Dharma is one of the most important concepts in Hinduism, but the word is notoriously difficult to translate because there’s no true equivalent in English. The word dharma has been translated as “nature,” “religion,” “morality,” “principle,” “social duty,” “law,” “justice,” and many other terms depending on the context.[1][2] But in Hinduism, dharma encompasses all of these things and more. What word and concept could possibly include all of these things that modern Westerners take to be separate and different?
The word dharma comes from the Sanskrit root dhr, which means “to support or uphold.”[3] So dharma literally means “foundation.”[4] The way the word is used in Hinduism, it specifically refers to the “foundation” of the whole world – the basic cosmic order, you could say.[5] Dharma describes what the cosmic order is, and also provides a set of rules for how to live in accordance with it.[6]
The concept of dharma washes away the modern Western dichotomy of “nature” and “culture.” Dharma describes the essential nature of any and all beings; as scholar of Indian philosophy Christopher Bartley writes, “It is the dharma of grass to grow and of the sun to shine.”[7] Any persistent regularity in nature is part of dharma – the recurring cycles of the seasons, of life and death, of the motions of the sun, moon, and stars, etc.[8]
But dharma also covers “cultural” actions that bring us into harmony with nature. Simple things like working when the sun is out and sleeping at night, or planting seeds during the right season for the crop species in question, are part of dharma.[9] From a Hindu perspective, all of traditional Indian culture amounts to the same thing. Thus, in the words of scholar of Hinduism Klaus Klostermaier, dharma encompasses
social classification and the division of society into four [castes], each with its particular functions and rights; the whole complex of sacrifices and rituals; the [rites of passage], performed at the critical periods of life; marriage laws, right of succession, the regulation of the relationship between men and women, parents and children, teachers and pupils; the definition of sin and atonement, pilgrimages and vows, feasts and celebrations – including the myths concerning the creation of the universe, transmigration, and final emancipation [moksha].[10]
Indeed, in a Hindu context, “dharma” and “Hinduism” are basically synonyms.[11] For this reason, many Hindus refer to their religion as Sanatana Dharma, “Eternal Dharma.”[12]
In this perspective, everything in the cosmos forms an integral whole, and the well-being of the whole cosmos depends on each of its members performing his or her duties correctly. “Nature” isn’t an autonomous, inanimate machine that continues to operate no matter what humans do, but is instead profoundly “cultural” in this sense. A popular saying in Hinduism runs, “The ‘law’ when violated destroys – when preserved protects: therefore dharma should not be violated lest the violated dharma destroy us.”[13] (And, it merits pointing out, the environmental, social, and spiritual crises of the modern world offer significant corroboration for this perspective.)
This also means that the rules of dharma aren’t just things that are imposed on people from outside of them; they’re also present deep in the hearts of all beings, including humans. Just as dharma enables the grass to grow and the sun to shine, it enables people to self-actualize, to live in accordance with their own inner essence, to become who they really are.[14]
Dharma also plays a pivotal role in the Hindu concept of karma. Acting in ways that uphold dharma is what brings good karma: a more enjoyable life and a more desirable reincarnation after death. Acting in ways that undermine dharma brings bad karma: pain and suffering in this life and the next.[15]
Since dharma is “nature” as much as “culture,” it’s not a human invention, nor something that humans could invent even if we tried.[16] It’s an inherent purpose and meaning in life that just is what it is, no matter what people think about it.[17] The gods created it when they created the world, and they continue to maintain it as part of their maintaining the world as a whole.[18] The Vedas, the central set of sacred texts in Hinduism, are the gods’ revelation of dharma to humans.[19]
The specifics of dharma, however, largely come from a set of texts called the Dharma Shastras that are meant to supplement the Vedas. A shastra is a text that attempts to give a particularly comprehensive and definitive account of its topic, and also to provide counsel pertaining to it.[20] The foremost Dharma Shastra is the Law of Manu, which was written sometime in the last few centuries BC and covers ritual performance, personal conduct, and legal jurisprudence.[21] Manu, the progenitor of all mankind, is said to have had the law revealed to him, and he faithfully recorded it. The Law of Manu is seen as the most authoritative Hindu text outside of the Vedas themselves.[22]
The Specifics of Dharma
So, then, what are the specific virtues that Hindus are supposed to embody in order to fulfill their dharma? Of course, in an article like this, it’s not possible to provide anything even remotely approaching an exhaustive account of such a vast subject. But we can still get a general sense of which kinds of actions Hindus are urged to perform and which kinds of actions they’re urged to shun.
