Demystifying Varna Ashrama​ Dharma 

The presence of prejudice and discrimination in a society is largely attributable to people’s social learning and  to a general psychological compulsion to conform to social norms. Children learn discriminatory attitudes and beliefs from society, which includes their parents, teachers, friends, print media, visual media,  social media, etcetera. In the 1970s, a theory called Critical Race Theory was developed in the United States of America to explain how race, law, and power interact in a society. The central premise of the Critical Race Theory is that racism is not an exception, but rather a fundamental reality of society, engrafted in its institutions, laws, and cultural norms. According to the advocates of Critical Race Theory, racism is now firmly established in the collective consciousness of people as a fundamental component of human nature. Although the Critical Race Theory has become a highly controversial one, in essence it points out the fact that humanity as a whole has an inborn tendency to ‘discriminate’ other humans under many disguises. 

Discriminations in the Past and Present

Discriminatory practices of all kinds and forms have always existed in all human societies on Earth.  Slavery was a way of life in America until it was decisively abolished by President Abraham Lincoln at the end of the American Civil War in 1865.  Europe too had a barbarous slavery system. In the 11th century BC, when William the Conqueror ruled England, 10% of the people in England were slaves. The slaves were required to wear a copper collar around their neck all the time. Even today, skeletons have been discovered with copper collars around their necks. 

Europe prospered through the slave trade. The transatlantic slave trade was the grisly human trafficking of Africans as slaves to Europe, America, North Africa, and the Middle East.  It is estimated that the Europeans bought and sold 15 million African slaves and sent them to America during those days.  

India was home to the Varna Ashrama Dharma, which was not slavery nor was it a ‘caste system’.  There has been no slavery in India in the way it was practised in the US and Europe. In India, the labour-landlord relationship was more  symbiotic and benign in nature than explicit slavery. This does not mean that there was no discrimination or abuse in India, either.  India did have the detestable practice of untouchability in many segments of the society. Discrimination of one sort or another was indeed overwhelmingly prevalent all over the world at one time.  Humanity has been and continues to be marred by a multitude of forms of discrimination, some of which are concealed, while others are less so.   

While it is so, India’s Varna Ashrama Dharma is not a caste system in reality, contrary to what the colonial British rulers of India made it look like. The caste system was not Indian in origin, either.  In truth, the ‘caste system’ was a European invention and practice. The principle and mechanics of Varna Ashrama Dharma are entirely different, and both will be further discussed later on.  

Today, in India, discrimination in any form is considered as a violation of Articles 14, 15, 17, and 21 of the Indian Constitution. However, there are still veiled ‘caste-based’ biases in many walks of life in India. The government documents still explicitly ask for and declare ‘caste.’ Caste-based reservations still exist for employment in the public sector, as well as admission into state-run educational and training establishments. Caste-based reservations exist in Indian electoral processes as well.   

On the one hand, India seeks to eliminate the caste system that has been handed down and reinforced by the British Raj. However, on the other hand, Indians are being subtly urged to become caste-conscious in numerous conceivable ways. This is a serious lacuna that needs to be corrected on priority, if India is to progress leap and bounds. All forms of cast-based discrimination should be stopped with strict laws until human consciousness reaches a certain higher threshold level. Reservations based on caste should be replaced by reservations based on economic credentials. Even then, the benefits given for such economically driven reservations should be limited to free education up to a level that the beneficiaries continue to demonstrate  their competence in studies. Afterwards, everything should be open to merit alone. The significance of such a  policy will be more appreciated once the Varna Ashrama System is fully understood.  

European Origin of the “Casta” System  

It is important to learn about the genesis of the   “casta-system” to evaluate the detrimental effects of the same and compare it with the beneficial effects of the Varna Ashrama System. The casta-system destroys the society and impairs the individual. The Varna Ashrama system, on the contrary, builds the society and empowers the individual. 

The English word ‘caste’ is a recycled word from the root Spanish / Portuguese word ‘casta’, which roughly means ‘lineage’. The beginning of the ‘casta’ system was with the arrival of the Spanish and Portuguese explorers  in Latin America in 1492. The indigenous people of Mexico have been residing in their ancestral lands for ages.  The Spanish invaders considered the indigenous people as barbarous and uncivilized, and considered themselves as superior.  Soon after, they established a colony in the Latin American region using brutal force, and compelled the indigenous people to convert to Catholicism. They seized their land, exploited their people, and even conceived children with their women. 

