Sanātana Dharma Explained

Sanātana Dharma (Devanagari: Sanskrit: सनातन धर्म, meaning "eternal dharma", or "eternal order")[1] is an alternative term used by some Hindus to refer to Hinduism instead of the term Hindu Dharma. The term is found in Sanskrit and other Indian languages.[2] It is generally used to signify a more traditional outlook of Hinduism.

The term denotes the "eternal" or absolute set of duties or religiously ordained practices incumbent upon all Hindus, regardless of class, caste, or sect.

Etymology

In Sanskrit, translates approximately to "eternal law" or, less literally, "eternal way."[3] In Pali, the equivalent term is (Pali: धम्मो सनन्तनो). In Hindi, the Sanskrit tatsama (Hindi: [[:hi:धर्म|धर्म]]) is being used as "religion".[4] (Hindi: [[:hi:सनातन धर्म|सनातन धर्म]]) roughly translates to "eternal religion".[5]

Dharma is often translated as "duty", "religion" or "religious duty", but has a deeper meaning. The word comes from the Sanskrit root "" which means "to sustain" or "that which is integral to something" (e.g., dharma of sugar is to be sweet, fire to be hot). A person's dharma consists of duties that sustain them according to their innate characteristics which are both spiritual and material, generating two corresponding types:[6]

  1. Sanatana-dharma – duties performed according to one's spiritual (constitutional) identity as atman (Self) and are thus the same for everyone. General duties include virtues such as honesty, refraining from injuring living beings, purity, goodwill, mercy, patience, forbearance, self-restraint, generosity, and asceticism.
  2. Varnashrama-dharma (Svadharma) – duties performed according to one's material (conditional) nature and are specific to the individual at that particular time. One's "own duty" according to his or her class or varna and stage of life should win when in conflict with Sanatana-dharma (e.g., A warrior injuring others as explained in Bhagavad Gita).

According to the notion of sanatana-dharma, the eternal and intrinsic inclination of the living entity (atman) is to perform seva (service). Sanatana-dharma, being transcendental, refers to universal and axiomatic laws that are beyond our temporary belief systems.

History

The phrase dharma sanātana occurs in classical Sanskrit literature, for example, in the Manusmrti (4-138) (1st3rd century CE) and in the Bhagavata Purana[7] [8] (8th10th century CE).

In the late 19th century, the term was revived during the Hindu revivalism movement as a name for Hinduism as a religion in order to avoid having to use the term "Hindu" which is of non-native Persian origin.[9] [10]

Today, Sanatana Dharma is associated only with Hinduism. In current-day usage, the term sanatana dharma is diminished and used to emphasize a "traditional” or sanatani ("eternalist") outlook in contrast to the socio-political Hinduism embraced by movements such as the Arya Samaj. In sharp contrast to the efforts by Lahore Sanatana Dharma Sabha to preserve the Hindu tradition against the onslaught of reform, now it is being stressed that Sanatana Dharma cannot be rigid, it has to be inclusive without excluding the best and totality of knowledge to guide the karmic process, especially as Sanatana has no beginning and no end.[11]

Competition with other denominations

Sanatanis and reformists (such as the Arya Samaj, the Radha Soamis and the Ramakrishna Mission) have competed for adherents for more than a century, sometimes creating deep schisms in Hindu society, as in the case of South African Hindus who were split between the Arya Samaj and Sanatanis. While the reformist groups were better organized initially, by the 1860s, a process of internal counter-reform was underway in Sanatani groups as well, and societies to propagate orthodox beliefs along modern lines emerged, such as Sanatana Dharma Rakshini Sabha in 1873. Some religious commentators have compared the Sanatani-Samaji dichotomy within Hinduism as similar to the Catholic-Protestant division in Christianity.

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sanatana dharma Hinduism. 2021-07-04. Encyclopedia Britannica. en.
  2. Book: Rajarajan, R. K. K. . January 2020 . Drāviḍian/Tamil Concept of Religion is sanātanadharma a Religion? . Into the Nuances of Culture. Essays on Culture Studies . en.
  3. so Book: Harvey, Andrew . Teachings of the Hindu Mystics . Shambhala . Boulder . 2001 . xiii . 1-57062-449-6.). See also René Guénon, Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines (1921 ed.), Sophia Perennis, ISBN 0-900588-74-8, part III, chapter 5 "The Law of Manu", p. 146. On the meaning of the word "Dharma", see also René Guénon, Studies in Hinduism, Sophia Perennis, ISBN 0-900588-69-3, chapter 5, p. 45
  4. its Sanskrit meaning has the sense of "law", or more literally "that which supports; what is firmly established", from an original meaning of "wooden post used as support".
  5. Book: Bryant . Edwin . The Hare Krishna Movement: The Postcharismatic Fate of a Religious Transplant . Ekstrand . Maria . 2004-06-23 . Columbia University Press . 978-0-231-50843-8 . 445 . en.
  6. Web site: Sanatana Dharma. 2020-04-17. The Heart of Hinduism. Dharma is often translated as “duty,” “religion” or “religious duty” and yet its meaning is more profound, defying concise English translation. The word itself comes from the Sanskrit root “dhri,” which means “to sustain.” Another related meaning is “that which is integral to something.” For example, the dharma of sugar is to be sweet and the dharma of fire to be hot. Therefore, a person’s dharma consists of duties that sustain them, according to their innate characteristics. Such characteristics are both material and spiritual, generating two corresponding types of dharma:

    (a) Sanatana-dharma – duties which take into account the person’s spiritual (constitutional) identity as atman and are thus the same for everyone.

    (b) Varnashrama-dharma – duties performed according to one’s material (conditional) nature and specific to the individual at that particular time (see Varnashrama Dharma).

    According to the notion of sanatana-dharma, the eternal and intrinsic inclination of the living entity (atman) is to perform seva (service). Sanatana-dharma, being transcendental, refers to universal and axiomatic laws that are beyond our temporary belief systems. ....
  7. . Other shlokas are 3.16.18 (sanātano dharmo); 7.11.2 (dharmaṁ sanātanam); 7.11.5 (sanātanaṁ dharmaṁ); 8.8.39, 8.14.4, 10.4.39 (dharmaḥ sanātanaḥ).
  8. Authority, Anxiety, and Canon By Laurie L. Patton, P. 103.
  9. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. Ed. John Bowker. Oxford University Press, 2000
  10. J. Zavos, Defending Hindu Tradition: Sanatana Dharma as a Symbol of Orthodoxy in Colonial India, Religion (Academic Press), Volume 31, Number 2, April 2001, pp. 109-123; see also R. D. Baird, "Swami Bhaktivedanta and the Encounter with Religions", Modern Indian Responses to Religious Pluralism, edited by Harold Coward, State University of New York Press, 1987)
  11. Web site: Sanatana Mission. 2019-11-12. Sanatana Mission. en.

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