The Vedic Way of Life

जय श्री गणेशा

• Dharma – Dharma (धर्म) means truth, the right way of living, and human behaviours considered necessary for the order of things in the world. It also means the path of Righteousness and Duty. On an individual level, you can think of Dharma as your true purpose in life or the ethical basis on which you live your life. It is also:
  • Being conscious in your actions, words, and thoughts.
  • Having compassion and sensitivity to the needs of others.
  • Being awake to the existence of the Divine within you

• Artha – Artha (अर्थ ) is the security of having the material comfort you need to live in the world with ease. While some people think that to be spiritual means to be poor, Artha is not about rejecting the world, but being content with the things you own. It’s to live skillfully in a world of material objects that exist for your benefit.

  Artha is one of the basic human dignities—to have enough assets to live on and care for your family, without hoarding or being greedy. Artha guides you to ask the question, “What do I see as truly valuable?”Artha provides the foundation for Dharma and Kama. Without prosperity and security in society or at the individual level, both moral life and sensuality become difficult. However, it’s important that your “worldly success” doesn’t violate the moral responsibility of your Dharma and your journey toward Moksha (spiritual liberation).

• Kama – Kama or (काम ) relates to this pleasure, which can be sensuality, but is also art, music, beauty, love, intimacy, affection, fellowship, and kindness—it’s what brings a sense of delight to your life. The right kinds of pleasure lead you toward your Dharma and help you fulfill it with passion. Kama is good and necessary when it exists to support Dharma and becomes part of the richness of life. However, excessive Kama can lead to overindulgence, addiction, sloth, greed, and lust.
  To successfully practice Kama, you must ask, “Are my pleasures aligned with my life’s purpose?” The Upanishads tell us, “As is your desire so is your will, as is your will so is your deed, as is your deed so is your destiny and You are what your deep driving desire is.”  The fulfilment of one’s desires during his lifetime or the ability to transcend these desires is important for the spiritual evolution of the soul and reach the ultimate destination of Moksha

• Moksha – Moksha or (मोक्ष) means liberation, the realization of the Self, and is the ultimate destination of this human birth. It is the stage of inner realization that the individual self is the same as the Supreme Self. Moksha is the experience of the cosmos within one’s self. It is the experience of the flow and fusion of the Shiva and Shakti energies in one’s self. The experience of union, Oneness or Ekatvam (एकत्वं ) with one’s Higher Self is Moksha.           

• • Emancipation.
  • Liberation.
  • Freedom from the cycle of death and rebirth.
  • Freedom from ignorance.
  • Self-realization and self-knowledge.
  • Consciousness of the Oneness of the Supreme Soul.
  • The removal of obstacles to an unrestricted life.
  • Access to our full human potential of creativity, compassion, and understanding.

Vedanta tells us that liberation comes to those who knows “Brahman” ( ब्राह्मण )  as that which is the origin and end of all things, the universal principle behind and at source of everything that exists, and the consciousness that pervades everything and everyone. 

Any action which does not fall into one of these four categories is not considered to be a part of one’s life’s goal as it is not an action which relates to the qualities of GOD or Paramatma (परमात्मा)

However, one must understand that these four distinct objectives or goals need to be balanced in terms of actions taken towards achieving each of them. 

Our Vedic culture has ordained 4 stages of life which every human being must need to follow to achieve the objectives of life or Purushartha which we just discussed. This further enables the Jeevatma or Living soul to advance further in pursuit of Enlightenment or Moksha             

The four stages are: 

• Brahmacharya ( ब्रह्मचर्य ) –  The life of a student or disciple. In this phase, the student must gain the necessary knowledge and skills required for his profession and be ready for his occupation and job. The foundation of Dharma happens during this age

• Grihastha ( गृहस्थ  ) –  The life of a married or family man or woman where the person lives the life of a responsible person and uses his learning and skills in his profession and practices Dharma (धर्म )  and he goes after the quest of gaining wealth (Artha or अर्थ ) and pleasure (Kama or काम ) 

• Vanaprastha ( वानप्रस्थ ) –  This is the retired life phase or the phase of a Forest Hermit. In this phase, the individual moves from the phase of a family man to a retired person or that of a forest hermit and slowly moves to the path of Moksha and spreading Dharma

• Sanyasin (सन्यासीन ) –  This phase is also known as the wandering ascetic or renouncer phase. In this phase, the person moves to a path of a renouncer and goes into the path of Moksha or Spiritual Enlightenment