Monday, January 30, 2012

[gita-talk] Re: What is the Exact Scope of Dharma?

 

I have been following this site for a while and I must congratulate all those concerned in doin a fantastic job
My question is that as per our shastras all endeavours of human pursuit can be classified as our 4 Purusharthas as Artha Kama Dharma and Moksha
I want some clarity on the exact scope of Dharma Is it religousity spirituality or righteousness.
Please throw light

Humbly
Vineeta Malpani
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Shree Hari Ram Ram

Please read the Article THE ESSENCE OF DHARMA by Swamiji -

http://www.swamiramsukhdasji.net/eBooks/Essence-of-Dharma.pdf

The Gist of this article is -
"Dharmasarvasva" meaning if the entire "Dharma"
(spiritual and moral laws) can be said in a few words, then
it is - that which is unfavorable to us, do not do that to
others. In this, is the essence of all scriptures.

Gita Talk Moderators, Ram Ram
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Respected Sadhaks!
Please attain yoga (samataa) by being devoid of evil (buraaee rahit) only; instead of doing good to others which is not always in out hands. [saadhak-sanjeevanee pp 399].
Humbly,
Saadhaka.


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Hare Krishna
I think It is the combination of all one has to be righteous,kauravas had cheated the pandavas and therefore there was a Dharmayudh between them.it was for reestablishing dharma that krishnavtar had taken place in that yuga.
Hare Rama
S.M.Vora
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In my humble opinion, Dharma is just a fruit of doing Karma with krishna/ishwar consciousness.
Lets focus on Karma dedicated to God and he would take care of the 4 fruits (dharma, artha, kaam, moksha).
Dharma is gross, Karma is subtle.
Lets work on the subtle and gross will take care of its own.
When saints do karma for prabhu/ishwar/krishna, he comes to re-establish dharma as fruit in us and in society.
regds,
Rakesh

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should physical sufferings be co-related to our deeds . are our un- religious [ paap ]deeds are the cause of pain and sufferings in this life may be of previous birth ."? why on earth mostly earnest ,truthful and honest people suffer more ?jai shree krishna

Chaman Nigam

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Hari Om

Whatever karma we do, we should always keep Dharma (duty) in view. Every action should be for welfare of 'others' and for all , it should not be alone for your own happiness ! Duty is never a subject matter of worry. It is a subject matter of 'vichaar' (careful consideration). Actually, you derive real happiness when you diligently do your duty, that quality/kind of happiness is not generated in enjoying worldly bhogs/pleasures. Even birds and animals get worldly pleasures ! One has opprtunity of doing duty, therefore, should consider oneself forunate.

In the deed, where you renounce your own pleasure and impart pleasure to others; where there is benefit of both you and others...that deed is 'duty' (kirtavya) ! By doing your duty, you get YOGA effortlessly. Only that person can do his duty diligently, who has OBJECT of doing good for all and give pleasure to them. We have got everything for doing our duty only, and that is sufficient enough. No human has got less material than what is required for doing his duty.

It is very easy to perform your duty (dharma) ! We all are independent and capable for the same. Yes..due to pramaad and laziness; due to habit of doing non-duty, due to desire for result always subsisting in us, the performance of duty appears difficult but actually nothing is more easy than doing duty (following dharma) !! When you have sense of 'doership' in you, then ONLY your eye gets shifted to the duty of others. As soon as your eye turns towards duty of others, you derelict from your duty. Hence it is not your duty to look at duty of others.

When you do your duty diligently then irrespective of the fact as to whether you believe in God or not, there comes a 'sattwik pleasure' in your 'antahkarana' (innersenses- mind/intellect/ego) ! THIS happiness/pleasure is representative of your liberation.

