References in the Mishna to usage of parts of the human body as tools or implements

Abstract

"At the recent Bioethics and Environment conference in Chennai, India (14-16 Jan. 1999), Prof. Tsuyoshi Awaya presented a paper entitled "Human Body Parts: A new commodity for the 2000s". One of the topics discussed was the usage of human body parts as implements or tools. This practice is specifically referred to in the Jewish Mishna [1], and one mechanism described in the Mishna to safeguard against this practice is the system of tahara/tum'a (purity/impurity). I would like to quote the relevant sections of Mishna and comment on their implications for the practice of using human body parts as implements."