Sanatana Dharma: Powerful Hindus Use The Devanagari Term Santana Dharma

Sanatana Dharma

Sanatana Dharma, Hindus use the Devanagari term Santana Dharma, which means “eternal dharma” or “eternal order” and is an endonym for Hinduism. Specifically, it alludes to Hinduism’s “eternal” truth and teachings. Alternatively, it can be translated as “the eternal and natural way to live.”. Alongside the more popular Hindu Dharma term for Hinduism, the phrase is used in Indian languages. Another name for Sanatana Dharma is the list of “eternal” or unalterable obligations and practices. Sanatani is the general term used for Santana Dharma adherents.

Etymology, Santana Dharma

The term Santana Dharma roughly translates to “eternal law” or, less literally, “eternal way” in Sanskrit. “Dhammo Santano (), which is Pali for this phrase, is equivalent. The Hindi word “religion” () is derived from the Sanskrit word “tatsama dharm,” which roughly translates to “eternal truth.”.

The word “dharma,” which is frequently translated as “duty,” “religion,” or “religious duty,” actually has a deeper meaning. The term is derived from the Sanskrit root “dhri,” which is defined as “to sustain” or “that which is integral to something” (e. G. It is the dharma of fire to be hot and sweet for sugar. The two corresponding types of a person’s dharma are the obligations that support them in accordance with their innate, material and spiritual characteristics.

Sanatana-dharma is the term for the duties that are performed in accordance with one’s spiritual (constitutional) identity as atman (Self) and are therefore universal. General obligations include virtues like integrity, not harming living things, goodwill, mercy, patience, forbearance, self-control, generosity, and asceticism.

Varishamdharma (a. K. A. Svadharma) – obligations carried out in accordance with one’s material (conditional) nature and unique to the person at that specific moment. When in conflict with Sanatana-dharma, one’s “own duty,” as determined by their class, varna, and stage of life, should prevail (e. G. According to the Bhagavad Gita, a warrior inflicting harm on others.
The idea of sanatana-dharma holds that seva (service) is the living entity’s (atman’s) eternal and intrinsic inclination. The term “Sanatana-dharma” refers to axiomatic laws that are beyond our ephemeral belief systems and are universal in nature because it is transcendental.

History

The Manusmrti (4-138) and the Bhagavata Purana are two examples of classical Sanskrit literature that use the phrase “dharma santana.”.

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The term was revived in the late 19th century during the Hindu revivalism movement as a name for Hinduism as a religion in order to avoid using the term “Hindu,” which is of non-native Persian origin.

Only Hinduism is associated with Sanatana Dharma in modern times. The term “sanatana dharma” is now used to denote a more “traditional” or “eternalist” outlook as opposed to the socio-political Hinduism embraced by groups like the Arya Samaj. Sanatan Dharma cannot be rigid; it must be inclusive without excluding the best and most complete knowledge to guide the karmic process, especially given that Sanatan has no beginning and no end. This is a stark contrast to the Lahore Sanatana Dharma Sabha’s efforts to protect Hindu tradition against the onslaught of reform.

Competition with other denominations

For more than a century, Sanatanis and reformists (such as the Arya Samaj, the Radha Soamis, and the Ramakrishna Mission) have fought for followers, occasionally causing significant rifts in Hindu society, as in the case of South African Hindus who were divided between the Arya Samaj and Sanatanis. Although initially the reformist groups were more well-organized, by the 1860s, a process of internal counter-reform was under way in Sanatani groups as well.

As a result, organizations to spread orthodox beliefs in a modern manner emerged, such as the Sanatan Dharm Rakshini Sabha in 1873. According to some theologians, the Catholic-Protestant split in Christianity is analogous to the Sanatani-Samaji dichotomy within Hinduism.

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