Bharata’s imprecations, conditional upon his scheming to send Rama to the forest, give us a window into what constitutes the guardrail of Dharma. These are clear black and white scenarios where Dharma violation has occurred. In Part 1, we extracted the pointers relevant to Moksha Dharma. In Part 2, we studied the implications of Dharma in the society. In the next two sections, we will study the saamaanya dharma, dharma that is to be followed by all, during normal lifestyle scenarios. These everyday living standards imply that if one were to catch a glimpse of its occurrence, then it is safe to assume, we are at the crossroads of Dharma and Adharma.
Saamaanya Dharma:
Continuing the conditional curses, (यस्य आर्यो अनुमते गतः yasya anumate aaryaH gataH), Bharata gives us a clear boundary where Dharma has been transgressed in favor of Adharma.
Being respectful, trustworthy and reliable: The individual is expected to have minimum standards. Respect the ones who contribute to a healthy relationship and value to one’s life. The central focal point of an agrarian society revolved around cows. After receiving milk and all other forms of contributions from the cow, kicking it only reveals a very tamasic state of mind that showcases one’s apathy and ingratitude.
गाश्च स्पृशतु पादेन गुरून् परिवदेत्स्वयम् | मित्रे द्रुह्येत सोऽत्यन्तम् यस्यार्योऽनुमते गतः || (VR 2-75-31)
gaascha spR^ishatu paadena guruun parivadet svayam | mitre druhyeta saH atyantam yasya aaryaH anumate gataH||
May with whose counsel my elder brother has gone to exile, incur the sin of kicking cows, personally abusing Gurus and deceiving reliant friends.
Similarly, Guru is the one who opens the doors of knowledge and path of emancipation. Even if not one’s own guru, anyone in such a status deserves respect. Ignoring their value, if one were to abuse them, it reveals a highly adharmic mind. We find a similar state when a person backstabs one’s own friend or proves unreliable to them after promising to be accountable.
The next sloka continues the same theme of being upright enough to uphold trust and never reveal what was confided to one, in private.
विश्वासात्कथितम् किंचित्परिवादम् मिथः क्वचित् | विवृणोतु स दुष्टात्मा यस्यार्योओऽनुमते गतः || (VR 2-75-32)
vishvaasaat kaThitam kimchit parivaadam mittaH kvachit| vivR^iNotu saH dushhTaatmaa yasya aaryaH anumate gataH ||
May with whose counsel my elder brother has gone to exile, incur the sin of breaking the confidential words, spoken in private, even if they were harsh about others.
This has many ramifications from interpersonal relationship on the outside to the gunakarma of the individual on the inside. Exploiting one’s trust is a very adharmic frame of mind.
Basic standards for the individual:
The entire journey and evolution of the Jiva is dependent on its Karma. Imagining delusory notions, some in the society out of apathy, ignorance or arrogance believe not doing their Karma to lead to happiness. Exerting proper effort with right understanding opens the doorway to Dharma.
अकर्ता ह्यकृतज्ञश्च त्यक्तात्मा निरपत्रपः | लोके भवतु विद्वेष्यो यस्यार्योऽनुमते गतः || (VR 2-75-33)
akartaa akR^itajNaH cha tyaktaatmaa nirapatrapaH | loke bhavatu vidveshhyaH yasya aaryaH anumate gataH||
May he with whose counsel my elder brother has gone to exile, become a non-doer, ungrateful wretch, a desperate person, one who has abandoned shame and one who is fit to be hated.
Continuing an earlier theme, Bharata expects one to be grateful. This we can by reminding ourselves of the debt we incur at various levels, runa. Without operating with gratitude and with an attitude to repay, it is impossible for anyone to get a toehold in dharma. The dharmic person is tremendously hesitant to get closer or test the limits of the boundary that separates dharma and adharma.
A person following dharma automatically generates universal love in the bosom, which makes them very likeable and no hate touches them.
Taking care of dependents: One’s spiritual journey begins with the query of what is the self (Atman). At the grossest level, one arrogates the self as the body. This allows the Jiva to operate at a I, Me and Myself level. In a touch of extreme selfishness, this miserable I-ness, discards even the ones that are completely dependent people.
