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			'''Dharmic tradition''' refers to any ], philosophy, '']'', lineage, religion, ethos, coterie or ] that has a conception, notion and/or doctrine of the ] of '']''.<ref>]. From the River of Heaven: Hindu and Vedic Knowledge for the Modern Age. Pg 27. Berkeley, California: Book Passage Press, 1990. ISBN 1878423010.</ref><ref>] "Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism share with Hinduism the concept of dharma along with other key concepts, and the four religions may be said to belong to the dharmic tradition."</ref><ref>Westerlund, David ''Questioning the Secular State: The Worldwide Resurgence of Religion in Politics'' page 16 "A basic distinction in terms of theology or religions may provide some possibilities for co-operation with Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists, who like Hindus are regarded as adherents of ‘dharmic' religions."</ref> Dharmic Tradition does not equate to Dharmic Religion. "Dharma", '''''is''''' the cogent substratum and commonality of manifold traditions and hence, is the favoured auspice; not the provincial<ref>Evoked in the locational sense.</ref> "India" -- as not all Dharmic Traditions originated in India, e.g. ]. Therefore, Dharmic Traditions as an inclusive and unifying ] is increasingly favoured in scholarly discourse and common currency.
	'''Dharmic tradition''' ('''Dharmic religion''') refers to any religion, religious philosophy, or tradition that has a notion of '']'':

	*]
			] ventures a definition of dharmic tradition making reference to ], ], ], ], ]:
	** ]
			<blockquote>
	** ]
			All dharmic traditions recognize certain fundamental laws or dharmas. These include the law of karma, the process of rebirth, and the need to gain release from the ego that keeps us bound to it. They also recognize certain methods of yoga, mantra and meditation to reach this end, which can be called dharma practices.<ref>Shastri, Vamadeva (2003). ''Dharma, the Need of the Hour and of all Time.'' Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007) </ref>
	** ]
			</blockquote>
	** ]

			] qualifies the unifying notions of Dharma within the dharmic traditions, such as ], ], ], ]:
			<blockquote>
			The dharmic traditions of India share the core values of Dharma. These involve ethical principles like ahimsa, truthfulness, compassion and renunciation. They require a respect for all life as sacred and a recognition of a single consciousness as pervading the entire universe.<ref>Shastri, Vamadeva (2003). ''Dharma, the Need of the Hour and of all Time.'' Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007) </ref>
			</blockquote>

			] outlines that within the dharmic traditions, dharma is an "inclusive" principle of "]" and "]" not an "exclusive" or separatist principle:
			<blockquote>
			The dharmic traditions of India emphasize dharma first and on that basis allow for a diversity of religious beliefs and philosophies to develop. Dharma, therefore, is not an exclusive belief principle, but an inclusive attitude based upon honoring the unity and interdependence of all existence. For example, Buddhists, Jains and Hindus may disagree philosophically on the description of ultimate reality, not only with each other but among themselves, but that does not require abandoning dharma. In fact for them, the supreme Dharma is beyond words and beliefs anyway. Philosophical views and religious beliefs are only tools to develop dharma and if they take us away from dharma, they should be either modified or discarded.<ref>Shastri, Vamadeva (2003). ''Dharma, the Need of the Hour and of all Time.'' Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007) </ref>
			</blockquote>

			] in discussing spiritual traditions of the world, employed "dharmic tradition" as a frame for discussion of the ]:
			<blockquote>
			From the dharmic tradition, it adopts a life-affirming ethos and the need of ''dharma'' for the maintenance of society. <ref>Jones, Richard H.(2004). ''Mysticism and Morality: A New Look at Old Questions''. Lexington Books. ISBN 0739107844. (accessed: October 16, 2007) p.124.</ref>
			</blockquote> Unfortunately, he does not qualify specifically what he entailed by the usage of this term.

			]<ref>"Hinduism," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2007 © 1997-2007 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.</ref> of ] uses the term "Dharmic Tradition" as a unifying categorical term and heading for his discussion:
			<blockquote>
			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 sanātana dharma.
			<br />
			Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism share with Hinduism the concept of dharma along with other key concepts, and the four religions may be said to belong to the dharmic tradition. At one level Hinduism can refer to the beliefs or practices of followers of any of the dharmic traditions. The word Hinduism retains this sense in some usages in the Indian Constitution of 1950. In the field of religious studies, however, Hinduism is used in a narrower sense to distinguish it from the other religions of Indian origin.<ref>"Hinduism," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2007 © 1997-2007 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.</ref>
			</blockquote>

			that aims "...to gather up and organize all Dharmic Scriptures and Literature in order to create a ‘certified’ Dharmic Encyclopedia...":
			<blockquote>
			The Dharmic Scriptures team (with the help of many others) will be adding to this document over the coming months and years to build it up to the point where it is the most complete book of the Vedas in the world. In this process, where possible, we will also obtain the help of qualified Sanskritists to retranslate verses in a more technically correct manner (i.e., within the Indic/Dharmic traditions).
			</blockquote>

