The 10 Principles of Dharma
Dharma pertains to righteous conduct in society by a person which transcends any particular religious or spiritual system. It gives a personal road-map by which all activity should be regulated for all peoples in all societies from all times at all times.
1. Dharma is Unchanging.
The key characteristic of Dharma is that it does not change based on whims, fads or trends, but is timeless and eternal. The values of Dharma do not change as society changes. Rather it is Dharma which governs HOW societies should function at all times.
2. Dharma is Natural
Dharma is not an artificial imposition on the mind but rather the essence of man. Only by acting in a dharmic manner will man truly be at peace with himself. It is un-dharmic conduct which is imposed on us due to the dictates of our senses, mind and pressures of society.
3. Dharma is Service
Dharma is to always be performing service, whether it to be to one’s spouse, children, employer, work colleagues, customers and God. All action must be performed with a view to giving and not expecting: “All that which is not given is lost”
4. Dharma is Truth
That which is not founded on truthfulness can never stand, though it may appear to temporarily yield benefit. Accuracy, fidelity to the facts, honesty in speech and dealings, and above all the promotion of that which is right over wrong, even though it maybe unpalatable and unconventional in society must always be adhered to:
“The greatest sin of the mind is to believe something without evidence” – Thomas Huxley
5. Dharma is Responsibility
In all dealings the need to execute our duty, whether it be as a father, husband, employee or devotee, must take precedence over all other desires, whims, wants, needs and pursuit of personal gratification.
6. Dharma is Devotion
Action must not be performed grudgingly, for expectation of reward, or for one’s own sense of satisfaction. It must always be performed in a spirit of devotion, where the mere execution of the activity is the reward in itself.
7. Dharma is Gravity
Dharma is to never be frivolous and to take every second as being of supreme importance and precious for in this way we will value this life that God has given us and not waste it. Man is said to be a social animal but he must not fritter away his life like the animals for he has been endowed with the capacity for higher moral thinking. Such high thinking must always regulate our thought processes and transcend the urge to always reduce the way we see things via our basest instincts.
8. Dharma is Uninterrupted
The performance of Dharma is never impacted by considerations external to the activity being performed, but it always executed without hesitation and hindrance until it is completed.
9. Dharma is self-actualization
Man must always strive to rise to the highest level of his consciousness and come in touch with his real-self which is beyond the body and mind which are continually changing throughout one’s life. He must be at ease with his real identity as a spiritual and moral being, whose is more than simply a product of body chemistry and the society in which he was brought up. In this way all of mankind is united beyond the apparent differences which may exist due to the community and society in which one is born. This realization is real unity in diversity.
10. Dharma is Personal
Ultimately Dharma is always recognizing and acting on the basis that we and the people with whom we interact with are all unique, individual personalities who are all special in their own way. Though we are united spiritually, we are also different personalities in our own right. Recognizing this about ourselves and each other will ensure that each interaction will be supremely personal, touching, joyful and always emanating from the spontaneous recesses of the heart and not the calculations and manipulations of our mind.