धर्म की उत्पत्ति

Defining 'Dharma'

'Dharma' is a Sanskrit word. Sanskrit is a classical language like Greek, Latin and Persian. And in Sanskrit, as in most classical languages, most words are derived from the stem or root. The word 'dharma' is derived from the root dhri, which means to hold, to keep, or to maintain. So, what which holds, keeps or maintains is dharma. Dharma maintains, keeps, or holds the very basis of this universe, the cosmic order. In that sense, dharma means the proper functioning of the various cyclical activities of this universe that maintain its balance. Dharma also means righteousness since it enables one to be closer to the truth, which maintains the cosmic order, also called rta. So, for an individual, sva-dharma, one's own dharma, would mean that which one has to do because of one's committing to it or because of one's station in life. Dharma can also mean the faith and tradition of people because these traditions have been conceived and strengthened by the meditations and realizations of rishis. These traditions are eternal and that is why the name Sanatana Dharma. Dharma should not be confused with the English 'word' religion. Religion generally means a group bound by its belief systems.

Dharma and Religion

As Western self-styled Indologists claims Dharma is not synonymous to Religion. The word 'dharma' cannot be translated into any single word in English, and has multiple meanings. Another meaning is property, attribute, or nature. So, if one says that fluidity is the dharma of water, it means that fluidity is the property of water. Dharma could also the intrinsic nature of a thing or person. For instance, it is the dharma of fire to burn. Another meaning of dharma is social code or law. Since these laws are considered to be the basis of social fabric, they are called dharma. Several such social codes exist like the Manu Smriti and Yajnavalkya Smriti. Dharma can also mean any rule, decree, ordinance, or statue. The decree of the government or the king could be called raja-dharma.

The use of the concept of Dharma

The concept of dharma in the sense of a cosmic harmony has been denoted in various symbols like the Dharma Chakra or the wheel of dharma, which finds place in the Ashoka Chakra depicted in the Indian national flag and also in the Indian national emblem. In essence, dharma is something that has to be practiced according to the Indian tradition. The Upanishads exhort one to practice dharma and speak the truth. And in this sense, which has to be considered as the main meaning of the word, dharna meaning harmony through the practice of righteousness and many other similar virtues.

Significance of Dharma in Human Life

Dharma was formulated as the solution to the eternal problems confronting the human race, originating from natural human instincts.

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MANU: II: 4

There is no act of man which is free from desire; whatever a man does is the result of the impulse of desire. In the above verse, analysing the human instinct, Manu states that the force behind every action of a human being is his desire (kama). Then the next question was what were the natural desires of man? The natural desire of man was found to be the desire to have enjoyment of wealth ie., material pleasure (artha) as also emotional and sexual enjoyment. Artha is explained by Vatsayana as connoting material wealth such as gold, cattle, com, including education or knowledge (intellectual property) necessary to earn wealth. The source of all evil actions of human beings was traced to the desire for material pleasure which in turn gave rise to conflict of interests among individuals.

Further, it was found that the desire (kama) of human beings could also be influenced by the other impulses inherent in human beings such as anger (krodha), passion (moha), greed (lobha), infatuation (mada), and enmity (matsarya). These six natural impulses were considered as six internal enemies of man (arishadvarga), which if allowed to act uncontrolled could instigate him to entertain evil thoughts in the mind for fulfilling his own selfish desires and for that purpose cause injury to others. Manu, on this basis, explained the causes of all civil and criminal injuries inflicted by the action of one against the other. Dharma or rules of righteous conduct was evolved as a. solution to this eternal problem arising out of the natural instinct of man. In Shantiparva of the Mahabharata (Ch.59- ????