1. Pursuit of Artha causes one to acquire wealth, resources, and prosperity.
Pursuit of Kama causes one to acquire pleasure derived from enjoyment of worldly objects.
Pursuit of Kama causes one to acquire pleasure derived from enjoyment of worldly objects.
2. Pursuit of Moksha causes one to acquire Knowledge of reality leading to freedom from all limitations, suffering, and cluthches of Samsara.
What does pursuit of Dharma lead to? What does an individual acquire by pursuing Dharma?
One word answer: Punya.
What does pursuit of Dharma lead to? What does an individual acquire by pursuing Dharma?
One word answer: Punya.
3. Punya means 'Karmic merit'. It is a special for it is what determines your future-your journey post death & your future lives. More the Punya, better the future, happier the future. The opposite Papa-Karmic demerit leads to opposite result of Punya, namely sorrow & suffering.
4. Therefore, pursuit of Dharma causes one to acquire Punya which leads to attainment of Sukha/Happiness in form of attainment of Svarga/heaven, better Punarjanma (rebirth in a more favorable conditions), & purification of mind which prepares one to become competent for Moksha.
5. It is for this reason translation of Dharma into terms such as ethics, virtue, duty, justice, etc. and confining Dharma into these categories do not do justice to the comprehensive meaning of Dharma, namely that which nurtures one by leading one to overall wellbeing.
6. Acquisition of the TRUE key to control your future. After death, neither wealth, nor family or friends accompany you in your journey. It is Punya generated from Dharma (and Papa generated from Adharma) alone that accompanies one.
7. Dharma is thus one's true friend. And Adharma one's true enemy.
Shastras say that such 'Punya' generating actions called Dharma are of different times.
Shastras say that such 'Punya' generating actions called Dharma are of different times.
8. There are certain principles like non-injury, speaking truth, etc. which are universally applicable to all beings which we call as ethics in English, but as Samanya Dharma in the Shastras.
9. Then there are certain principles which are context and person specific. Principles such as Varna Dharma, Ashrama Dharma, Stree Dharma, Purusha Dharma, Raja Dharma, Pitru Dharma, Putra Dharma, Desha Dharma, Kala Dharma, etc. all come under this category.
10. The uniqueness of Dharma is that its pursuit clearly give worldly gains in the form of happiness here and hereafter, however, it is also explicilty oriented towards and is the connecting bridge to pursuit of Moksha.
11. Thus, AK Sharan rightly recognises this interconnectedness, but distinction between pursuit of Moksha and Dharma. He calls explicit pursuit of Moksha as Hindu Spirituality and the pursuit of Dharma as Hindu religion.
12. He says that while Hindu Spirituality is logically independant of Hindu religion, Hindu religion is logically and existentially related to Hindu spirituality with pursuit of Hindu religion leading to pursuit of Hindu spirituality in an existential sense.
13. What this means is, while it is possible for minuscule set of people to pursue Moksha in isolation, for the majority of Hindus, it is the pursuit of Hindu Religion that has Dharma as its core is of prime importance.
14. Without Dharma as the core anchorage in our everyday life, we remain Hindu only in name.
#SanatanaDharma #Dharma #hinduism
#SanatanaDharma #Dharma #hinduism
15. PS: How do we know what constitutes Dharma & What Adharma? It is through Dharma Pramanas starting with Veda, Smriti, Itihasa-Puranas. It is for this reason discarding Dharmashastras is going to prove costly in the long run.
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