The Dharma Chronicle

Is Hinduism or Sanatana Dharma a religion? Religion generally denotes a system of morality based on the concept of God. Sanatana Dharma is not something exclusively like that. It evolved in the Gangetic plains in prehistoric times, when the world had not seen or heard the word religion at all. To speak then of Hinduism or Sanatana Dharma as a religion is, to say the least, preposterous. The word dharma does not have an English equivalent, although righteousness can be an approximate word to convey what dharma stands for. Dharma denotes the power or process of sustaining human life in all situations, in fortune and misfortune, favor and disfavour, prosperity and adversity. The word Hindu also calls for a discreet analysis and assessment. Barhaspatya Samhita (a section of the Rig Veda) defines it as the land lying between the Himalayas to the north and Indusarovara (the Indian Ocean) to the south. The relevant verse reads thus: हिमालयात्समारभ्य यावदिन्दुसरोवर...