Dharma
The world’s progress and sustenance depends on adherence to dharma. It is because of dharma that even a weak person can defeat a stronger person. In a world without rules, the stronger one always wins, irrespective of whether he is right. But in a world that is governed by principles, the winner is the one who adheres to the right precepts and not necessarily the one who is physically stronger.[1]
Dharma is broadly divided into two: Universal Principles (sāmānya-dharma) and Special Rules or Particular Decrees (viśeṣa-dharma).
Universal Principles refer to the primary human values that remain unchanged, irrespective of the country or era. They are human values applicable to everyone everywhere at all times – traits of honesty, empathy, forgiveness, courage, resilence; to be pure in thought, speech, and deed; to be free from greed, violence, covetousness, and envy; to exercise self-control.
Dharma (which is applicable to all) is defined in our tradition as having the following ten features[2] –
1. Courage/fortitude
2. Forbearance/forgiveness
3. Self-control
4. Not stealing
5. Cleanliness/purity
6. Control over sense organs
7. Intelligence
8. Knowledge (of the Self)
9. Truthfulness
10. Freedom from anger
Special Rules are relevant only in a specific time-frame, to a particular geography, to a designated group of people, etc. These depend on gender, race, creed, occupation, nationality, etc.
Here are some examples –
The traditional duties of individuals at different stages of life (āśrama-dharma) – what is expected of a student is quite different from that of a householder or one who is retired.
Responsibilities of people of different professions and temperaments (varṇa-dharma) – the special duties and privileges of a doctor are quite different from that of a soldier or a purohita; only a lawyer who has passed the bar exam is allowed to represent another individual in court; only those with security clearance may enter a sensitive location, not others.
Duties and privileges of kings and rulers (rāja-dharma) – there are some special rules that are only applicable to people in power; greater the power, greater the responsibility and greater the privilege.
Duties and privileges of saṃnyāsīs and ascetics (mokṣa-dharma) – rules applicable only to those who have renounced the material world and are on a quest after the Supreme.
The responsibilities and exemptions that are applicable during adverse situations (āpad-dharma) – certain traditional rules have to be broken during an emergency in order to ensure larger sustenance.
While the specific injunctions of viśeṣa-dharma are only relevant to a particular place and time or to a particular group of people, the principles underlying them are universal. For example, the rules that were laid down for a king might not be relevant today but the basic idea that governance needs guidelines will remain forever.
Further, the exhortation is to learn dharma from the erudite scholars, virtuous practitioners, and the ascetics who have gone beyond likes and dislikes—ensuring that it feels right to one’s heart.[3]
The sources of dharma are said to be: a. the Vedas, b. the treatises composed by savants who know Veda and are exalted in character, c. the conduct of noble people, and d. what pleases the self.[4]
Needless to say, sāmānya-dharma is the core while viśeṣa-dharma is peripheral.
Principles that are universal and eternal are called ‘vastu-tantra.’ Conventions that change with space and time and depending on the needs and attitudes of people are called ‘kartṛ-tantra.’[5]
We may liken vastu-tantra to clay and kartṛ-tantra to the various types of pots and pans made from clay. Once we are aware of vastu-tantra we can always choose the kartṛ-tantra of our convenience. Based on personal requirements, people use clay in different ways and fashion the pots that they need. We can even use clay to create objects as per our whims and fancies. Nothing wrong with that! The trouble arises when the arbitrary choice of an individual is peddled as the correct and only way to use clay.[6]
Vastu-tantra is universal and therefore it is of primary importance. Vastu-tantra forms the basis for the human-made kartṛ-tantra, which is secondary. Kartṛ-tantra provides a limited view of reality based on external factors such as individual, place, time, and resources whereas vastu-tantra paves the way to a vision of the Ultimate Reality, which is what the seers allude to in their compositions.[7]
We will do well to examine concepts—old or new, simple or complex—on the basis of vastu-tantra and kartṛ-tantra.
India has an unbroken civilizational heritage of over seven thousand years precisely because of the constant re-interpretation of basic concepts to suit the place, time, and people.[8] Indeed, this subtle dynamism—resulting from a continuous process of updating kartṛ-tantra in the light of vastu-tantra—has made Sanātana-dharma a flexible way of life.
Irrespective of the category of dharma, the essential qualification for a true adherent of dharma is the constant accountability – here and now – in thought, word, and deed. In matters of dharma, a preacher who does not practise is not taken seriously, for the efficacy of dharma lies in application, not in theory.
One of the words for ‘teacher’ in Sanskrit is ‘ācārya.’ An ācārya is one who himself adheres to the principles that he espouses. The ācārya is wholly aware of what he is teaching. Indeed the aspects of learning, teaching, and practising merge in one who is a true ācārya.[9]
While it is enjoined for all of us to be moral—either by religious principles or the laws of the State—we know from experience that thoughtlessly toeing the line of morality can be rather dangerous.
