「脳死判定-臓器移植」と人間の生(human life) : 近代知の再吟味を通じて

抄録

Scientific knowledge based on the modern European concept has achieved an emphatic success in promoting advanced technology, particularly since the middle of the 20th Century, and has blessed us with enormous benefits and convenience. On the other hand the pervasion of belief in 'science as a panacea' without realizing its robotic nature, led human to the confrontation with the danger of 'geo-catastrophe.' Moreover it exerted such a profound influence on every corner of our social life and even permeates the human 'psyche' (way of thinking, emotion, will, or value-consciousness of individuals) that it precipitated the crisis of 'psycho-catastrophe.' It is no exaggeration, in this sense, that "we nowadays are struggling for lives in quest of meaninglessness." (L.Mumford) A recent controversial issue of "Organ Transplantation from Brain-Death Donors" typically reflects the dilemma of human beings. If we reflect upon our onus for the whole humankind in the past, present and future, along with a hope of ensuring their welfare in the coming Centuries, we need to reexamine and redefine the true quality of "the 'life' which belongs exclusively to humans."