			==Exegesis and qualification of terminology==

			===Indian religions===
			In scholarly discourse, the problematic "]" is sometimes employed to denote "Dharmic Traditions"; that is: ], ], ], ], and ], etc., and to gloss individuals and coteries not necessarily identified with larger traditions, for example ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], etc. The ambiguous "Indian religions" is a nebulous term and is disfavoured in academic ] as it is often contextually undefined, as it may refer to "indian" in the denotation of "indigenous", indian as in Indian "continent" or Indian "nation"; and/or any religion or tradition originating, at one point evident in, or currently extant in India. Dharmic Traditions are ]s throughout the ] and are not circumscribed to the locale of ] and the sphere of Indian peoples.

			===Dharmic religion===

			] states that:
			<blockquote>
			In the East, there is no such word as 'religion'. The closest word is 'panth' or 'spiritual tradition'. The so-called religions of India are not religions but ways of cultivating Dharma!<ref>Banerjee, Kanchan (2003). ''What is the purpose of life?'' Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007). </ref>
			</blockquote>

			The term "Dharmic religion" is also problematic as certain schools and sects of the Dharmic Traditions neither envision nor style themselves as "]" due to interplay of '']'', ] and '']'', etcetera.<ref>The ''Introduction'' to ''The Vedas: An English-only, indexed version of the 4 Veda Samhitas in one document'' (Issue 1, draft 2, 2002) of the <blockquote> states that:
			"The essence of Dharma is Truth and Universal Law – it is NOT dogma or blind belief (as is the case with Matas such as Christianity and Islam). The term 'mata' means a belief, view or opinion and HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH DHARMA. Therefore, it is important to explain to non-Dharmins that Sanatana Dharma is based on the Truth and is therefore a much higher concept than a ‘religion’. For the purposes of conversation, we can refer to Dharma as a religion, but it is then necessary for the Dharmin to educate the non-Dharmin as to the higher meaning and greater Truth of Dharma."
			</blockquote></ref> Tradition is also favoured as the term "religion", rooted in the ] "fetter" connotes the binding of ] as has been evident in the general ] experience<ref>In evidence of general Christian dogma refer ] for example, qualified by ], etc.</ref>, whereas the entwined traditions of '']'' and '']'' and the knowledges and realisations that ] have perennially encouraged and valued direct realisation and experience of ]<ref>And this is the Dharmic denotation of the etymon "fetter, fasten, hold, etc." to the '']'' (cognate with Brahman) of the ] of ], ], ], ], etc. </ref> and/or '']''; refer ]. That said, "Dharma" is also an etymon of "to fetter, to hold". Hence, it is to be remembered that the nesting of the term "Dharma" within the Judeo-Christian ] lexical paradigm "Religion" though comfortable, is guarded.

			===Dharmic faiths===
			The term "Dharmic Faiths" is also disfavoured as it is culturally insensitive and an uneasy conceptual nesting of Dharmic Traditions within the concept of "faith". Faith as a ], is a loaded concept and term within Judeo-Christian and ]s, the conceptual foundations for spiritual dialogue in the English language. Faith, though evident in Dharmic Traditions is not key, as sadhana of direct experience of the divine, renders "faith" and "belief" as redundant: no doubt nor possibility of doubt is possible nor entertained in direct experience. Belief and faith are endemic to ] and ] that does not enjoin direct experience of the divine.

			===Sanatana Dharma===
			] as the "Eternal Dharma" is in its original, historical context cognate with Dharmic Tradition. Sanatana Dharma has come to denote Hinduism which is a contraction of its inclusive auspice. "Sanatana Dharma", often translated as "Eternal Religion" is more appropriately rendered the "Eternal Truth" . The truth of Dharma is pervasive throughout Dharmic Traditions: "All truth is one Truth" or "All Religions are One". In addition, the term "Hinduism" is a nominal ] external to the culture, whereas ] was and is, self-identification. Sanatana Dharma is often employed simply to denote "Hinduism"; this is a misnomer, as Sanatana Dharma refers to "Eternal Dharma" and all Dharmic Traditions are expressions and permutations of Sanatana Dharma. This resolved unity in divergence would be explained in Dharmic ] through the tale of the ].

