I *Dharma and religion are often used to refer to the same things, but they have rather different meanings and implications in their usage*. The term "dharma" comes from the Sanskrit language, signifying a much broader philosophical scope than what is considered "religion" traditionally in Western contexts. One needs to understand the differences between these terms to understand the specific nuances of Eastern spiritual traditions and philosophy.
Sanatana Dharma is a way of life and universal principles; religion is a
belief system, usually with practices on the other hand. The term religion
comes from both Old French and Anglo-Norman (1200s CE) and means respect
for sense of right, moral obligation, sanctity, what is sacred, reverence
for the gods. It is ultimately derived from the Latin word religiō.
According to Roman philosopher Cicero, religiō comes from relegere: re
(meaning 'again') + lego (meaning 'read'), where lego is in the sense of
'go over', 'choose', or 'consider carefully'. Contrarily, some modern
scholars such as Tom Harpur and Joseph Campbell have argued that religiō is
derived from religare: re (meaning 'again') + ligare ('bind' or 'connect'),
which was made prominent by St. Augustine following the interpretation
given by Lactantius in Divinae institutiones, IV. Religion, however, is
concerned more with personal devotion, good conduct, etc.
Dharma goes beyond salvation, aiming at the betterment of society and the
cosmos. The Sanatana Dharma, on the other hand, is not overly concerned
with ideas and beliefs. Traditionally Sanatana Dharma signifies the dynamic
sum of ALL the knowledge of ALL the diverse traditions of, if you will,
since the beginning of time. It is not the subject of knowledge (or the
means by which it may be obtained – as in an ism), but the object of
knowledge. It is not something one man or woman can put their hands around,
or know or master in a lifetime. Even the word dharma is used today very
largely within the framework of the European post-enlightenment category of
religion, while, actually, traditional people think of dharma much in the
same way modern people think of science. VID IS KNOWLEDGE TO KNOW; Sanatana
dharma is a process of thought to lead a life of peace applicable
universally as today all believed in that way the modern science. VID IS
NOT FORCED BUT ONLY ADOPTIBLE ON THE WHOLE EARTH BY ANY SPECIE.
Dharma (धर्म).—[dhriyate loko'nena, dharati lokaṃ vā dhṛ-man; cf. Uṇ
1. 137] The Hitopadesa reduces the list to eight: ijyadhyayanadanani tapah
satyam dhrtih ksamal alobha iti margo 'yam dharmasyastavidhah smrtahii'
Sacrifice, study (of the scriptures), charity, penance, truth, fortitude,
forgiveness and absence of greed is the eightfold path of dharma. The
Bhagavatapurana reduces the number by one; it records seven characteristics
of dharma: ahimsa satyam asteyam akamakrodhalobhatal bhutapriyahiteha ca
dharmo' yam sarvavarnikahi Non-violence, truth, non-stealing, absence of
passion, anger and greed and the desire to do what is good or agreeable to
beings is dharma for all the castes. The figure of seven is reduced to five
from his list of ten by Manu. These five characteristics are "abstention
from injuring (creatures), truthfulness, abstention from unlawfully
appropriating (the goods of others), purity and control of the organs":
ahimsa satyam asteyam saucam indriyanigrahahi etam samasikam dharmam
caturvarnye 'bravin Manuhi9 Bringing down the number four from five he says
that the Veda, the sacred tradition, the customs of the virtuous men and
what is dear to one's own self constitute dharma: vedah smrtih sadacarah
svasya ca priyam atmanahi etac caturvidham prahuh saksad dharmasya
laksanami110 The Mahabharata picking up the common denominator of all these
declares only one to be the distinguishing feature of it which it describes
as its essence, dharmasarvasva which is that one should not do to others
that which one would not like to encounter oneself: atmanah pratikulani
paresam na samacaret. It also explains it as just anrsamsya11, compassion
which it calls the best of the virtues, paro dharmah or arjava,
straightforwardness, arjavam dharmam ity ahuh
Taittiriya Upanishad – Siksha Valli – 1-11-2 « »
देवपितृकार्याभ्यां न प्रमदितव्यम् । मातृदेवो भव ।
पितृदेवो भव । आचार्यदेवो भव । अतिथिदेवो भव ।
यान्यनवद्यानि कर्माणि । तानि सेवितव्यानि । नो इतराणि ।
यान्यस्माकꣳसुचरितानि । तानि त्वयोपास्यानि ।नो इतराणि ॥ २॥
devapitṛkāryābhyāṃ na pramaditavyam . mātṛdevo bhava .
pitṛdevo bhava . ācāryadevo bhava . atithidevo bhava .
yānyanavadyāni karmāṇi . tāni sevitavyāni . no itarāṇi .
yānyasmākagͫsucaritāni . tāni tvayopāsyāni . no itarāṇi.. 2..