पुत्रैः दारैः च भृत्यैः च स्व गृहे परिवारितः | स एको मृष्टम् अश्नातु यस्य आर्यो अनुमते गतः || (VR 2-75-34)
putradaaraishcha bhR^ityaishcha svagraR^ihe parivaaritaH | saH ekaH nR^ishhTam ashnaatu yasyaH aaryaH anumate gataH||
May he with whose counsel my elder brother has gone to exile, incur the sin of eating delicious food for himself alone when he is surrounded by his sons, wife and servants in his house.
This tamasic, Selfish personality doesn’t even want to share the pleasures of its belongings with the spouse, children or servants. It wants everything for itself. This distortion can be seen in Hitler, when he wanted his own military to destroy German infrastructure, instead of accepting defeat. Even his own people didn’t qualify to enjoy the infrastructure that survived the allied bombing and attack.
Contrary to this adharmic state of mind, as one starts expanding the mind to be inclusive of others, it is able to include the welfare of others. This forces the limiting self to be more expansive and dharmic. Eventually this chivalry expands to the extended family, village/town, nation and eventually the entire world, as reflected in the popular thought of India – “vasudaiva kutumbakam”, the entire world is my family. At this level, one’s understanding of Dharma is very subtle and reliant on its following, not mere theory.
राज स्त्री बाल वृद्धानाम् वधे यत् पापम् उच्यते | भृत्य त्यागे च यत् पापम् तत् पापम् प्रतिपद्यताम् || (VR 2-75-37)
raja striibaala vR^iddhaanaam vadhe yat paapam uchyate | bhR^ityaagacha yat paapam tat paapam pratipadyataam ||
That sin which was proclaimed in killing a king a woman, a child or an aged person or in abandoning one's dependents let him (with whose counsel my elder brother has gone to exile) obtain the same sin.
The same idea of being responsible for others is reiterated in this sloka. But here the angle is not only limited to the one’s directly depending like wife or child, but also others. For instance, a king is responsible for all the citizens in the kingdom. By killing the king, one is directly hurting the root of the society. The importance of interdependence amongst various members of the family and society is being highlighted.
Societal dues: As explored in the Runas portion in Part 2, every healthy individual in the society has a due to their Pitrus (ancestors) to keep their line growing. This doesn’t mean become a breeding machine like some desert cults. Thus, marrying a dharmic spouse and begetting children becomes an important duty for each person.
अप्राप्य सदृशान् दाराननपत्यः प्रमीयताम् | अनवाप्य क्रियाम् धर्म्याम् यश्यार्योऽनुमते गतः || (VR 2-75-35)
apraapya sadR^ishaan daaraan anapatya pramiiyataam| anavaapya kriyaam dharmyaam yasya aaryaH anumate gataH||
May he with whose counsel my elder brother has gone to exile, never win a (dharmic) wife, beget any children and die without performing their duties.
In today’s modern age, some feel it is unnecessary or a burden to have a child, as their strife ridden life is already oppressive. Interestingly, such a thought would not even exist, if their ancestors felt the same way. As we observe nature, all living beings ensure the continuation of the species and it is the dharma of every being to keep creation continuing, despite their emotions or inability to grasp this subtlety.
मात्मनः सम्ततिम् द्राक्षीत्स्वेषु दारेषु दुःखितः | आयुः समग्रमप्राप्य यस्यार्योऽनुमते गतः || (VR 2-75-36)
maa aatmanaH samtmatim draakshhit sveshhu daareshhu duHkhitam | aayauH samagram apraapya yasya aaryaH anumate gataH||
May he with whose counsel my elder brother has gone to exile, have a life of anguish by not begetting any children through his wife and not even get a full life.
This thought process is reiterated in numerous slokas. It appears these slokas find relevance today, after thousands of years. It must be emphasized that child bearing is considered sanctimonious, while modern fascination cannot go past the mere biological process. It is also interesting that shastras expect every human being to have a full life, thereby one can evolve by working on their vasanas and prarabdha karma. An abrupt premature termination of life is deemed as a curse, whether it was self created or by circumstances or accident. Long life was understood to be synonymous with a productive one, not merely existing.
Understanding consequences of individual actions in society: The individual may be subject to the vagaries of the mind, senses and sense objects. Thus, there may be an enormous pressure to do whatever one desires. For instance, the modern society’s problems with drugs. Apart from the consumers who fuel the demand, it offers a cheap, lucrative option to make quick money. These players do not care for the health of the individual’s whose life is being pawned and shortened for a quick high or money. The same is true for many other vices in society, whether it is legal or not. Many sugary beverages are known to create lifestyle diseases in an epidemic proportion, as also alcohol. But both get societal approval and in some cases even status.
