Dharma is its concern for
the well being of humanity as a whole. This
concern stems from the consciousness that all
are children of one mother.
The word Dharma is derived
from the root, Dhr, meaning ‘wear;’
Dharma is that which is worn.
Dharmaraja said ‘Whoever
protects Dharma will in turn be protected by
Dharma.’ So, I bless you. Victory shall
be yours because of your observing dharmic rules
in so meticulous a manner.
Dharma is the foundation
for the welfare of humanity; it is the truth
that is stable for all time.
The man who does not follow
Dharma is a burden on the earth. All the wealth
he may accumulate will not accompany him when
he leaves the world. It is more important to
earn the grace of God than earn all the wealth
in the world. Develop the love of God and realise
the bliss that is beyond all worlds.
Some
rules of Dharma have been laid down for ensuring
that the wealth that is earned from society
is devoted to the benefit of society. In the
process of acquiring wealth one may be guilty
of some lapses. It is to make amends for such
lapses that one must practice charity.
In all worldly activities,
you should be careful not to wound propriety,
or the canons of good nature; you should not
play false to the promptings of the Inner Voice.
You should be prepared at all times to respect
the appropriate dictates of conscience; you
should watch your steps to see whether you are
in someone else’s way; you must be ever
vigilant to discover the Truth behind all this
scintillating variety. That is the entire Duty
of Man, your Dharma.
The ideal of Dharma should
inspire students to participate in social service
activities. They should become the harbingers
of the renaissance of Dharma in the modern world.
There is not one Dharma
for Indians and another for westerners. Dharma
is universal. Yes. There is a test that may
be applied to any action and you may thereby
determine if it is according to Dharma. Let
not that which you do, harm or injure another.
This flows from the recognition that the light,
which is God, is the same in every form and
if you injure another you are injuring that
same light that is yourself.
Five types of Dharma (duties)
have been laid down for man. One is ‘Kula
Dharma (duties relating to his occupational
group). The second is ‘Desa Dharma’
(duty to the nation). The third is ‘Matha
Dharma’ (duty pertaining to his religion).
The fourth is ‘Gana Dharma’ (duties
relating to society). The fifth is ‘Aapad
Dharma’ (the duty when he faces danger).
All these five types of duties are related to
one’s life in the phenomenal world and
are not concerned with the Supreme Reality.
All these duties have penalties for their violation.
Without these penalties organised life is impossible.
Dharmaprotects those who
protect Dharma. The true place of Dharma is
the heart and what emanates from the heart as
a pure idea when translated into action is Dharma.
The task of every one is
to do the Duty that has come upon him, with
a full sense of responsibility to the utmost
of his capacity. There should be complete coordination
between what one feels, says and does. Work
is the best form of worship.
Revere duty as God. Then
egoism will disappear and the sense of the unity
of all life in the Divine will be evident, as
never before.
Engage yourselves in your
duties as intelligently and as devotedly as
you can; but carry out your duties as if they
are acts of worship offered to God, leaving
the fruit of those acts to His will, His Compassion.
Do not be affected when the results you anticipate
are not produced; do anticipate at all, but
leave it to Him. He gave you the time, the space,
the cause, the material, the idea, the skill,
the chance, the fortune, and you did but little
of your own. So, why should you feel as if you
are the doer? Do your duty as a sincere Sadhana.
You can win the Grace of
the Lord only by Dharma. Dharma induces the
spirit of self-surrender and develops it.
Keep to your own Dharma
and the code of rules that regulate life or
the stage you have reached.
Devotion must be tested
in the crucible of discipline. It must be directed
along the lines of duty.
Whatever you do you must
regard it as a duty done without any motive
of self-interest or selfish gain. It is only
when all actions-whether they be Yajnas or Tapas
or any kind of sadhana-are done as offerings
to the Divine, will they become sanctified and
liberating. Through desire-filled actions we
take birth, through desireless actions (anaasakti
Karmas) we can attain freedom from re-birth.
Time lost is life lost.
Doing one’s duty, however small, in an
unattached manner gradually awakens the self-awareness
within.
Just do the work. Not for
your employers, but for God.
Every one must become a
worker, a hard worker, a sincere worker, and
an enthusiastic worker – Karma jeevi, a
Karma Yogi.
All your perplexity has
arisen from the delusion that you are the doer,
from your ego and the sense of "mine".
Know the Brahman; take up all tasks but renounce
the consequences giving up the fruit of activity
itself. Karmayoga is far superior to karmasanyasa.
