Dharma

Vedas : 1500-600B.C
Brammanas : 1000-600 BC
Arayakas : 800-600 B.C
Upanishads : 800-500 BC
Vedangas 600-300 B.C
Siksha: Phonetics
Chandas: Prosody (the study of the structure of poetry)
Vyakarana: Grammar
Nyrukta: Understanding Vedic terms,
Jyotishya: Astronomy
Kalpa: Rituals and ceremonies
Kalpa sutras
Srauta Sutras
Griha Sutras
Dharma sutras 2
School of Interpretation
Gautama : 600-400 B.C Bengal
Baudhayana 600-300 B.C Bombay
Apastamba : 600-300 B.C South India
Vishnu: 500-400 B.C Punjab or Kashmir
Vasistha : 300-100 B.C
Harita : 300-400 A.D

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Dharma root is "dhri", which means ‘to
support, hold, or bear’. It is the thing that
regulates the course of change by not
participating in change, but that principle
which remains constant.

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Virtue, righteousness, and duty, esp. social
and caste duty in accord with the cosmic
order.
The principle of cosmic order.
Dharma  is the law (rule) that "upholds,
supports or maintains the regulatory order
of the society or universe".
Dharma constitutes foundation of all affairs in
the world.
Dharma insults ( man) against sinful thoughts
and actions.
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The word Dharma i.e. righteousness has been
used by various holy texts with various
connotations.
The aim of dharma is establishing a code
of righteousness is to facilitate social
transactions.
Dharma in Aryan society refers to the rights,
duties and responsibilities of an individual
belonging to a specific class (varna).
It also means the duties allotted or accepted
by an individual according to the system of
classes and the stages of life (varnashram).
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Origin of Dharma

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Dharma was founded as the solution to the
eternal problems confronting the human
race, originating from natural human
instincts.
There is no act of man which is free from
desire; whatever a man desires the result of
impulse of desire.
force behind every action of a human being is
his desire (Karma).
The source of all evil actions of human beings
was traced to the desire for material
pleasure which in turn gave rise to conflict
of interests among individuals.
Natural desires or enemies of man
Anger ( krodha)
Passion (moha)
Greed (lobha)
Infatuation ( mada)
Enmity ( matsarya)
Allowed to act uncontrolled could instigate him to
entertain evil thoughts in the mind.
Dharma or rules of righteous conduct was
evolved as a solutions of eternal problem
arising out of natural instinct of man.

Dharma prescribed rules of right conduct,

observance of which was considered
necessary for the welfare of the individual
and the society.

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Right rules of conduct covering almost every
sphere of human activity such as religion, rules
regulating personal conduct of individuals, as
student, as a teacher, as a house-holder, as a
husband, as a wife, as son, and including rules
regulating of food and like were prescribed.
 uty
Et ics
Natural L w
Transcendental realization
Cos ic Order
Soci l Welfare
Source of Dharma
Dharma sutras enumerate three sources of dharma
The Veda ( knowledge)
Tradition
Good Custom
Inner contentment
The Veda, tradition, and good custom, and inner
contentment these are said manifestly to be the
fourfold foundation of Dharma.
The Veda
The Vedic texts are really revealed texts, divine
worlds gathered directly by the inspired bards,
the rishis.
Every rule of dharma must find its foundation in
the Veda.
In fact the Vedic texts contains little enough in
the way of rules of dharma.
The Vedas are not even include a single positive
principle which could be used directly as a
rule of conduct.
Tradition
• The brahmanas, aranyakas, and the upanishads
contain, apart from descriptions of certain
practices fit to be invoked as precedents to
support some rule, numerous precepts which
propound rules governing behavior.
• Good custom
• Inner contentment: we should prefer to say the
approval of one’s conscience really is a source of
dharma.