Hindu dharma comes in two “levels.” At the first, most basic level, there are guidelines for all Hindus, irrespective of caste, sex, age, etc. At the second level, there are more detailed rules for particular social roles and categories. Let’s consider the more universal level first.
Klostermaier gives a handy summary of the dharmic virtues toward which Hindus aspire: “firmness, forgiveness, restraint, abstention from stealing, purity, control over the senses, forbearance, knowledge, truth, and freedom from hatred and anger.”[23] Another scholar of Hinduism, Richard H. Davis, provides a similar list: “truthfulness, generosity, patience, bearing children only with one’s wife, purity, benevolence, sincerity, support of one’s dependents, and freedom from anger.”[24] Performing Hindu rituals correctly and with a pure heart is another central pillar of Hindu dharma.[25]
The vices that dharma teaches Hindus to avoid are often reduced to three: moha, “delusion;” lobha, “greed;” and krodha, “anger.” All other vices are said to arise from these fundamental ones.[26] According to the Bhagavad Gita, a revered Hindu poem, these three states of mind are “the gates to hell.”[27]
Naturally, though, the Dharma Shastras elaborate quite a bit on these basic principles. Bad actions are divided into two categories: maha-patakas, “great evils,” and upa-patakas, “minor evils.”[28]
Five maha-patakas stand out as the worst of all. The first is killing a Brahmin – a member of the highest caste. The second is consuming intoxicating substances, although exceptions are allowed for ascetics who take such substances as part of spiritual exercises, and some leeway is also granted to members of the lowest castes here. The third is stealing large quantities of wealth (stealing a little bit here and there for legitimate personal use has typically been regarded as no big deal by a society much less obsessed with private property than the modern West is). The fourth is having sex with one’s parents or the wife of one’s guru, and the fifth is associating with someone who commits the other four worst maha-patakas.[29]
Other actions that are placed in the category of maha-patakas include kidnapping, sexual relations between members of different castes, adultery, and homosexuality. The prescribed punishments for these and other maha-patakas often include the loss of one’s caste status, which virtually amounts to social death in a traditional Hindu context. In extreme cases, the prescribed punishment is literal death.[30][31]
Lists of upa-patakas, more minor misdeeds that incur more minor punishments, vary from one text to another, but tend to revolve around impiety, disregarding appropriate social customs, and cruelty toward others.[32]
But many of the rules of dharma vary depending on one’s caste and the other specifics of one’s role in society, such as one’s sex and age.[33] No two beings have quite the same dharma. As the Bhagavad Gita says, “It is better to fulfill one’s own duty (dharma), however imperfectly, than to do that of another, however perfect it may be.”[34]
Up to this point in this article, we’ve been using the word “caste” to refer to the main levels or functions within the traditional Hindu social structure. This is simply because everyone knows what you mean when you refer to “the Indian caste system.” But the word “caste” is of Portuguese origin and refers to that very different society’s historical social structure, so the word is imprecise when applied to an Indian context.[35]
The Sanskrit word that’s usually translated as “caste” in English is varna, which literally means “color.”[36] In the past, many Western scholars assumed that this refers to skin color specifically,[37] but that says more about the prejudices of those scholars than it does about the traditional Hindu social order.
Instead, the word varna refers to a system of ancient Hindu color symbolism. Different colors were associated with the different qualities and functions that the different varnas have. The Brahmins, the ritual specialists who occupy the highest stratum in the varna system, were associated with white, the color of purity and light. The Kshatriyas, the warriors, who are the second-highest varna, were associated with red, the color of energy and passion. Next came the Vaishyas – the farmers, artisans, and merchants – who were associated with yellow, the color of the earth. Finally, at the lowest level in this fourfold system, there are the Shudras, the laborers, who were associated with black, the color of passivity and inertia.[38]
This system clearly implies that the different varnas have different essential natures.[39] And since dharma is all about enabling beings to live in accordance with their essential nature, each varna has its own dharma that it’s expected to follow in addition to the more general dharma for all Hindus.
