Hare Krishna, My question is that In Hinduism/Sanatan Dharma, there is a concept of Purushartha which is Dharma, Artha, Kama, Moksha,etc. I want to ask that What is Dharma in this context, is it related to Krishna Consciousness or is it related to Our material duties and also Spiritual duties,etc?
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Hare Krishna,
Well..In ancient India there was in those days 2 tiers of classification.
1. based on caste ( Varna) 2. Based on Ashrama ( the stage of life)
classification based on castes this no longer exists now a days much.. ( Brahamin, kshetriya, Vaishya and shudra). Brahmins were priests, teachers and scholars while kshtriyas were worrier class, merchantile class were the Vaishya and laborers where Shudras.
Based on Ashrama.. they were classified as..stages of life like.. 1. Student ( brahamacharya) 2. Grishasta ashrama ( householder). 3. Vanprastha ( retired) 4. Sanyasa ( renunciate).
Now the idea of duty was built around this structure...
You could in a brahman in vanaprastha ashrama or a brahmin in grihastra ashrama or Kshetriya in grishastha ashrama or vanprastha ashrama.. SO various combinations of these two Varnas and Ashramas.. Dharma was then.. termed as SWADHARMA.
IF YOU WERE A BRAHMIN you could be in various stages of life.. But performing a brahmin's duty only. the duties of one Varna were not taken up by the other Varna.. THAT WAS ANCIENT CLASSIFICATION. PRESCRIBED DUTY IS NO LONGER APPLICABLE NOW A DAYS.
Becoz of mixed breeds No one is following Varnas and Ashrama dharma anymore.
People belonging to Vanaprastha ashrama not following retired life they want to enjoy the brahmachaya life ...Becoz now a days all no one wants to retire they want to be active and young..Some grihasthas leaving their prescribed duty of taking care of family giving divorce and joining sanyasa order of life. All mixed up now a days.
SO now the dharma is no longer based on such classifications.
Dharma could be specific dharma for a specific purpose solving .. Like example.. that is Vishistha dharma. ( SPECIALISED DHARMA) EXAMPLE:-
See Arjuna was Worrier and he was grihastha also.. right He was at the Mahabharta Yudha was a General of the army also. so, at that perticular time he is playing the role of General.
So.. at times we may have to hold a special job ( role) for a limited period of time..
Whatever duty is given to you.. If you do with 100% involvement or commitment and selflessly doing any duty ( BE IS ANY ROLE...ROLE AS MOTHER, ROLE AS SON, FATHER, BROTHER, SISTER, TEACHER, BE IT UR JOB ROLES IN WORKPLACE ALSO) it is rewarded and appreciated by LORD SRI KRISHNA.
SOME PEOPLE SAY DHARMA IS RELIGION. WHICH IS FALSE.
they made classifications like buddha dharma, hindu dharma, muslim dharma., christian dharma.. THIS NOT RIGHT.
Dharma means some eternal rules and law laid down by Lord since time immemorial. THIS IS SANTANA ( ETERNAL). Truthfulness, cleanliness, compassionate, selflessness, and all the other virtues are all coming under eternal laws Sanatana dharma laid by LORD SRI KRISHNA.
"Whatever brings you closer to God is your duty"
IN Srimad Bhagwatam it is given..
dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītam ( SB 6.3.19). In bhāgavata-dharma there is no question of "what you believe" and "what I believe." Everyone must believe in the Supreme Lord and carry out His orders. Ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānuśīlanam: ( CC Madhya 19.167) whatever Kṛṣṇa says—whatever God says—should be directly carried out. That is dharma, religion.
Nice work Advaita Prabhu
The above verse is Bhagavatam 1.2.6
Purport
In this statement, Śrī Sūta Gosvāmī answers the first question of the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya. The sages asked him to summarize the whole range of revealed scriptures and present the most essential part so that fallen people or the people in general might easily take it up. The Vedas prescribe two different types of occupation for the human being. One is called the pravṛtti-mārga, or the path of sense enjoyment, and the other is called the nivṛtti-mārga, or the path of renunciation. The path of enjoyment is inferior, and the path of sacrifice for the supreme cause is superior. The material existence of the living being is a diseased condition of actual life. Actual life is spiritual existence, or brahma-bhūta existence, where life is eternal, blissful and full of knowledge. Material existence is temporary, illusory and full of miseries. There is no happiness at all. There is just the futile attempt to get rid of the miseries, and temporary cessation of misery is falsely called happiness. Therefore, the path of progressive material enjoyment, which is temporary, miserable and illusory, is inferior. But devotional service to the Supreme Lord, which leads one to eternal, blissful and all-cognizant life, is called the superior quality of occupation. This is sometimes polluted when mixed with the inferior quality. For example, adoption of devotional service for material gain is certainly an obstruction to the progressive path of renunciation. Renunciation or abnegation for ultimate good is certainly a better occupation than enjoyment in the diseased condition of life. Such enjoyment only aggravates the symptoms of disease and increases its duration. Therefore devotional service to the Lord must be pure in quality, i.e., without the least desire for material enjoyment. One should, therefore, accept the superior quality of occupation in the form of the devotional service of the Lord without any tinge of unnecessary desire, fruitive action and philosophical speculation. This alone can lead one to perpetual solace in His service.
We have purposely denoted dharma as occupation because the root meaning of the word dharma is “that which sustains one’s existence.” A living being’s sustenance of existence is to coordinate his activities with his eternal relation with the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is the central pivot of living beings, and He is the all-attractive living entity or eternal form amongst all other living beings or eternal forms. Each and every living being has his eternal form in the spiritual existence, and Kṛṣṇa is the eternal attraction for all of them. Kṛṣṇa is the complete whole, and everything else is His part and parcel. The relation is one of the servant and the served. It is transcendental and is completely distinct from our experience in material existence. This relation of servant and the served is the most congenial form of intimacy. One can realize it as devotional service progresses. Everyone should engage himself in that transcendental loving service of the Lord, even in the present conditional state of material existence. That will gradually give one the clue to actual life and please him to complete satisfaction.