Sanatana Dharma is is the original name of what is now
popularly called Hinduism
or Hindu Dharma. The
terms Hindu and Hinduism are
said to be a more recent development, while the more accurate term is Sanatana Dharma. It is a code of
ethics, a way of living through which one may achieve moksha (enlightenment, liberation). It is
the world's most ancient culture and the socio, spiritual, and religious
tradition of almost one billion of the earth's inhabitants. Sanatana Dharma
represents much more than just a religion; rather, it
provides its followers with an entire worldview, way of life and with a
coherent and rational view of reality.
Sanatana Dharma is is the original name of what is now
popularly called Hinduism
or Hindu Dharma. The
terms Hindu and Hinduism are
said to be a more recent development, while the more accurate term is Sanatana Dharma. It is a code of ethics,
a way of living through which one may achieve moksha (enlightenment, liberation). It is
the world's most ancient culture and the socio, spiritual, and religious
tradition of almost one billion of the earth's inhabitants. Sanatana Dharma
represents much more than just a religion; rather, it
provides its followers with an entire worldview, way of life and with a
coherent and rational view of reality.
What is Sanatana Dharma?
Sanatana Dharma do not denote
to a creed like Christianity or Islam, but represents a code of conduct and a
value system that has spiritual freedom as its core. Any pathway or spiritual
vision that accepts the spiritual freedom of others may be considered part of
Sanatana Dharma.
First and foremost, Sanatana
Dharma is anadi
(without beginning) and also a-paurusheya
(without a human founder). It is defined by the quest for cosmic truth, just as
the quest for physical truth defines science. Its earliest record is the Rigveda, which is the record of ancient
sages who by whatever means tried to learn the truth about the universe, in
relations to Man's place in relation to the cosmos. They saw nature — including
all living and non-living things — as part of the same cosmic equation, and as
pervaded by a higher consciousness. This search has no historical beginning;
nor does it have a historical founder. This is not to say that the Rigveda
always existed as a literary work. It means that we cannot point to a
particular time or person in history and say: "Before this man spoke, what
is in the Rigveda did not exist."
The Nature of Sanatana Dharma
By its nature, Sanatana Dharma
is…
- God-centered rather than prophet-centered.
- Experience based rather than belief based.
- Beyond any historical date of founding.
- The process of growth, which comes from the seed.
- Inherent in, and inclusive of all.
- In the world, while above the world.
- Both immanent and transcendent.
- The whole and the parts.
- Loving of all and excluding of none.
Basic Principles
- Sanatana Dharma recognizes that the greater portion of human religious aspiration has always been unknown, undefined, and outside of any institutionalized belief.
- The universal flow of Dharma, regardless of what name you call it, whether Dharma or some other name, has eternally existed. It has been before any of the great teachers were born. It is not better than, or alternative to, but is inclusive of all. Dharma is that out of which our earth and humanity itself emerged. Dharma not only is, but always was, and always will be. To live in alignment with, and to know the true nature of that Sanatana Dharma is one of the ways of describing the higher goal of life.
- Sanatana Dharma thereby gives reverence to individual spiritual experience over any formal religious doctrine. Wherever the Universal Truth is manifest, there is Sanatana Dharma — whether it is in a field of religion, art or science, or in the life of a person or community. Wherever the Universal Truth is not recognized, or is scaled down and limited to a particular group, book or person, even if done so in the name of God, there Sanatana Dharma ceases to function, whatever the activity is called.
- Sanatana Dharma comprises of spiritual laws which govern the human existence. Sanatana Dharma is to human life what natural laws are to the physical phenomena. Just as the phenomena of gravitation existed before it was discovered, the spiritual laws of life are eternal laws which existed before they were discovered by the ancient rishis (sages) for the present age during the Vedic period. Sanatana Dharma declares that something cannot come out of nothing and, therefore, the universe itself is the manifestation of the Divine being.
- Since Sanatana Dharma is referring to those ways of being which are in concert with the Absolute, and are therefore axiomatic laws, this term is not referring to something which is open to alteration. Just as the laws of gravity, mathematics or logic are not open to sectarian debate or relative opinion (gravity, for example, is an inherent law of nature regardless of whether one believes in the law of gravity or not), similarly the subtle laws of God transcend all partisan concerns.
- The world is made up of three tendencies called gunas: sattvic, rajasic, and tamasic. Sattvic tendencies are those that are pure, clean, good, wholesome, calming, and peaceful. Rajasic tendencies are those that are active, moving, indecisive, and forceful. Tamasic tendencies are those that are inert, lazy, dull, and dark. If it were not for these three tendencies, we would not exist. Everything is a mixture of them. Even a saint, who is primarily sattvic, has some level of rajas and tamas in him/her, however small.
- Sanatan Dharma makes use of yoga as the means to attain moksha (God-realization). Yoga has been poorly translated to mean "union". It does mean "union", but that is a poor definition because it encompasses so much more. Yoga is the union with Brahman (Absolute God). Yoga is also the means to achieving union with Brahman. Therefore, the word yoga is not merely a statement of union, but it encompasses the actual experience of liberation.