The dharma of Shudras revolves around service. Vaishya dharma is largely a matter of tending and managing the animals, plants, and goods under their care. For the Kshatriyas, generosity, protectiveness, and strength are the key dharmic virtues. And the dharma of Brahmins exhorts them to transmit the Vedas accurately, to perform the public rituals carefully and mindfully, and to maintain inner and outer purity at all times.[40]
Since the Brahmins lead the public rituals and have to be pure in order to do so, they’re held to a considerably higher standard of dharma than the other varnas are. Even their smallest actions are regulated quite tightly. With great authority comes great responsibility.[41]
The varna system is something that non-Hindus often see in an unfavorable light. And to be fair, even some Hindus have expressed criticisms of it, or at least certain parts of it. But at bottom, the varna system is inseparable from the rest of the revealed structure of Hinduism, and throughout that religion’s several-thousand-year history, it’s served numerous legitimate and even indispensable purposes. We should therefore be careful not to judge it too hastily. As Klostermaier points out, the varna system
provides a sacred structure to society and to history. By divine fiat society was divided into functional strata and the life of the individual was structured in such a manner to give room to the realization of all essential human values. It was the caste structure that provided Hinduism with a social and political basis strong enough to not only accommodate change and development but also to withstand attacks from outside. The assignment of a specific function in society provided individuals with a purpose in their lives, ensured on the whole a noncompetitive kind of society, and also created a social security net for all its members.[42]
A particularly important touchstone for Hindu dharma is the epic poem known as the Ramayana, which recounts the majestic deeds of the hero Rama (an incarnation of the god Vishnu) and his companions. The main characters in this beloved piece of sacred literature have their commitment to dharma put to the test in all kinds of unforeseen and distressing ways, but they nevertheless persevere in righteousness. For example, King Dasharatha must send Rama, his own son, into exile in order to keep a promise with unintended consequences. Rama must leave his father’s opulent palace for the forest in order to obey his father. When Rama eventually reclaims his rightful throne, his cherished wife, Sita, is suspected of infidelity after being kidnapped by a demon. Even though she has remained faithful to her husband the whole time, she voluntarily accepts banishment so that the masses’ perceptions won’t undermine her husband’s reign. In all of these instances and more, the characters of the Ramayana choose devotion to dharma over their own personal interests, even when the costs are agonizingly steep.[43][44]
Dharma and Moksha
According to Hinduism, the ultimate meaning of life is to reach moksha, “liberation,”[45] the Hindu term for spiritual enlightenment.[46] Hinduism conceptualizes this as the realization that one’s innermost soul or Self (Atman) is one with the Self of all other things and with Brahman, the divine.[47] In the words of the Shvetashvatara Upanishad, a mystical poem in the Vedas,
As a dusty mirror shines bright when cleansed,
So shine those who realize the Self,
Attain life’s goal, and pass beyond all sorrow.[48]
When someone reaches moksha, he or she is “liberated” from karma, the cycle of reincarnation, and worldly existence more broadly.[49] Pursuing moksha thus means pursuing an experience in which one transcends the cosmos.
Yet dharma is all about living in harmony with the very cosmic order that is transcended in moksha. Fulfilling one’s dharma grants good karma and a more favorable rebirth in the next life, but attaining moksha grants freedom from karma and rebirth altogether. For these reasons, there’s always been a tension in Hinduism between pursuing dharma and pursuing moksha. The two have seldom been seen as mutually exclusive, but to emphasize one more or less inevitably means to deemphasize the other.[50]
Let’s now explore this tension and some of the ways in which Hinduism has largely reconciled these two goals over the course of the past few millennia.
