THIS little book aims to offer a gentle introduction to the philosophical basis for Sanatana-dharma, the ancient Indian way of life. We hope that these fundamental ideas will prove useful to those who seek to elevate their overall quality of life.
Sanatana-dharma is a way of life aligned to nature and so it can be independently realized by a sensitive, sane person hailing from any part of the world at any time. It is rooted in the best practices of the past but is always open to new ideas-it shows us that the sky is the limit for the human mind. It offers freedom in daily life by accommodating all possible positive human pursuits within its ambit. It empowers individuals with unbridled courage (to face all odds) and unconditional compassion (to embrace the animate and the inanimate) eventually leading us to Bliss.
Throughout this book, we use 'Sanatana-dharma' and 'Hinduism' interchangeably. Hinduism is the way of life of the Hindus. And the quality of Hindu-ness is termed 'Hindutva. However, the word 'hindu' is not found in our early foundational works-it is the Persianization of the Sanskrit word 'sindhu,' which means 'river' in general and River Sindhu (Indus) in particular. India was renowned as a land of many rivers and seven of them were notably important-hence the name 'Sapta-sindhu. Those who lived in this land were hailed as 'Hindus' by the Persians (the 's' became 'h'); the Greeks further transformed it to 'Indus' (by dropping the 'h'), which eventually became 'India.' As is widely known, the original name given to this land is 'Bharata, after the famous king Bharata.
This book is entirely based on the primary sources of Sanatana-dharma, the foremost of which are the Vedas. We have tried to keep this book non-sectarian by using the ultimate framework that can explain and accommodate all sectarian variations. Relevant references have been given in the end-notes (pp. 138-63) to the extent possible. Certain deliberations that might have become digressive in the main text are also included in the end-notes.
Appendix 1 gives an overview of the foundational texts of Hinduism - Veda, Upaveda, Vedānga, Itihāsa, Purāņa, and Darśana. Appendix 2 contains a glossary of technical terms with references to the pages on which they are explained. Appendix 3 includes curated booklists for further reading.
Before we embark on the study of any subject or enter into a discussion on any topic, it will be valuable to establish the four elements* of-
1. One who is qualified to take up the study (adhikarī),
2. Subject matter (visaya)
3. Relationship (sambandha) between the qualified one and the subject matter, and
4. Purpose or benefit of the study (prayojana).
Vedas (1213)
Upanishads (507)
Puranas (633)
Ramayana (758)
Mahabharata (371)
Dharmasastras (167)
Goddess (516)
Bhakti (251)
Saints (1547)
Gods (1307)
Shiva (389)
Journal (181)
Fiction (62)
Vedanta (381)
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