Hindu
A Hindu is an adherent of Sanatana Dharma which is
known today as Hinduism
or Hindu Dharma, that
represents a set of religious, spiritual, philosophical, scientific and
cultural systems that originated in bharatavarsha (Greater
India). Briefly a Hindu is basically any person who is born into the indigenous
religion of Bharatvarsh.
The Meaning of Hindu
If we go by the original
definition of the word Hindu, any one who lives in bharatavarsha (the Indian
subcontinent) is a Hindu and whatever religion he or she practices is Hinduism.
The word Hindu is not a religious word and literally translated it means Indian
and the word Hinduism denotes any religion or religions that are practiced by
the multitude of people living in the land beyond the river Indus.
Origin of the word Hindu
The word Hindu is derived from the word Sindhu, which is the name of a major
river that flows in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. The
ancient Greeks and Armenians used to refer the people living beyond the River
Sindhu as Indu/Hindu and gradually the name struck. When the Muslims came to
the sub continent they called the people living in the region as Hindustanis to distinguish them
from the foreign Muslims. Subsequently when the British established their rule,
they started calling the local religions collectively under the name of Hinduism that denotes any religion or
religions that is indigenous and practiced by the multitude of people living in
the land beyond the River Indus.
It is interesting to note that
the word is not Sanskrit
in origin and did not originate in India. It was not used by the native people
of Bharatvarsh (Greater India) in their descriptions or writings till the 17th
century. When and how the word 'Hindu" was coined is not precisely
established. It is absent in early sacred literature of Indian origin. It was
used by ancient Persians, without religious connotations, for the people
inhabiting the lands of river Indus.
Hindus are the followers of Timeless Dharma
The Hindu "religion"
was used to be known as Vaidika
Dharma or Vedic
Dharma and even Yoga
Dharma, as it has the Vedas for its authority and source (Vedokhilo Dharma Mulam) and its essence
is Yoga. Thus is also more commonly known as Sanatana Dharma as it
delineates and embodies values and doctrines which are of eternal validity.
Sanatana Dharma stands for "Rita" - the majesty of moral
and spirtual law. It looks upon the whole universe as being under the purview
of a divine principle and subserving to the supremacy of Brahman (Supreme Reality), its creator.
Times may change, ages may roll by, continents may rise and disappear, but
values of life like Truth, Love, compassion, one's duty to mother, father,
preceptor and to fellow beings, and the eternal reality of the spirit and unity
of all life, are truths and values that subsist and will subsist for ever.
These are the eternal values and truths which are embedded in the Vedas and are embodied in the sampradaya (religion) that had evolved out
of Vedas. These values being of eternal validity and universality, are the
justification for the religion that embody them, for being called as Sanatana
Dharma, the timeless Dharma.
Such a comprehensive teaching
is evident in the many sided yogic and meditational practices of Hinduism, the
vast culture of Hinduism including art, medicine and science, and in the Hindu
recognition of the importance of all systems of knowledge, material, occult and
spiritual. The social customs of Hinduism, with their emphasis on spiritual
practices, are also based upon such universal truth, though some of them have
departed from it through the long course of time. Hence they require adjustment
in light of changing times.
Who is a Hindu?
Due to the wide diversity in
the beliefs, practices and traditions encompassed by Hinduism, there is no
universally accepted definition on who a Hindu is, or even agreement on whether
Hinduism represents a religious, cultural or socio-political entity. In 1995,
Chief Justice P. B. Gajendragadkar was quoted in an Indian Supreme Court
ruling:
"When we think of the
Hindu religion, unlike other religions in the world, the Hindu religion does
not claim any one prophet; it does not worship any one god; it does not
subscribe to any one dogma; it does not believe in any one philosophic concept;
it does not follow any one set of religious rites or performances; in fact, it
does not appear to satisfy the narrow traditional features of any religion of
creed. It may broadly be described as a way of life and nothing more."
While Hinduism contains both
"uniting and diverse views", it has a common central thread of
spiritual, philosophical and scientific concepts (including dharma, moksha and
samsara), practices (puja, bhakti etc) and cultural traditions. These common
elements originating (or being codified within) the Vedic, Upanishad and
Puranic scriptures and epics. Thus a Hindu could:
- Follow any of the Hindu schools of philosophy, such as Advaita (non-dualism), Vishishta Dvaita (non-dualism of the qualified whole), dvaita-advaita (dualism), dvaita-advaita (dualism with non-dualism), etc.
- Follow a tradition centered on any particular form of the Divine, such as Shaiva, Vaishnava, Shakta, etc.
- Practice any one of the various forms of yoga systems; including bhakti (devotion) in order to achieve moksha.
In 1995, while considering the
question "who are Hindus and what are the broad features of Hindu
religion", the Supreme Court of India highlighted Bal Gangadhar Tilak's
formulation of Hinduism's defining features:
Acceptance of the Vedas with
reverence; recognition of the fact that the means or ways to salvation are
diverse; and the realization of the truth that the number of gods to be
worshipped is large, that indeed is the distinguishing feature of Hindu
religion.
Om
Tat Sat
(Continued)
(((My
humble salutations to the lotus feet
of Swami ji, great Devotees ,
Philosophic Scholars, vedawikidot com
for the collection)
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