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A lot is spoken about karma and its effects; not much thought is given to its closely related rhyming concept dharma or the right path. Dhar literally means to hold.
Dharma means the duty and responsibility to uphold and sustain the natural order of the universe.
While karma is the result an act thought or deed that is good or bad, the latter is a moral direction that we follow to reap our karma.
Dharma is a combination of moral law and spiritual discipline that includes religious practices and righteousness while karma is the law of cause and effect where every action has a consequence.
Both are propagated concepts in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism with distinct meanings. Hinduism teaches that good deeds that uphold one’s dharma results in better karma. The awareness of dharma helps in a better understanding of karma and its nuances.
During the Mahabharata war Arjun’s prime duty as a warrior was to fight against his enemies who coincidentally and unfortunately happened to be his family. Seeing his dharam sankat or conflict of whether his duty or dharma will equate to bad karma, Lord Krishna eased his dilemma by convincing him to follow his dharma as a true Kshatriya and put up a brave fight.
There are many situations in life that cause turmoil in our minds regarding our choice of paths. The Bhagavad Gita preaches that we should perform our duties as per our situation and morality.
Arjun was no ordinary citizen but a warrior in public service. His priority and chosen path was the defence and protection of citizens. We all play various, multiple roles in life in the capacity of family, profession, citizenship and so on. We need to act according to the law – written or unwritten, and qualities that define each role,
In the Mahabharata – incidentally a dharma yuddha or a battle fought to establish right over wrong,-- it is said: Yato dharmasto jaya, meanng where there is dharma there will be victory; and Dharma rakshati rakshit i.e. Dharma protects those who protect dharma. Krishna himself has claimed, “Yato abyudaya nishrasa siddhi sa dharma”, which means – Ultimate good and prosperity is attracted by dharma alone. Dharma encompasses every aspect of our life, teaching us the right way of leading it truthfully.