			] states that:
			<blockquote>
			It could be said that different spiritual traditions of the world are different aspects of Sanatana Dharma and represent different approaches to Dharma. The great sages of all lands have been aware of a universal tradition of truth, beyond name and form. This way all spiritual traditions including the so-called religions of the world are connected to the same Sanatana Dharma and therefore it is said that it is the mother of all religions.<ref>Banerjee, Kanchan (2003). ''What is the purpose of life?'' Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007). </ref>
			</blockquote>

	==See also==		==See also==
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			==Notes==
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Revision as of 10:25, 16 October 2007

Dharmic tradition refers to any worldview, philosophy, sadhana, lineage, religion, ethos, coterie or tradition that has a conception, notion and/or doctrine of the meme of Dharma. Dharmic Tradition does not equate to Dharmic Religion. "Dharma", is the cogent substratum and commonality of manifold traditions and hence, is the favoured auspice; not the provincial "India" -- as not all Dharmic Traditions originated in India, e.g. Zen. Therefore, Dharmic Traditions as an inclusive and unifying auspice is increasingly favoured in scholarly discourse and common currency.

Vamadeva Shastri ventures a definition of dharmic tradition making reference to karma, rebirth, yoga, mantra, meditation:

All dharmic traditions recognize certain fundamental laws or dharmas. These include the law of karma, the process of rebirth, and the need to gain release from the ego that keeps us bound to it. They also recognize certain methods of yoga, mantra and meditation to reach this end, which can be called dharma practices.

Vamadeva Shastri qualifies the unifying notions of Dharma within the dharmic traditions, such as ahimsa, truth, compassion, renunciation:

The dharmic traditions of India share the core values of Dharma. These involve ethical principles like ahimsa, truthfulness, compassion and renunciation. They require a respect for all life as sacred and a recognition of a single consciousness as pervading the entire universe.

Vamadeva Shastri outlines that within the dharmic traditions, dharma is an "inclusive" principle of "unity" and "diversity" not an "exclusive" or separatist principle:

The dharmic traditions of India emphasize dharma first and on that basis allow for a diversity of religious beliefs and philosophies to develop. Dharma, therefore, is not an exclusive belief principle, but an inclusive attitude based upon honoring the unity and interdependence of all existence. For example, Buddhists, Jains and Hindus may disagree philosophically on the description of ultimate reality, not only with each other but among themselves, but that does not require abandoning dharma. In fact for them, the supreme Dharma is beyond words and beliefs anyway. Philosophical views and religious beliefs are only tools to develop dharma and if they take us away from dharma, they should be either modified or discarded.

Richard H. Jones in discussing spiritual traditions of the world, employed "dharmic tradition" as a frame for discussion of the Bhagavad Gita:

From the dharmic tradition, it adopts a life-affirming ethos and the need of dharma for the maintenance of society.

Unfortunately, he does not qualify specifically what he entailed by the usage of this term.

Arvind Sharma of McGill University uses the term "Dharmic Tradition" as a unifying categorical term and heading for his discussion:

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 sanātana dharma.
Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism share with Hinduism the concept of dharma along with other key concepts, and the four religions may be said to belong to the dharmic tradition. At one level Hinduism can refer to the beliefs or practices of followers of any of the dharmic traditions. The word Hinduism retains this sense in some usages in the Indian Constitution of 1950. In the field of religious studies, however, Hinduism is used in a narrower sense to distinguish it from the other religions of Indian origin.

Sanatana Dharma Online Directory of Scriptures that aims "...to gather up and organize all Dharmic Scriptures and Literature in order to create a ‘certified’ Dharmic Encyclopedia...":

The Dharmic Scriptures team (with the help of many others) will be adding to this document over the coming months and years to build it up to the point where it is the most complete book of the Vedas in the world. In this process, where possible, we will also obtain the help of qualified Sanskritists to retranslate verses in a more technically correct manner (i.e., within the Indic/Dharmic traditions).

Exegesis and qualification of terminology

Indian religions

In scholarly discourse, the problematic "Indian religions" is sometimes employed to denote "Dharmic Traditions"; that is: Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Tantrism, and Sikhism, etc., and to gloss individuals and coteries not necessarily identified with larger traditions, for example Mahasiddha, Alvars, siddha, rishi, pundit, sadhu, yogi, tantrika, babaji, etc. The ambiguous "Indian religions" is a nebulous term and is disfavoured in academic discourse as it is often contextually undefined, as it may refer to "indian" in the denotation of "indigenous", indian as in Indian "continent" or Indian "nation"; and/or any religion or tradition originating, at one point evident in, or currently extant in India. Dharmic Traditions are living traditions throughout the World and are not circumscribed to the locale of India and the sphere of Indian peoples.

Dharmic religion

Kanchan Banerjee states that:

In the East, there is no such word as 'religion'. The closest word is 'panth' or 'spiritual tradition'. The so-called religions of India are not religions but ways of cultivating Dharma!

