Moral life- 1

 

No Ten Commandments or compulsions

 

For Hindus, there were no ten commandments and no religious compulsion for hundreds of years.

The touch stone of moral life of Hindus was Karma (actions), the only criteria of fruits, if one does good actions, he get good results or vice verse. The theory of karma is the only matrix for morals in Hindus. These karmas are very much and clearly defined in Surtis and also in Upnisads. The man reaps what he sown.

 

This concept influenced so much that even other religions residing on this land accepted that actions should reap fruits. And these codes of action was prepared according to the concept of right knowledge which philosophies advanced ahead to clear the reality. Katha Upnisad, chapter II-5 illustrated says,

 “Those who are wrapped up in imperfect knowledge, fancy themselves alone wise and learned, they wandered about floundering and deceived, like the blind led by a man who is himself blind.”

 The basic aim of philosophy in leading a life in accordance to the true knowledge was to lead a better society. The code of conduct was prepared on right knowledge and there were schools that provide codes for societies.

 In the History of India pg 17 states, “The Arthshastra of Kauttalya contains a lot of information which shows the prevailing system of ancient

India, it not only gives the detailed information regarding the system of administration but also give an idea of the social and religious life of the people. Patangali’s Mahabhasya and Panani’s Ashhtadhvayi are worked on Sanskrit Grammar.”

The theme of these laws were every man has a right and to monitor that they perform their duties before hand and knows their penalties transgressing them. The system was made according to the duties and right corresponding to the principle of karma- good actions leads to good results.

Scholars portrayed clear picture of Hindu society at the time it was initiated and they asserted that there was a high moral life with joyful and peaceful society. There was no rush for getting the bliss in temples or appeasing gods for blessing. The religion was not a soothing remedy for peace seeker and the society was not inclined towards the preacher of morality.

 “The Rig-Vedic people believed that gods and goddess behaved like human beings. They ate and drank and had feelings and emotions like the ordinary human beings” Ancient India page 94. And Keith added.

“The objects of the devotion of the priests were the great phenomena of nature, conceived as alive and usually represented in anthropomorphic shape.” In later Vedic age, Mahajan advanced.

 “Purity of speech was considered to be a sign of culture and great attention was devoted to its cultivation.”

But change of such life was witnessed in Epic age and

Mahajan further added, “Important changes took place in the religious field in the time of epics. The Vedic gods were suppressed by Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, Indra, Surya and Varuna were relegated to the background. God and goddesses like Ganesh and Parvati became popular. Avtara or the doctrine of various incarnations of Vishnu became popular. Rama and Krishna came to be worshipped as the incarnations of Vishnu.”

 The religion remained important for the Hindu race since Vedic period and there were different forms of offerings and devotion but moral life was different than to religion and even in the Guptas and Mauryas age the system of religion and even the forms of gods changed. Even when the form of religion was changing in the ancient India, the morality was based on the reasoning and when there were high morals witnessed in the society the graph of development also went up in form of literature, art and culture.

 The basic morals which the Upnisads and Vedas taught to the civilizations in ethical form were differ from the religion. There was no necessity of commandants embodied with the religion to bring civilized formation of societies. In Hindus it was called Sanskars which inheritance to the next generation. The family setup was so fabricated that children learn the morals within family. The word ‘Dharma’ was used in the Vedic age also and later in the age of Dharma shastra and even at the age of Shrutis and also during Epic reigns.

  “Dharma is a command or injunction which impels men to action,” Jaimini in Mimanas Sutra.

 The Mimansa took it as the supreme duty in which ordinarily common morality is dealt by that. This stream, which played greater part in establishing the system of society in Hindus states that Dharma (right doing) and Adharma (wrong doing) deal with happiness and pain to be enjoyed or to be suffered in the life and beyond life too.

 Mimainsa divided the actions into three parts in which the first is obligatory which has to be perform and not doing such action leads to sin but performance do not give any merits. An action life serving parents, supporting family, earning for family are such actions which man has to perform. Another one is optional in which their performance leads to merit but their non-performance do not lead to any sin. These actions are life helping neighbours and respecting old people, performing daily prayers. The third action is prohibited in which performing such actions leads to sins and non-performance do not give any merit, like robbing, lying, cheating.

 This school of philosophy so much regards the action that they maintained that karma is the cause of bondage and therefore to get liberated one has to perform actions according to the dharma, i.e. means prescribed actions.

“These actions should be performed in an absolute detached manner without any consideration of reward, simply because they came from the Vedas” Kumarila in Shloka Vartika.