Never swerve from your duties towards Gods and towards the departed souls
(Manes). May the mother be, to thee, a God. May the father be to thee a
God. May the Guru be to thee a God. May the guest be to thee a God. Let
only the actions that are free from blemishes be done – and not others. you
must follow only those virtuous actions which are irreproachable – and not
others.
The British added the ism to Hindu as a means of representing the
Hindu, homogenizing, standardizing, and reducing the Hindu to a defined set
of beliefs (the doctrine), defined scriptures (the text), and deity
(measured against a monotheistic standard). And thus, Hinduism, as defined
by the British and others (certainly with a great deal of Indian
indigenous, read Brahmin, input), could comfortably fit within the Euro
post-enlightenment categories, and on the Imperial grid of all things.
We know, on these pages, that the Hindu culture, or in these times, the
Indian culture, is probably the most intellectually robust culture ever.
What one would expect to find in such a culture is diversity, which is the
name of Indian culture today as it was thousands of years ago in the time
of the Rishis. The uniformity and obedience to the doctrine that the
monotheist religions demand have always been conspicuously absent from
Hindustan, as great thinking has always been marked by great debates and
commentaries, and oral tradition has avoided the rigid limitations and
authority of the printed text. Shastra, of course, does not refer to a
limited text, nor a printed text, even if a printed text may be included in
Shastra. Shastra and most, if not all, sacred texts and Hindu scripture in
the traditions of the Sanatana Dharma come from Oral Tradition.
Om purnamadah purnamidam
purnat purnam udachyate
purnasya purnamadaya
purnameva vashisyate
That is Whole – this is Whole
The Whole comes out of the Whole
If the Whole is subtracted from the Whole
Still the Whole remains… ISAVasya upa
THERE ARE NO BINDINGS ; LAWS AND RULES; BUT ROADS; YOU CAN TRAVEL;
GET AWAY; GET BACK; NO TAGS; FREEDOM; BUT WITHOUT THAT TRAVEL LIFE IS
REGENERATIONS WITH KARMA ONLY IS CERTAIN; YOU ARE ALWAYS SITTING ON THE
BRANCH OF A TREE AS A BIRD, WHERE NEXT TO YOU IS SITTING ANOTHER BIRD,
WATCHING YOU ENJOYING IN YOUR WAY; WHERE ONE REACHES THE NISHKAMYA KARMA
STATUS ALONE FULFILS THE PURPOSE OF LIFE OF SANATANA DHARMA. HENCE IT IS
NOT A RELIGION BUT ONLY A WAY OF LIFE APPLICABLE UNIVERSALLY WITHOUT ANY
PERFORCE.
Dharma is a Sanskrit word used to mean "to uphold" or "to support." Dharma
can be described as cosmic law, ethical duty, and universal principles
supporting life and order in the universe. The concept of dharma has
nothing to do with religious worship or personal salvation but represents
an ethical framework that governs individual, social, and natural
equilibrium. Dharma possesses all the characteristics found in living a
life where everything is aligned in conformation to universal truths of
nature, natural laws, and ethical duties and expectations. Dharma include:
Ethical Duty: The sense of duty to act in accordance with righteousness and
accountability in every walk of life.
Cosmic Order: A code of principles that maintains balance within the
natural world and societal framework.
Flexibility: Dharma is changeable according to one's role, age, and
situation (referred to as swadharma, or personal duty).
Generally, religion refers to the institutionalized set of belief, rituals,
practices, and moral principles that links humans to the divine or the
sacred. It often embraces the worship of a god or gods, sacred scriptures,
and formal teachings. Religion gives meaning to the way of seeing the world
and to moral activity, and to a possible road to fulfillment or salvation
in the realm of the person's spirituality. The significant world religions,
especially Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, usually have rites, holy
sites, and other communal modes of worship where one can seek personal
holiness, sociality, and living virtuously. Religion include:
Belief System: the set of beliefs or dogmas relating to divinity, the
universe, and anything else within one's worldview.
Rituals and Worship: Rituals with organized practices that depict a sense
of gratitude to the holy.
Community: The religion tends to bond different peoples together, resulting
in a common culture, values, and even identity.
Dharma and religion are terms that seem pretty similar but, in essence, are
not. Religion concentrates on structured beliefs, the worship of the
divine, and a relationship with god, whereas dharma means more of a broad,
ethical duty to maintain a cosmic order and live rightfully. This knowledge
about the contrast allows for more depth of Eastern philosophies and the
multifaceted ways that one can approach spirituality and morality.
Manu smrithi: Verse 2.1 [Dharma defined]
विद्वद्भिः सेवितः सद्भिर्नित्यमद्वेषरागिभिः ।
हृदयेनाभ्यनुज्ञातो यो धर्मस्तं निबोधत ॥ १ ॥
vidvadbhiḥ sevitaḥ sadbhirnityamadveṣarāgibhiḥ |
hṛdayenābhyanujñāto yo dharmastaṃ nibodhata || 1 ||
Learn that Dharma, which has been ever followed by, and sanctioned by the
heart of, the learned and the good, who are free from love and hate.—(1)
The word "dharma" is derived from the Sanskrit root "dhri," which
means "to hold," "to sustain," or "to nourish". This root implies that
dharma is that which upholds, sustains, and maintains the natural and moral
order of the universe.
