叶派的框架，在某些伦理背景下被动自愿安乐死可能是道德的。换句话说，在这种背景下，什叶派学者处理被动自愿安乐死的方式更类似于罗斯的伦理学而非康德的伦理学。
