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Hinduism: The Sanâtana Dharma

 

Hinduism, a religious tradition of Indian origin, comprising the

beliefs and practices of Hindus. The word Hindu is derived from the

river Sindhu, or Indus. Hindu was primarily a geographical term that

referred to India or to a region of India (near the Sindhu) as long

ago as the 6th century bc. The word Hinduism is an English word of

more recent origin. Hinduism entered the English language in the

early 19th century to describe the beliefs and practices of those

residents of India who had not converted to Islam or Christianity and

did not practice Judaism or Zoroastrianism.

 

In the case of most religions, beliefs and practices come first, and

those who to them are acknowledged as followers. In the

case of the Hindu tradition, however, the acknowledgment of Hindus

came first, and their beliefs and practices constitute the contents

of the religion.

 

Hindus themselves prefer to use the Sanskrit term sanâtana dharma

for their religious tradition. Sanâtana dharma is often translated

into English as " eternal tradition " or " eternal

religion " but the translation of dharma as " tradition " or

" religion " gives an extremely limited, even mistaken, sense

of the word. Dharma has many meanings in Sanskrit, the sacred

language of Hindu scripture, including " moral order, "

" duty, " and " right action. "

 

The Hindu tradition encourages Hindus to seek spiritual and moral

truth wherever it might be found, while acknowledging that no creed

can contain such truth in its fullness and that each individual must

realize this truth through his or her own systematic effort. Our

experience, our reason, and our dialogue with others—especially

with enlightened individuals—provide various means of testing our

understanding of spiritual and moral truth. And Hindu scripture,

based on the insights of Hindu sages and seers, serves primarily as a

guidebook. But ultimately truth comes to us through direct

consciousness of the divine or the ultimate reality. In other

religions this ultimate reality is known as God. Hindus refer to it

by many names, but the most common name is Brahman. . . .

 

Dharma is an all-important concept for Hindus. In addition to

tradition and moral order, it also signifies the path of knowledge

and correct action. Because of Hinduism's emphasis on living in

accordance with dharma, anyone who is striving for spiritual

knowledge and seeking the right course of ethical action is, in the

broadest sense, a follower of sanâtana dharma. . . .

 

Evidence from inscriptions indicates that Hindus had begun to use the

word dharma for their religion by the 7th century. After other

religions of Indian origin also began to use this term, Hindus then

adopted the expression sanâtana dharma to distinguish their dharma

from others. The word sanâtana, meaning immemorial as well as

eternal, emphasized the unbroken continuity of the Hindu tradition in

contrast to the other dharmas. The Buddhist, Jaina, and Sikh dharmas

possess distinct starting points, whereas Hinduism has no historical

founder.

 

The Hindu tradition might be said to begin in the 4th century bc when

the growth and separation of Buddhism and Jainism provided it with a

distinctive sense of identity as sanâtana dharma. Some scholars

prefer to date its beginnings to about 1500 bc, the period when its

earliest sacred texts originated, although recent evidence suggests

these texts may be even older. Certain beliefs and practices that can

clearly be identified as Hindu—such as the worship of sacred

trees and the mother goddess—go back to a culture known as

Harappan, which flourished around 3000 bc. Other Hindu practices are

even older. For example, belief in the religious significance of the

new and full moon can be traced to the distant proto-Australoid

period, before 3000 bc. It is with good reason that Hinduism

perceives itself as sanâtana dharma or a cumulative tradition. Its

origins are shrouded in the mist of antiquity, and it has continued

without a break. . . .

 

The Hindu tradition aims at comprehensiveness so far as religious

beliefs and practices are concerned. First, it wishes to make the

riches of Hinduism available to the Hindu and to any genuine seeker

of truth and knowledge. But it does not limit Hindus to their

tradition. Instead, it encourages them to explore all avenues that

would lead to a realization of the divine, and it provides a system

with many paths for such realization.

 

Second, in the manner of science, Hinduism is constantly

experimenting with and assimilating new ideas. Also like science, it

is far less concerned with the origin or history of ideas than with

their truth as demonstrated through direct experience. Hinduism's

openness to new ideas, teachers, and practices, and its desire for

universality rather than exclusivity, set it apart from religions

that distinguish their followers by their belief in particular

historical events, people, or revelations.

 

Hinduism: The Sanâtana Dharma

Arvind Sharma, M.A., M.T.S., Ph.D., Birks Professor of Comparative

Religion, McGill University; author of Classical Hindu Thought: An

Introduction, Hinduism for Our Times, and other works.