Jai Shree Krishna

Vyas N B

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Dear Sadaks,
Understanding the self and prakurthi- Then desire for Dharmic pleasures (Ex: Bed with wife only on days permitted/time permitted, ways permitted, and no other woman in mind/ thought)- Then Dharma way of life (Withdrawing all senses after certain age), - Moksha all of us know.
B.S

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Dear Gita-Member,

The sole purpose of Dharma is to reach God / divine or
as close as possible to Him. On this way, you will find your
health to improve, your dreams go from horrible to very-nice,
your painful/negative past will be gone, you will become confident,
you will let go your ego and anger and you will get "godly" communication
and spiritual experiences.

good Luck, Bye.
Notesh Otes

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Dear Sadhakas,
Hare Krishna.
This is in response to a question from a sadhaka.
Lord Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita,
"Arto jijnasur artharthi,
Jnani ca bharatarshabhaha. "
( Gitaji 7, 16)
Which means,
'Four kinds of people worship Me,
The distressed, inquisitive, who want prosperity and who are looking for the knowledge of the absolute. )
Any one of the these four kinds worships the Lord for whatever the reason may be.
Dharma, Artha, Kama, and Moksha are all allowed in family life as long as the intention is the pursuit of Krishna Consciousness.
But The only Dharma as per Lord Krishna is clearly described in Gita,
" Sarva Dharman Parityajya,
Mam ekam saranam vrajah,
Aham tva sarva papebhyo,
Moksham isyami ma suchaha. "
( Gitaji 18, 66)
Which means,
' Abandon every other Dharma,
Just surrender unto me, I will relieve you of all the sins. Do not fear. '

As per Lord Krishna, there is only one Dharma, that is the ' total Surrender unto the lotus feet of the Lord'.
Let us practice the Devotional Service in the form of Chanting and advance spiritually.
' Kali yuge Smaranan Mukti '
Chanting is the way to go in this Kali Yuga.
Thank you.
Prasad. A. Iragavarapu, MD

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Namaskaar Swami Ji et all;
This is the big Q, and i suggest - conscious that one cannevr completely get it right:

In short, considering the welfare of all others and not placing one's self first, such action done to the best of ones own capability with the least of cost to others, is dharma executed at the highest level.

in Sanskrit - Nishkaam
raviji

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Hari Om

Very good question ! Such Qs provide Divine momentum to Satsanga.

Kaam, Artha, Dharma and Moksha - these are NOT 'purusharthas' actually. These four are 'desires' in every human being. Out of these 4 desires , 2 viz Kaam(Bhog- desire to consume worldly pleasures) and Artha (desire to possess/own worldly riches) are subject matter of PRARABDHA (Fate/Destiny- dependent upon your past Karmas. Your current /immediate Karmas have no role here) ! Other 2 viz Dharma (Righteousness/Duty) and Moksha (Liberation/Freedom/Salvation/Emancipation) are subject matter of PURUSHARTHA ( Current/Immediate Karmas) !

In fulfillment of desire of Kaam and Artha...Prarabdha is required ! But in fulfillment of desire for Dharma and Moksha ..Purushartha is required. It is another matter that most of us use Purushartha (current karmas) for Kaam and Artha and leave Dharma and Moksha over the Prarandha...a stupidity !!!

Coming to Dharma ..what is Dharma? Dharma is the name of 2 things:

1 To do 'paropkaar' - deeds for welfare of others like charity, putting 'piaoos' (water supplies for general public ) , feeding poor etc etc

2 Based on your Varna/ashram doing diligently your duty as prescribed by the Scriptures !!

That raises the Q as to what is DUTY? Duty is that which you CAN do and which you SHOULD do. Only that Karma which you do for welfare/good of others is duty. The deed which is done for self (or for persons to whom you consider as mine) is NOT duty...it is merely a karma (which binds) !

Whether you call as 'Dharma' or as 'DUTY' - both words mean exactly the same.

The aforsaid is the exact scope of Dharma.