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 Vedas : 1500-600B.C
Brammanas : 900-600 BC
Arayakas: 800-600 B.C
Upanishads : 800-500 BC
Vedangas : considered as auxiliary science required
for the interpretation of Vedas
Kalpa sutras
( Srauta Sutras, Griha Sutras , dharma sutras )

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Six Vedangas are
• Siksha : The science of proper pronunciation
• Chandas: Prosody
• ( rhythm and sound used in the poetry found in
the Vedas )
• Vyakarna: grammar
• Nitukta: Etymology definition of words
• ( history of words and changes in the word )
• Jyotisha : Astronomy
• Kalapa: Ritual ceremonies
• ( ethical, moral and procedural percepts of
performance of rituals) 21
 Vedas Brahmanas Arayakas
1500-600 BC 1000-600 BC 800-600 BC
Rig Veda Aitareya, Kaustikeya Their works on moral virtues
Based on Karma marga
Tandyamaha, Sadvimsa, ( way of work)
Sama Veda Jaiminiya
Taittiriya, Satapatha
Gopatha

Yajur Veda
Athava Veda

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Upanishads 800-500 BC
• Philosophical texts dealing with topics like
Universal Soul, the individual self, the origin of the
world and the mysteries of nature.

• They criticized rituals and lay stress on value of

right belief and knowledge.

• The Upanishads mark the culmination of Indian

thought on the Vedic period literature.

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• The Vedangas are written in the form of sutras and
the Vedangas helps us in the study of the Vedic
literature.
• Kalpa Sutras are again divided into three classes.
• Griha sutras: deals with domestic ceremonies and
sacrifices to be performed by the householder.
• Srauta Sutras: rituals of the sacrifices.
• Dharma Sutras: deals with laws, manners and
customs of people in general. It constitutes the
foundation of the Dharma sutras.

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 Dharma Sutras
Gautama : 600-400 B.C
Baudhayana 600-300 B.C
Apastamba : 600-300 B.C
Vishnu: 500-400 B.C
Vasistha : 300-100 B.C
Harita : 300-400 A.D

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 Dharma-sutras
• Manuals of human conduct

• They consist chiefly of sutras of brief rules

containing the essentials of law concerning

• Relationship between people and the state.

• Practical rules of caste 
• Social, economic, and religious relations.
Apastamba Dharma Sutra: 600-300 B.C
• This Dharmasutra is well organized and is divided
into two books.
• Book one
• Social class: the student
• Initiation, teacher, time of initiation, failure to be
initiated, residency, student code of conduct, food,
worship of fire, conduct towards teacher and the
bath at the end of studentship
A student who has returned to home
Conducted towards the teacher, duties of teacher,
food, unfit food, people from whom food may be
accepted.
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• The second book is devoted to the householder
tradition like
• the duties of a householder, marriage, Marriage of
second wife, rites, penances for contact with
outcastes, food, food offerings, distribution of
food and treatment of guests, lawfull occupations
( rules and preference),
• inheritance, funeral offering, Ancestral offerings,
daily ancestral offerings the four orders called
asharamas

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Regarding king
Duties, protection of his subjects, appointment of
security officers, collection of taxes, rape,
adultery, crimes and punishments, Judicial process
and examination of witness.

• He specially mentions that the opinion of

experienced men and women irrespective of the
caste to which they belonged must be respected, in
deciding legal questions.

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Regarding king
If a Sudra hurls abusive words at a virtuous Aryas,
his tongue shall be cut out.
If Sudra kills a man, steals, or appropriates land, he
should be executed and his property confiscated.
If a Brahmin is guilty of these crimes, however, he
should be blindfolded. Alternatively, those who
transgress their specific duties should be kept in
secret confinement until they relent. If they do
not relent, they should be banished.
If the king fails to inflict punishment when it is
called for, the sin recoils upon.
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Husband and wife have joint control over their
property. With their consent and for their benefit,
others also may tend to it.
Men who learned, of good family, elderly, wise and
unwavering in heir duties shall adjudicate lawsuits,
in doubtful cases investigating the matter by
examining the evidence and using ordeals.
Witness: in the morning of an auspicious day and in
the presence of blazing fire, water, and the king,
both sides should be asked to present their case
and , with everyone’s approval.
The chief witness should answer the questions
truthfully.
Should he answer untruthfully, the king should punish
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him and in addition hell awaits him after death
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• He specially mentions that the opinion of
experienced men and women irrespective of the
caste to which they belonged must be respected, in
deciding legal questions.

• He also criticized adoption and observed that it

amounted to the selling of one’s lawful issue.

• He condemned earlier writer’s misinterpretation of

Vedas

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