Historically, the overwhelming majority of Hindus have fit into the category of the “householder” (Sanskrit grihastha[51]) – someone who pursues a normal life in society, including getting married and raising a family. The householder’s way of life necessitates making wise use of kama, “pleasure,” and artha, “wealth and power.”[52] For example, the kama of sexual love is necessary for the health of any marriage, and the health of the family depends to a significant degree on the health of the marriage that underlies it. When pursued for their own sakes, however, kama and artha can become recklessly destructive. Thus, in traditional Hindu thinking, dharma is there to provide the necessary “container” for kama and artha, to direct those drives toward pursuits that benefit the person undertaking them, his or her wider society, and the cosmos as a whole.[53]
From the first millennium BC onwards, however, a minority of Hindus have opted to renounce kama and artha, and thus the householder’s approach to life, in order to pursue moksha full-time. This means forsaking the dharma of their former social role. The thinking here is that since the proximate goal of following the householder’s dharma is to generate good karma, and since moksha is beyond karma altogether, householder dharma is at best an indirect and inefficient means of reaching moksha; to pursue moksha more directly and exclusively, householder dharma must be cast aside. Fittingly, someone who adopts this path is called a “renouncer” (Sanskrit samnyasin[54]). Renouncers live on the fringes of society, and householders have had widely varying opinions of them. On the one hand, renouncers have often been respected and even revered for their dedication to spirituality. But on the other hand, they’ve also often been condemned for refusing to abide by the conventional rules of dharma.[55][56][57]
The Dharma Shastras have addressed this tension by incorporating the otherwise wild renouncer and his or her unconventional spirituality into the structure of orthodox dharma. The path of renunciation is formalized. Renouncers are given their own dharma, which is different from householders’ dharma, but still a legitimate part of dharma nevertheless. For example, one can only become a renouncer if one has already raised a family as a householder, or, if one is still young, immediately upon the completion of the celibate student phase of life.[58] Furthermore, the renouncer must be forever homeless, nomadic, and celibate, and can own no possessions other than a begging bowl, a walking staff, and a saffron robe. Moksha must be the renouncer’s sole aim and purpose in life.[59]
Hinduism has also found a way to incorporate something of the spirit of renunciation into the householder’s way of life. In the Bhagavad Gita, the protagonist Arjuna is faced with a terrible dilemma: as a Kshatriya, dharma compels him to bravely and unflinchingly fight enemy forces who would seek to undermine dharma. Yet in this case, the leaders of those forces are his own relatives. He must either shy away from battle or shed the blood of his own family. Arjuna finds this choice intolerable and considers becoming a renouncer so that he can live a life of ahimsa, “non-violence.”[60]
Arjuna’s charioteer on the eve of battle just so happens to be Krishna, an incarnation of the god Vishnu. Krishna counsels Arjuna that fighting this ugly battle is non-negotiable, because only then can dharma prevail. The solution to Arjuna’s woes, Krishna says, is to act in a dharmically appropriate way, but to renounce his attachment to the outcomes of his actions. He must act for duty’s sake alone, and not worry himself over anything else. If he pursues this path of inner renunciation even in the midst of war, he will fulfill both his own dharma and the underlying purpose of the renouncer’s path. Thus detached from his ego, and with his mind occupied only with holiness, he will surely reach moksha in time. The Bhagavad Gita calls this approach nish-kama karma, action (karma) without attachment (kama, in a somewhat different aspect of the word’s meaning than the aspect we considered above). Arjuna becomes a model for all householders to follow in this regard.[61]
In these and other ways, Hinduism has largely reconciled the pursuit of dharma and the pursuit of moksha. Paradoxically, this renders dharma simultaneously all-encompassing yet also self-limiting; dharma contains within itself the transcendence of dharma in moksha.[62]
Conclusion
Hindu dharma may strike some people as onerous and even oppressive. There are rules for potentially anything and everything that one could do over the course of one’s life, which seems to leave little room for individual “freedom.”
But it seems to me that the trade-off is more than worth it. By acting in accordance with dharma, all of a Hindu’s actions become sanctified and meaningful. We modern people frequently bemoan the lack of meaning in our lives, and Hindu dharma shows us one version of what the solution looks like in practice.
Furthermore, Hinduism offers an array of paths that people can take to reach moksha, “liberation.” Calling enlightenment “liberation” underlines how it’s the only true freedom. Compared to the freedom of enlightenment, what we call “freedom” in the secular, egoistic sense of the word is a miserably poor shadow of the real thing.
References:
[1] Flood, Gavin. 1996. An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 52.
[2] Rodrigues, Hillary P. 2017. Introducing Hinduism. Routledge. p. 5.
[3] Ibid. p. 69-70.
[4] Davis, Richard H. 2024. Religions of Early India: A Cultural History. Princeton University Press. p. 166.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Rodrigues, Hillary P. 2017. Introducing Hinduism. Routledge. p. 69-70.
[7] Bartley, Christopher. 2015. An Introduction to Indian Philosophy: Hindu and Buddhist Ideas from Original Sources. Bloomsbury. p. 156.
[8] Rodrigues, Hillary P. 2017. Introducing Hinduism. Routledge. p. 29-30.