The Spanish  forced the indigenous people  to speak Spanish, and imposed Spanish laws on them. They passed laws that artificially created a social hierarchy to assert and wield power over the native population. They called this hierarchy, the ‘Casta System’. This system ensured European superiority in all spheres of life within their occupied territories. Until the 1820s, they controlled the Latin-American region. Even after gaining independence, the social hierarchy of the ‘casta system’ remained in place in Latin-America.   The “casta system” put the indigenous people, even their children born to Spanish masters, as well as the slaves from Africa at the bottom of the casta-hierarchy.    

The Spanish settlers used the casta system  not only to organize Latin-American society into some sort of order to govern them, but also to exert control over them. The Spanish Crown even made laws known as the Siete Partidas, which set rules for how different casta groups should behave and interact. Through obtaining such statutory justifications for their differential treatment of humans, the Spanish authorities strengthened their authority in their colonies. 

Later on, the colonial British rulers  replicated the same casta system in their global practices of colonialism, including in India.  The colonial British recklessly equated Varna Ashrama Dharma with the Casta System in order to perpetuate their systems of exploitation and control of the Indian population. This is how the ‘caste system’ entered India, replacing the Varna Ashrama Dharma. The four hundred and fifty years of British rule in India have only reinforced the falsehood about the caste system. Generations grew up with the caste system superimposed over the cultural heritage of Varna Ashrama Dharma. They blithely applied the theory and practice of Casta System to the India context, drawing condescending parallels to the Varna Ashrama Dharma. 

Europe has always had family names based on occupations that their families have practiced for generations. In medieval Europe, for instance, the name “Bacon” was a family name, which means someone who cuts meat. Similarly, “Baker” is a common last name that pertains to the occupation of cooking. Brewer is a name for the profession of making beer or liquor. The surname “Smith” refers to those who work with metal materials. “Bishop” is another family name that depicts the profession of overseeing the religious activities. It’s clear that they didn’t see any lack of dignity in any occupation. They voluntarily accepted  the name of their profession as part of their family names. The Varna Ashrama Dharma system  basically emphasized the significance of selecting the appropriate occupation performed by individuals possessing the appropriate personal traits for that occupation.  In India, they falsely accused the much greater and largely occupation-based  Varna Ashrama Dharma of being a caste system when they themselves had no problem adopting occupation-based family names. 

Varna Ashrama Dharma Turning Caste System – A Foul Play 

Any society has four basic types of needs. The basic needs are the creation of all required resources needed by the society, the distribution of those resources, protection of those resources, and development of the knowledge and skills required to move forward and evolve from where one is. The fundamental principle is that one exists only for the purpose of  evolution to higher levels of existence. Nothing exists for the sake of mere existence. Everything exists to evolve.  The first three societal needs are to build the means for the physical and mental aspects of existence. Once existence is thus safeguarded, the next need is a mental and spiritual need to evolve to higher level of existence.   

Before the emergence of the Caste system in India as it is today, there existed solely a lineage based on occupation as stated earlier, akin to the family names based on occupation in Europe.   But this became a  distorted “caste system” because some authority figures, for selfish gains, deliberately misinterpreted the “Purusha Sukta” section of the Rig Veda, and misled the less learned mass of people. During their rule of India for nearly 900 years, the Europeans accentuated this exploitation. 

“Purusha” and “Prakriti” principles are two of the key principles among the 36 principles of creation of the Universe in Sanatana Dharma. In the Rig Veda, the “Purusha” principle is figuratively described as the vision of a masculine form that fills the entire universe. The Purusha  principle is effectively a pseudonym for Consciousness.  

The part of the Rig Veda that describes this universal form of “Purusha” principle is known as the “Purusha Sukta”. It says that the Brahmins came from the mouth of that universal form, the Kshatriyas from the hands, the Vaishyas from the legs, and the Shudras from the feet. These symbolisms were used to imply the creative abilities of the four categories. Just as the feet are not greater or lesser in any way to the mouth, or hands or legs, none of the four Varnas are lesser or greater to one another. In all societies, at all times, it is possible to find undeserving people holding influential positions.  Some such ignorant and immature people in socially influential positions misinterpreted and taught the Purusha Sukta, stating that Shudras are at the lowest social level and Brahmins are at the highest.  This was  purposefully done to subjugate and use the Shudras forever for their selfish purposes. The Europeans, who invaded and ruled India, perpetuated these exploitations.  The caste system is definitely something that should be opposed tooth and nail.

