Dharma and Morality in Hinduism

[निताइ dasa]

What exactly is Dharma? Can it be liken to morality? What is the goal of Dharma? Is there a highest Dharma? What is good and bad then? If the Absolute Truth good? If possible, please present some evidence (whether in the form of scripture or logical reasoning). I would love to hear from you. (I still need to write up a formal argument, so I will submit later).

 

[Shantanu]

What exactly is Dharma? Can it be liken to morality? What is the goal of Dharma? Is there a highest Dharma? What is good and bad then? If the Absolute Truth good? If possible, please present some evidence (whether in the form of scripture or logical reasoning). I would love to hear from you. (I still need to write up a formal argument, so I will submit later).

All 'karm', or actions are motivated by some objective in terms of the ethics that they attain. That objective is dharma, which in other words is the fundamental ethical basis for one's actions, the ethical value. Ethics mean the moral judgement of what are good principles worthy of pursuit and what are bad principles that should be rejected. A crook has his/her dharma (obtaining benefits by devious means) and a pious person has his/her dharma (living by austerity). So dharma can be sattvic, rajasic or tamasic in nature.

Unless one takes one's motivations for actions from a prescribed religion (Christianity, Islam, Sikhism,etc) in which case the goal is to serve that religion and to develop it, the goal of dharma is to guide a person into being a particular character that he or she is proud to expound about himself or herself. The society has a great deal to do with what is permissible and what is not permissible by its system of law and order that punish or reward the individual for their actions and thereby the motivations for those ations.

There is a highest dharma: doing only what is approved by God Sri Krishna: for that a person needs to be constantly searching for His views and needs to find a way of consulting God.

The Absolute Truth is not necessarily good, but it is the truth and the truth is inescapable: for example, the absolute truth is that God created the evil seen in humanity. Since by any kind of judgement evil is not good, so the absolute truth is not good unless you happen to be God who knows exactly why He created that evil.

How is this for starters?

 

[sayak83]

What exactly is Dharma? Can it be liken to morality? What is the goal of Dharma? Is there a highest Dharma? What is good and bad then? If the Absolute Truth good? If possible, please present some evidence (whether in the form of scripture or logical reasoning). I would love to hear from you. (I still need to write up a formal argument, so I will submit later).

Dharma is anything that leads one towards an authentic realization of the self and the reality of existence. The practice of Dharma is completely context dependent on the character of the person, the epoch and the station of that person within society. Ethical conduct falls within Dharma, but that is not all of it. Practice of livelihood, pursuit of knowledge or happiness , and spiritual/religious life also falls within its ambit.

 

[Aupmanyav]

IMHO, 'dharma' is the best social practice which leads to a peaceful and prosperous society. The idea is exemplified by the saying 'Bahujana hitāya, bahujana sukhāya' (For the benefit of many, for the happiness of many). Dharma existed even before the historical times. By experience over thousands of years Hindus have the general format for themselves. This is not a rigid format and can change with time. It can also change with region and beliefs. It is something like the human DNA, which may produce different specimen but humanness remains common in them.

 

[shivsomashekhar]

What exactly is Dharma? Can it be liken to morality? What is the goal of Dharma? Is there a highest Dharma? What is good and bad then? If the Absolute Truth good? If possible, please present some evidence (whether in the form of scripture or logical reasoning). I would love to hear from you. (I still need to write up a formal argument, so I will submit later).

Dharma has multiple meanings.

A common meaning is roughly equivalent to what we would call religion in english. In ancient India, we had veda-dharma (followers of trhe veda), bauddha-dharma, jaina-dharma, bhagavata-dharma, etc. Other than this, the word dharma has also been commonly used to mean charity.

 

[ratikala]

Namaskaram Nitai Dasa Ji

coming from a Buddhist background I have allways favored understanding it as 'Law', ... that which upholds , ...
it is the irrefutable law of truth , that which benifits all and harms none , ..it is 'Duty' , ..Duty to uphold such a law that brings benifit and Knowledge and such a law that defeats Ignorance and suffering , ....it is Glorious and praise worthy , ...it is Morality , ...it is the Principles of Religion , ......Meritorious and divine , ..it is Sri Krsna himself personified , ...Sri Krsna governing from the Heart , .....