लाक्षया मधुमांसेन लोहेन च विषेण च | सदैव बिभृयाद्भृत्यान् यस्यार्योऽसुमते गतः || (VR 2-75-38)
laakshhayaa madhumaamsena lohena cha vishheNa cha | sadaiva bibhR^iyaat bhR^ityaan yasya aaryaH anumate gataH||
May he with whose counsel my elder brother has gone to exile, obtain the sin of nurturing his wife, children and dependents through the sale of lacquer, liquor, flesh, iron or poison.
Lac is obtained from the bark of certain trees, that appear like tunnels in response to the female lac bug sucking on the sap. Hundreds of thousands of bugs are needed to produce a mere kilo of the lac, which may have several uses. This has been in use in India for millennia. This is a good example of how unsustainable resource lac can be if a society grows around its active use. Liquor and poison are detrimental to the consumers and hence a livelihood centered around it was considered adharmic. For millennia, there has been an emphasis on limited meat eating or its avoidance in India. Today red meat is a known carcinogen. But the impact on our gunas is a subtle but important aspect more than the biological aspects. In today’s context, there would be a lot more in this list, ranging from alcohol to drugs. The idea of wrecking the society for earning a livelihood is repudiated.
Being responsible with resources: There can be two approaches to generating artha. The most commonly known is centered on Kama and this approach also entertains the idea that artha is a resource only for fueling more Kama. Shastras stipulate that Dharma following generates Artha and the purpose of Artha besides satisfying legitimate Kama is to strengthen Dharma.
संचितान्यस्य वित्तानि विविधानि सहस्रशः | दस्युभिर्विप्रलुप्यन्ताम् यश्यार्योऽनुमते गतः || (VR 2-75-44)
samchitaani asya vittaani vividhhaani sahasrashaH |dashyubhiH vipralupyantaam yasya aaryaH anumate gataH ||
May that man's accumulated extensive possessions of various kinds of wealth be snatched away by thieves in thousands of ways if he had counseled the exile of my esteemed brother.
Thus it is imperative that every dharmic person is not only engaged in expanding Artha but also wise enough to redeploy them to strengthen Dharma. The accumulation mentioned here is to highlight that a lot of artha is hoarded but never deployed for dharma. Thus with the loss to thieves, a lost dharmic opportunity is emphasized. If one were to be a fruit merchant, instead of selling even at loss, if one lets all the fruits to rot and go to waste, one has lost the opportunity to sell or feed others. In the same way, Artha lost, abused or squandered is a lost opportunity to strengthen Dharma. Reducing oneself to such a disgrace is also considered as papa, if one were to observe the subtlety of high standards.
Utilizing time properly: Of all the resources available, time is very unique. We are a product of time, something we can never recover. It always goes only in a direction, waits for none. One cannot store it. We can either use or lose it, worse yet abuse it. We can manage what we do with it, but never create more. Even amongst the positive uses, one can find the most profitable task to focus. Also certain times, make it conducive for certain tasks, which makes them not only special, but also the right time to dedicate to those tasks.
उभे संध्ये शयानस्य यत् पापम् परिकल्प्यते | तच् च पापम् भवेत् तस्य यस्य आर्यो अनुमते गतः || (VR 2-75-45)
ubhe sandhye shayanaasya yat paapam parikalpyate | tat cha paapam bhavet yasya aaryaH anumate gataH ||
That sin which was proclaimed on him who sleeps during both the twilights, let that sin be obtained by him, with whose counsel my elder brother has gone to exile.
The sandhya/twilight time is the conjunction of light and dark, a perfect opportunity for engaging in spiritual activities. Traditionally, sandhyavandana has been a crucial part of celebrating this time, a time for intense inner focus and heightened self awareness. Even if one were not spiritually inclined, it is also a beautiful time for sunrise and sunset that transports one magically by the mere shades of diverse colors. Worse yet, it gives us the opportunity to commence our day on the right footing or end the day’s tasks. Instead if one were to embrace tamas and sleep during this auspicious time, it speaks volumes of our abyssal nature. Hence it is considered as Papa, abusing fortunate time.
These saamaanya dharma are not specific to certain individuals and no exceptions are available in observing them. These guidelines help the individual to balance oneself in society and integrate our personality with nature.
To be continued..
ॐ तत् सत