Jai Shree Krishna

Vyas N B
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Dharma is righteousness [as you ask] as said by Krishna in verses 7 & 8 of chapter 4 of Gita [Gita Madhurya page 51 ].
Humbly,
Saadhaka.
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Living for Liberation … and, liberation within living …

Dharma cannot be isolated from its three partners - Artha, Kaama and Moksha. If we don't understand one, it is imperative that the rest is not understood either. Therefore, let us address the cluster together. Just like any other existential cluster, this also is dual in its direction - one in living and one for liberation. The fellow suffers as one spreads ones legs on both the paths that seem to run in divergent and opposite directions! On one hand, one craves to live and at the same time, one hates any miseries!! One completely misses the fact that the perceived living and perceived liberation from miseries fall into mutually alien domains!!! Balancing the two to unify oneself within is spirituality; and, Dharma-Artha-Kaama-Moksha is one fool-proof path to attain THAT UNION.

Often, it is ill-conceived that liberation is to quit living! The very notion that "those are two distinct dominions" is ignorance. Living and liberation are inseparable as ever. Na hi kashchit kshaNamapi jaatu tishThati akarmakrit … nothing in this universe that is manifested can ever transcend the realms of The Action, living in other words. One has to attain THE ETERNITY amongst the relatively mortal existence only ... anityaih dravyaih praaptavaanasti nityam ... there is no other choice! Therefore, one should learn living in the right perspective in order to attain Liberation within the realms of living ... iha chedavedeet atha satyam asti ... if you can't realize while living in spite having all these faculties within and access to the world around, how can you imagine to achieve that when you lack both?! USE your living to attain THE TRUTH ... Annam praaNam chakshuh shotram mano vaachamiti ... Meditate with your faculties within and the world around to appreciate THE TRUTH in ALL ... tapasaa brahma vijignyaasaswa ...

LIVING: Dharma -> Artha -> Kaama -> Moksha :: Tendencies -> dependencies -> Desire -> Relief

In living, by default, one is driven by Dharma which is nothing but the inherent tendencies that keep churning out needs and dependencies (Artha) from within. The needs directly or indirectly threaten the existence or survival and hence create perturbations or restlessness within. The desires (Kaama) arise from these needs in an attempt to moderate/eliminate such restlessness in order to bring in a balance. It is the desires that can drive the rest of the system - mind and body - to seek associations in the world around to bring some potential relief (Moksha) within. One DOES attain freedom within whenever one's desires are met however momentary the state may remain. The corruption here is that the seed (tendencies, Dharma) is never removed! The restlessness manifests again and again ... desires continue ... toiling of body and mind continues which otherwise is perceived as misery! Thus, misery becomes an integral part of living. Therefore, seeking liberation within such living becomes paradoxical.

LIBERATION: Kaama -> Artha -> Dharma -> Moksha :: Desire -> Meaning -> Root cause -> Eliminate

The spiritual process is just to experiment a reversal in the natural phenomenon whichever one is considered! So is the case with Dharma and its partners. Instead of being driven by the inherent tendencies, ride the desires (Kaama) to their roots. Note that you do not have access to anything other than the desires. Therefore catch the desires and ride them toward their roots. Drive yourself to unearth the meaning (Artha) for the desires that you seem to be infested with. The meaning will show you the deeper shades of the desires that is hidden within one's innate nature (Dharma) in the sediments of one's sub-conscious! Question the very need of this innate nature to its core. Only then you probably can gather courage to drop your very nature (Dharma) and respond to Lord KrishNa's call ... Sarva dharmaan parityajya maamekam sharaNam vraja ... and seek THE ONE where there can't be a second. When there is no second, how can there be any threat to THE PEACE thereupon?! When there is no threat of any kind, how can there be dependence??!! FRREDOM (Moksha) is the ONLY POSSIBILITY then.

That is THE FREEDOM (Moksha) that is often referred to as LIBERATION wherein there is no room for any needs, even need for Moksha!!! The very need for Moksha takes retirement as there is no threat of bondage there ... Sadaa me samattvam na muktirna bandham ... Chidaananda roopah shivo'ham shivo'ham ... living continues at perfect balance (PEACE) as ever ...

Respects.

Naga Narayana.

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