[9] Davis, Richard H. 2024. Religions of Early India: A Cultural History. Princeton University Press. p. 77.
[10] Klostermaier, Klaus. 2007. A Survey of Hinduism. State University of New York Press. p. 31-32.
[11] Ibid.
[12] Sastry, Trilochan. 2022. The Essentials of Hinduism: An Introduction to All the Sacred Texts. Penguin/Viking Press. p. vii.
[13] Klostermaier, Klaus. 2007. A Survey of Hinduism. State University of New York Press. p. 32.
[14] Guénon, René. 1945. Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines. Transl. Marco Pallis. Luzac & Co. p. 211.
[15] Rodrigues, Hillary P. 2017. Introducing Hinduism. Routledge. p. 70.
[16] Klostermaier, Klaus. 2007. A Survey of Hinduism. State University of New York Press. p. 32.
[17] Bartley, Christopher. 2015. An Introduction to Indian Philosophy: Hindu and Buddhist Ideas from Original Sources. Bloomsbury. p. 12.
[18] Rodrigues, Hillary P. 2017. Introducing Hinduism. Routledge. p. 69-70.
[19] Bartley, Christopher. 2015. An Introduction to Indian Philosophy: Hindu and Buddhist Ideas from Original Sources. Bloomsbury. p. 157-158.
[20] Davis, Richard H. 2024. Religions of Early India: A Cultural History. Princeton University Press. p. 384-386.
[21] Flood, Gavin. 1996. An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 56.
[22] Klostermaier, Klaus. 2007. A Survey of Hinduism. State University of New York Press. p. 51.
[23] Ibid. 32.
[24] Davis, Richard H. 2024. Religions of Early India: A Cultural History. Princeton University Press. p. 280.
[25] Klostermaier, Klaus. 2007. A Survey of Hinduism. State University of New York Press. p. 136-137.
[26] Ibid. p. 139.
[27] Ibid.
[28] Ibid. p. 141-142.
[29] Ibid.
[30] Ibid. p. 142-143.
[31] Flood, Gavin. 1996. An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 59-60.
[32] Klostermaier, Klaus. 2007. A Survey of Hinduism. State University of New York Press. p. 143.
[33] Flood, Gavin. 1996. An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 58.
[34] Klostermaier, Klaus. 2007. A Survey of Hinduism. State University of New York Press. p. 32.
[35] Ibid. p. 289.
[36] Ibid.
[37] Ibid.
[38] Flood, Gavin. 1996. An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 59.
[39] Ibid.
[40] Davis, Richard H. 2024. Religions of Early India: A Cultural History. Princeton University Press. p. 280.
[41] Flood, Gavin. 1996. An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 57.
[42] Klostermaier, Klaus. 2007. A Survey of Hinduism. State University of New York Press. p. 261.
[43] Ibid. p. 108.
[44] Rodrigues, Hillary P. 2017. Introducing Hinduism. Routledge. p. 155-161.
[45] Ibid. p. 65.
[46] Ibid.
[47] Ibid.
[48] Easwaran, Eknath (transl.). 2007. “The Shvetashvatara Upanishad.” In The Upanishads. Nilgiri Press. p. 164.
[49] Rodrigues, Hillary P. 2017. Introducing Hinduism. Routledge. p. 65-66.
[50] Ibid.
[51] Ibid. p. 106.
[52] Ibid. p. 107.
[53] Ibid.
[54] Ibid. p. 109.
[55] Ibid. p. 65-66, 107-110.
[56] Bartley, Christopher. 2015. An Introduction to Indian Philosophy: Hindu and Buddhist Ideas from Original Sources. Bloomsbury. p. 6.
[57] Biardeau, Madeleine. 2002. Hinduism: The Anthropology of a Civilization. Transl. Richard Nice. Oxford University Press. p. 61.
[58] Flood, Gavin. 1996. An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 90-91.
[59] Bartley, Christopher. 2015. An Introduction to Indian Philosophy: Hindu and Buddhist Ideas from Original Sources. Bloomsbury. p. 6.
[60] Flood, Gavin. 1996. An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 125-126.
[61] Rodrigues, Hillary P. 2017. Introducing Hinduism. Routledge. p. 173-174.
[62] Biardeau, Madeleine. 2002. Hinduism: The Anthropology of a Civilization. Transl. Richard Nice. Oxford University Press. p. 42.