SPS Chauhan
Human life is a journey between two worlds- the outer world of actions, responsibilities, ambitions and desires, and the inner world of emotions, peace, happiness and self-realisation. At first glance, these two pursuits appear contradictory. Spirituality is often associated with renunciation and detachment, while material life is associated with ambition, attachment and desire. As a result, many individuals experience an ongoing conflict between their worldly aspirations and their search for inner peace. The Sanatan view explains that material life itself, if lived in accordance with Dharma, becomes a means of spiritual fulfillment.
Dharma in Sanatan means righteous actions and doing one’s duties. The material world operates on the law of Karma, also called the cause and effect principle in scientific terms. Karmafal Siddhant along with concept of rebirth is the unique feature of Sanatan Dharma and in fact of all the religions or sects originated in Bharat. It is probably the only principle which explains the sufferings and pleasures of life even by birth, which have no bearing on present life’s Karmas. So Karma could be considered the central and essential part of life. If Karma is done as per Dharma it is called Karmyog.
Dharma is not any fixed action or ritual, it is dependent and flexible and with respect to time, circumstances, age and tendencies. For example, can non-violence be the Dharma for a soldier at war? In normal life, there is often a conflict between various actions and duties. The thumb rule for which duty or Dharma shall get priority is that larger good shall prevail. For example, some action which may be good for you or your family but not in larger social interest, shall be counted as Adharma. If Karma is not done as per Dharma, worldly desires may be fulfilled but no happiness and peace can be obtained. It will also lead to bad consequences if not in this life then in subsequent lives.
According to the Sanatan philosophy, Karma has different categories. Sanchit Karma is the complete lot of Karmas from past lives. Prarabdh is the part of Sanchit Karma for the present life. It is manifested as your tendencies called Samskaar or Pravritti and as one’s luck which is Prarabdha activated by your efforts or Karma. The last category is Kriyaman Karma which is one’s action at present. It is important to understand how an action takes place. Any action has three stages. First is desire which will arise as per one’s Pravritti. The second is thought of doing /not doing the act and how to do it which is called Vivek. It is a narrow window and can be called freewill. This can affect your Prarabdha and turn it in to Bhagya. The third part is the actual execution of the act.
It can be understood that one has control over one’s present actions only and nothing else. Swami Vivekanand had said, “Do good, get good; do bad, get bad”.
Sanatan also prescribes Varnashram Dharma along with four Purusharthas which sum up the fulfillment of worldly desires in line with Dharma. The four Purusharthas are Dharma, Arth, Kam and Moksha. It means earning wealth and fulfilling desires as per Dharma with Moksha being a natural follow up. The four Varnas are prescribed according to one’s Pravritti and capabilities. Brahmin- the knowledge seeker and giver, Kshatriya- the protector and warrior, Vaishya- the wealth creator and provider for society and Shudra- the service provider to the society. These categories exist in every society at all times.
The four Ashramas according to stages of life include Brahmacharya which entails preparation for future life and social responsibilities (usually till marriage). It is followed by Grihastha, the most responsible stage, provider and caretaker of the other three stages. Vanprastha involves gradual detachment from worldly desires and handing over of responsibilities which is followed by Sanyas- the renunciation of desires and focus on Moksha. This system basically means appropriate Karma (as per Varna) at appropriate stages of life (Ashramas) to fulfill wordly responsibilities and desires and ultimately attain Moksha. In Sanatan Dharma every being in the creation is considered as manifestation of that supreme being/consciousness while Moksha is defined as union or realisation of Atma/soul with supreme soul/Parmatma.
Karma is the essence of life and Karmayog provides the bedrock on which further progress can be made as per one’s Pravritti and capabilities. Important Yoga philosophies described in the Bhagavad Geeta are the Bhaktiyog (path of devotion), Rajyog (path of disciplining the body and mind) and Gyanyog (path of knowledge and enquiry). Gyanyog appeals to people of intellect and enquiry, Rajyog to disciplinarians and Bhaktiyog appeals to all as it is love and devotion based. In practice, one may follow one Yoga in particular but support of the other two is desirable and complementary to each other.
(A retired civil servant, the author is a civil engineer interested in spirituality & education; views are personal)