The term "Dharmic religion" is also problematic as certain schools and sects of the Dharmic Traditions neither envision nor style themselves as "religion" due to interplay of nirguna brahman, mysticism and anatman, etcetera. Tradition is also favoured as the term "religion", rooted in the etymon "fetter" connotes the binding of dogma as has been evident in the general Judæo-Christian experience, whereas the entwined traditions of parampara and sadhana and the knowledges and realisations that emerge have perennially encouraged and valued direct realisation and experience of Divinity and/or Mysterium Magnum; refer Perennial philosophy. That said, "Dharma" is also an etymon of "to fetter, to hold". Hence, it is to be remembered that the nesting of the term "Dharma" within the Judeo-Christian Graeco-Roman lexical paradigm "Religion" though comfortable, is guarded.

Dharmic faiths

The term "Dharmic Faiths" is also disfavoured as it is culturally insensitive and an uneasy conceptual nesting of Dharmic Traditions within the concept of "faith". Faith as a meme, is a loaded concept and term within Judeo-Christian and Abrahamic traditions, the conceptual foundations for spiritual dialogue in the English language. Faith, though evident in Dharmic Traditions is not key, as sadhana of direct experience of the divine, renders "faith" and "belief" as redundant: no doubt nor possibility of doubt is possible nor entertained in direct experience. Belief and faith are endemic to parampara and sadhana that does not enjoin direct experience of the divine.

Sanatana Dharma

Sanatana Dharma as the "Eternal Dharma" is in its original, historical context cognate with Dharmic Tradition. Sanatana Dharma has come to denote Hinduism which is a contraction of its inclusive auspice. "Sanatana Dharma", often translated as "Eternal Religion" is more appropriately rendered the "Eternal Truth" . The truth of Dharma is pervasive throughout Dharmic Traditions: "All truth is one Truth" or "All Religions are One". In addition, the term "Hinduism" is a nominal attribution external to the culture, whereas Sanatana Dharma was and is, self-identification. Sanatana Dharma is often employed simply to denote "Hinduism"; this is a misnomer, as Sanatana Dharma refers to "Eternal Dharma" and all Dharmic Traditions are expressions and permutations of Sanatana Dharma. This resolved unity in divergence would be explained in Dharmic lore through the tale of the Blind Men and an Elephant.

Kanchan Banerjee states that:

It could be said that different spiritual traditions of the world are different aspects of Sanatana Dharma and represent different approaches to Dharma. The great sages of all lands have been aware of a universal tradition of truth, beyond name and form. This way all spiritual traditions including the so-called religions of the world are connected to the same Sanatana Dharma and therefore it is said that it is the mother of all religions.

Notes

Frawley, David. From the River of Heaven: Hindu and Vedic Knowledge for the Modern Age. Pg 27. Berkeley, California: Book Passage Press, 1990. ISBN 1878423010.
Encarta encyclopedia "Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism share with Hinduism the concept of dharma along with other key concepts, and the four religions may be said to belong to the dharmic tradition."
Westerlund, David Questioning the Secular State: The Worldwide Resurgence of Religion in Politics page 16 "A basic distinction in terms of theology or religions may provide some possibilities for co-operation with Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists, who like Hindus are regarded as adherents of ‘dharmic' religions."
Evoked in the locational sense.
Shastri, Vamadeva (2003). Dharma, the Need of the Hour and of all Time. Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007)
Shastri, Vamadeva (2003). Dharma, the Need of the Hour and of all Time. Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007)
Shastri, Vamadeva (2003). Dharma, the Need of the Hour and of all Time. Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007)
Jones, Richard H.(2004). Mysticism and Morality: A New Look at Old Questions. Lexington Books. ISBN 0739107844. (accessed: October 16, 2007) p.124.
Banerjee, Kanchan (2003). What is the purpose of life? Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007).
The Introduction to The Vedas: An English-only, indexed version of the 4 Veda Samhitas in one document (Issue 1, draft 2, 2002) of the Sanatana Dharma Online Directory of Scriptures
states that:
"The essence of Dharma is Truth and Universal Law – it is NOT dogma or blind belief (as is the case with Matas such as Christianity and Islam). The term 'mata' means a belief, view or opinion and HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH DHARMA. Therefore, it is important to explain to non-Dharmins that Sanatana Dharma is based on the Truth and is therefore a much higher concept than a ‘religion’. For the purposes of conversation, we can refer to Dharma as a religion, but it is then necessary for the Dharmin to educate the non-Dharmin as to the higher meaning and greater Truth of Dharma."
In evidence of general Christian dogma refer Sacred Tradition for example, qualified by List of Christian mystics, etc.
And this is the Dharmic denotation of the etymon "fetter, fasten, hold, etc." to the Mysterium Magnum (cognate with Brahman) of the cognate field of yoga, religion, dharma, yantra, etc.
Banerjee, Kanchan (2003). What is the purpose of life? Source: (accessed: October 16, 2007).

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