Hinduism is not blind to this reality. Dharma judges from an ultimate perspective and not merely a materialistic one. For example, integrity normally refers to telling the truth and ahiṃsā typically means not hurting others. These morals may be violated for a greater cause – a son might lie to his aged mother to save her from a rude shock, a police officer might ignore traffic rules while chasing down a criminal, a surgeon might amputate a patient’s leg to save her life, a teacher might punish a student to help him mend his ways, a soldier may kill an enemy on the battlefield, and so forth. Can these be counted as instances of dishonesty or violence? In cases such as these, we naturally consider the intent of the people involved and the broader results of their action.
If dharma is akin to the highways of a town, then morals are like the bylanes of that town.
Sanātana-dharma upholds the acts of self-realized people who are selfless, inclusive, and competent, who have noble intentions even if their chosen means are not moral in the way a textbook of Normative Ethics defines it.
Ultimately, truth is something that must prove to be good for all beings—and indeed, dharma is that which is good at the universal level.[10]
[1] sa naiva vyabhavat, tacchreyo-rūpam-atyasṛjata dharmam। tad-etat kṣattrasya kṣattraṃ yad-dharmaḥ, tasmād-dharmāt-paraṃ nāsti। ato abalīyān balīyāṃsam-āśaṃsate dharmeṇa, yathā rājñaivaṃ। yo vai sa dharmaḥ satyaṃ vai tat, tasmāt satyaṃ vadantam-āhur-dharmaṃ vadatīti, dharmaṃ vā vadantaṃ satyaṃ vadatīti। etaddhy-evaitad-ubhayaṃ bhavati॥ —Bṛhadāraṇyakopaniṣad 1.4.14
[2] dhṛtiḥ kṣamā damo’steyaṃ śaucam-indriya-nigrahaḥ।
dhīr-vidyā satyam-akrodho daśakaṃ dharma-lakṣaṇam॥ —Manu-smṛti 6.92
[3] vidvadbhiḥ sevitaḥ sadbhir-nityam-adveṣa-rāgibhiḥ।
hṛdayenābhyanujñāto yo dharmas-taṃ nibodhata॥ —Manu-smṛti 2.1
[4] See Manu-smṛti 2.6.
[5] The twin concepts of Vastu-tantra (‘principle of the object’) and Puruṣa-tantra (‘principle of the individual’)—which is also called Kartṛ-tantra—were first given by Śaṅkara in his Śārīraka-bhāṣya on Brahma-sūtra 1.1.2, 4
[6] This is typically the problem of the prophetic religions; one man’s quirks become gospel for a billion people!
[7] Durga Das Basu, who calls Hinduism ‘an encyclopaedia of universal principles,’ speaks of its ‘unique elasticity.’ (The Essence of Hinduism. New Delhi: PHI Learning, 2013. p. 4) Hindu core values have remained the same while the peripheral details have changed to suit the needs of the people and the times.
[8] Sanātana-dharma includes within itself an exceptional self-correction mechanism that made it possible for generations of saints and savants to undertake a gentle course correction.
While realized souls such as Yājñavalkya, śaṅkara, Jñāneśvar, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, and Ramana Maharshi illumined our paths, the bhakti saints and champions of various sects helped people raise their standards and reform social customs: Buddha, the āḷvārs and nāyanmārs of Tamil Nadu, Abhinavagupta of Kashmir, Rāmānuja, Basaveśvara and the śiva-śaraṇas, Madhva and the hari-dāsas of Karnataka, Rāmānanda and his disciples like Kabīr and Ravidās of Uttar Pradesh, Guru Nānak and the Sīkh gurus of Punjab, Vallabha of Andhra Pradesh, śaṅkardev of Assam, Caitanya Mahāprabhu of Bengal, Narsinh Mehta of Gujarat, Ekanāth, Tukārām and the vārkarīs of Maharashtra, Mīrābāi of Rajasthan, Dayanand Saraswati, Nārāyaṇa Guru of Kerala, Swami Vivekananda et al.
[9] yasmād-dharmān-ācinoti sa ācāryaḥ —Āpastamba-dharma-sutra 1.1.1.14
ācāryaḥ kas-syāt ācāraṃ grāhayitvā ācinotīti
arthān-ācinotīti buddhim-iti vā —Nirukta 1.4
ācinoti ca śāstrārtham-ācāre sthāpayaty-api।
svayam-ācarate yasmāt-tasmād-ācārya ucyate॥
—Govindarāja’s Bhūṣaṇa (commentary) on the Rāmāyaṇa 5.27.51
[10] yad-bhūta-hitam atyantaṃ tat satyam-iti dhāraṇā —Mahābhārata 3.200.4
To be continued.