SO NEVER ADDRESS KNOWINGLY EXCEPT TO CALL BY SOME NAME AS HINDU OR
HINDUISM UNLIKE OTHER ALL RELIGIONS, THE SANATANA DHARMA AS WHERE EVER YOU
ARE BORN, BY BIRTH YOU BELONG TO SANATANA DHARMA; WHETHER YOU WANT PARA
DHARMA AND DO NOT ADHERE TO SWADHARMA OR THE OPPOSITE ARE PURE
CONSIDERATIONS OF SELF WROUGHT BY TRI-GUNAS AND KARMA.
K RAJARAM IRS 121125
II why Hindus are so quiet? KR attached word doc
On Tue, 11 Nov 2025 at 17:41, N Sekar <[email protected]> wrote:
> Thanks.
>
> The best, biggest and the worst quality of Hinduism is the freedom it
> gives its followers.
> That freedom is misused by many as the garland given to a monkey is.
>
> I wonder whether any other religion will tolerate the kind of nonsense
> that our religion is subjected to, by its own followers, leave alone others.
>
> We in Tamil Nadu have to see EVR's statues in front of temples with the
> inscription
>
> Those who believe in God are fools
> Those who spread Bhakti are fools etc.
>
> But these people ( and the ruling party is a partner) dare not put up such
> posters in front of other places of worship. Reason, Hindus have infinite
> patience and will tolerate any abuse and nonsense. We are tooooooooo meek,
> self centered and toooooooooo thick skinned.
>
> We saw an example of that recently when the CJI passed that remark. Would
> he have dared to say that to a Muslim or a Christian?
>
> Problem is we all have become cowards, following misguided Ahimsa, if not
> totally selfish. That's why the genocide of the Kashmiri Pandits did not
> elicit any reaction - try doing even a fraction of those atrocities on
> others and the whole country would have been engulfed in flames.
>
> We are not Hindus Sir, each one of us is a Hindu, that's all - we refuse
> to have a collective identity. Each one on his own, for himself only.
> Otherwise how do you explain millions of Hindus voting for the INDI
> Alliance, knowing fully well their hatred for Hinduism and Bharat?
>
> We forgot Krishna asked Arjuna to fight to uphold Dharma.
> Not for nothing our Gods hold arms.
>
> N Sekar
>
>
>
>
> Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
> <https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&c=US_Acquisition_YMktg_315_SearchOrgConquer_EmailSignature&af_sub1=Acquisition&af_sub2=US_YMktg&af_sub3=&af_sub4=100002039&af_sub5=C01_Email_Static_&af_ios_store_cpp=0c38e4b0-a27e-40f9-a211-f4e2de32ab91&af_android_url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.yahoo.mobile.client.android.mail&listing=search_organize_conquer>
>
> On Tue, Nov 11, 2025 at 3:46 PM, Suryanarayana Ambadipudi
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ---------
> From: *SN Ambadipudi* <[email protected]>
> Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2025 at 5:12 PM
> Subject: Fwd: Being a Hindu has manifold meanings.
>
> To: Ravindra Kumar Bhuwalka <[email protected]>
>
>
> The benefits of being a Hindu include
> the freedom of thought, a focus on self-discovery and responsibility
> through concepts like karma, and a diverse spiritual framework that offers
> multiple paths to self-realization. Key aspects include a deep connection
> to nature, a philosophy that integrates with rational thought, and a focus
> on living a virtuous life guided by principles like *Dharma
> <https://www.google.com/search?q=Dharma&rlz=1CDGOYI_enIN934IN935&oq=advantahes+of+bring+a+hindu&hl=en-GB&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8&mstk=AUtExfCQtG6AoRBDhX81QZI2qvOEQid-M9fKigx6Z8yopBVT_q-RjCx892vXCmDY-HEVv1sf2W5gOWUgb0TeAZ0LdDbpg_J8y6dC_9FVBMfBD0yewyBVxI3IVhm9wn1SdjR5B40cKlkN2g4PUcYzu_8rGb1G-4H7SNxKNxIbY8Sm6HYIQ_AFELOsPdQr38UNzQNG3PicBaUO9uhzxc1vmg6vjXV09SL0tHefxYziET79sDUqmEsStuMPRS15MZugX5TnIfio25K5y_BFte3jkDbWgdrN&csui=3&ved=2ahUKEwjwjObQgOqQAxXG4jgGHQE6E-4QgK4QegQIARAC>*
> .
>
>
> *A.SURYANARAYANA*
> *Hope is a rope that swings you through life*
>
>
> On Tue, 11 Nov 2025 at 4:20 PM, Ravindra Kumar Bhuwalka <
> [email protected]> wrote:
>
>
>
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WHY HINDUS ARE QUIET.docx
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