Thought 163: Part 1 – Dharma

Dharma, which is enjoined duty, is a Vedic concept. In the Vedic times, everyone was expected to perform his/her Dharma. Dharma constituted the very fabric of the Hindu religion; it underscored the very essence of Hinduism. Every person in this world has a number of roles to play – such as father, husband, teacher (Guru), son, daughter, wife, mother, friend, etc. Hindu Saastras have enjoined certain duties for all these roles. And for the Hindus, anything enjoined by the Saastras (Scriptures) is sacrosanct. The modern Hindu, however, is out of touch with the Hindu Saastras (Hindu scriptures).

In general, we may say that it is very difficult now to preserve and justify these ancient models of duty in the modern societies. There are several reasons for this. In the olden days (Vedic times), life was relatively simple, leisurely and very much less complex. In the modern India, however, life has become very difficult and complex - especially in the urban India. The long and agonizing commute every day on the narrow and crowded city streets, to and from the place of work, is a typical example of the complexity of the modern urban life. The need to earn a living by both husband and wife in these days has further compounded this complexity by several orders - and therefore, people find it very difficult to conform to the blueprints of our ancient Saastras.

Hence, most Hindus do not follow the scriptural injunctions now. Their life styles do not leave much scope and time to read the scriptures and conduct their lives in accordance with the rules stipulated in them. They are the victims of the circumstances, which unfortunately make them, either to remain ignorant of the scriptural injunctions, and if they are known, to ignore them.

Thus, in modern India, people do not know what are enjoined duties; and therefore, they do not recognize the ancient notion of Dharma any more. Such ancient religious mandates do not seem to be compatible with the prevailing urbanized, busy culture of today. Even then, a good proportion of the Hindus in India and abroad, worship a god; they do the Puuja (worship), without getting overly concerned about what the scriptures say or do not say about such worship. They do the Puuja based on a tradition – by seeing how others in their family or in their community do or in whatever manner the priest/Guru advises them. These people may or may not follow all the scriptural injunctions completely or meticulously, but they have faith in worshiping a god – and also in the religion.

We are now living in times in which changes are happening – very rapidly. Those, who do not notice these changes and adapt themselves quickly to those changes as they happen, will find themselves left behind. The ancient scriptural models of Dharma, therefore, need revision, if duty (Dharma) is to be taken seriously. Current needs of the society should dictate the nature of Dharma (Duty) for every individual. This makes it important to reinterpret or redefine Dharma to suit the needs of the fast changing modern society.

The interpretation of Dharma may change with time but the concept and importance of Dharma itself does not change – ever, for the Hindus. For them, Dharma is eternal. All Hindus have to perform their Dharma because our religion itself is Sanaatana Dharma (eternal Dharma).