November 2nd - Meaning of Dharma in Hinduism

Welcome to 8th and 9th grade Balavihar Blog!

We started our class with Opening prayers and then meditation time. 

Meaning of Dharma in Hinduism

We went on to talk about our main topic, Dharma. Dharma is a belief shared throughout many religions. It has multiple meanings and concepts in it. Dharma is righteousness, when it is most loosely defined. However, it has three main definitions: the innate nature of all living beings; duty; the laws that sustain us. 

For an example of the innate nature of all beings, our teachers told us a short story. 

Rishi and the Scorpion: A rishi was bathing in the river when he sees a scorpion drowning, and by his innate nature, he attempts to save it. The scorpion, due its own innate nature, stings him multiple times. However, he doesn't let go of the scorpion and allows himself to be stung until he gets the scorpion to the shore. The rishi's sishya asks him why he saved the scorpion even after it stung him. The rishi replied that it was his dharma (innate nature) that made him want to help the drowning creature because he felt sympathy for it due to his innate nature. 

For the meaning of dharma that meant duty, we were given the example of a scene between Rama and Kaikeyi. Rama says that if Kaikeyi had just asked him to leave for the forest and give the throne to Bharata, he would have done it because it was his duty as a son to listen to his mother. 

Also, not completing duty can cause an imbalance, however there are many factors opposing you when trying to complete your duty. A lawyer was on the prosecuting side for a murder case. He had already worked out a strong argument and was about to present his case to the judge when they brought in the accused murderer. The accused turned out to be his estranged son. At this point, the lawyer had no idea what to do. He had two duties that conflicted with each other. It would create imbalance if his son was not punished for his crimes, however it would also cause imbalance if he neglected his duty as a father and condemned his own son. In order to not infringe upon either of his duties, the lawyer backed out of the case. 

The third meaning of dharma is righteous conduct and the laws that sustain us. This can be partially summed up by the phrase "Dharmo Rakshati Rakshitah." This means if  you follow the rules, those rules will protect you. 

An example of this is the scene where Dushasana tries to embarrass Draupadi and attempts to disrobe her. Draupadi was righteous and followed the rules all her life and in her past lives, she was a dharmic being. Since someone was trying to hurt her or embarrass her, Krishna saved her by making her clothing infinite so that Dushasana could not undress her. This was due to dharma since Draupadi followed dharma always, Krishna, on behalf of dharma, protected her dignity. 

We ended class by re-visiting what we discussed the last 5 classes and with closing prayers.