Root Cause of Social Discrimination  

On the surface, it is the social conditioning and an internal psychological impulse to blindly follow the prevailing ‘social norms’, that nudge one to discriminate against fellow humans. When a false narrative is repeated many times throughout many generations, especially by people in authority, most people, who are not ‘aware’ enough yet, incline to believe it. Colonial masters used this human flaw to condition the society adharmically with their old ‘casta’ system to divide and rule the occupied population.  

However, ancient Indian sages assert that all flawed human behaviours stem from their inherent inability to see the larger picture of life. Depending on their level of consciousness, people become more aware or less aware.  How aware one is directly related to how ‘conscious’ one is at any given point in  life. Some people are born with higher awareness, while some others are born with lower awareness. The expansion of Consciousness is a work in progress for everyone. The conscious choices of people are limited by their inborn  ability to be ‘aware’. Dr Thomas J Chalko, in his book ‘Freedom of Choice,’ elegantly demonstrated this truth by comparing the behaviour of  a  dog and a human being when a piece of diamond is given to each of them. The dog’s response to a diamond is limited by its awareness. So is man’s response, too.  It is not the dog’s fault that it cannot be ‘aware’ of the value of  a diamond. The ‘consciousness’ operating in a dog is not expanded enough to appreciate the value of a diamond.

Being born with a certain level of awareness is not one’s fault. But it is one’s responsibility to work on from where one is, in order to expand one’s awareness.  Likewise, being born with a higher level of awareness is not a matter to be boastful about either. Instead, one is responsible for maximizing one’s own level of awareness and helping others to do the same with their’s.  It is very much analogous to the academic works in our familiar everyday life. It is not one’s fault that one starts from the Kindergarten level in  life. Similar to that, it is not something one needs to be boastful about when one is in upper primary, or at the university  level of studies or even doing postdoctoral studies. Every academic level is a responsibility and not a matter to be feeling guilty or proud. 

‘Consciousness’ is an  important topic  for understanding the principles of  Varna Ashrama Dharma. A detailed discussion of ‘Consciousness’ is outside the scope of this article. However, for this article, it is adequate to follow a few fundamental aspects of ‘Consciousness’.  The ultimate understanding of the ancient Indian sages  is that everything that exists, whether physical or non-physical, is essentially a transformation of ‘Consciousness’.  In the very beginning, before any existence came into existence, there could only be an ultimate potentiality that possessed the required knowledge and capability to bring forth everything into existence. The ancient sages called it, Prajnana, or Chaitanya or Chit, which in English is Consciousness. Consciousness is NOT a ‘thing’, NOT   matter, nor is it energy either; but, Consciousness is the self-ware, all-conscious, all-knowing, all-blissful  existence that is the ‘mother’ of all matter and energy.  All that there is, is Consciousness, according to the ultimate understanding of ancient Indian sages. Everything is Consciousness, forming out of Consciousness, existing in an ocean of Consciousness, collapsing back into Consciousness in the end. As a metaphor, think of the ocean waves, forming out of the ocean itself, existing in the ocean and collapsing back into the ocean. All that is really there, is the ‘ocean’.  The foundational understanding in the ancient Indian understanding is that, each human being (like any other forms of existence too) is a unit of Consciousness in a certain degree of expanded state, holding a material body and mind as its tools to function in this world. For the sake of grasping the idea of human beings being born and dead,  consider it to be  similar to  underwater scuba divers diving into the deep sea, wearing special attire and tools to enable them to exist underwater. The attire or tool is NOT the scuba diver. The scuba diver is the ‘person’ inside the attire  holding the tools. Likewise, the physical body or mind of a human being is NOT the ‘being’. Body and mind are merely two  tools that the true ‘being’ (Consciousness) uses.  It is this core element of Consciousness that gives the human-body-mind-organism the power of cognition or awareness. At death, the Consciousness withdraws, and the body-mind tools fall off. It is this Consciousness that gives the physical eyes the power to see, ears to hear, nose to smell, tongue to taste and skin to feel. Each human existence is a work in progress towards the expansion of the core Consciousness, creating and enabling the body-mind apparatus. The life-span of a human being on earth is analogous to an academic term to undergoing various inter-being experiences to help the  beingness (Consciousness) to expand and grow to a higher state. The greater the expansion of  the ‘beingness’ (Consciousness), the greater will be its awareness.

It’s natural that any society will have people with less awareness and people with more awareness. This is similar to how a school would have kindergarten as well as senior classes.  For the society to flourish, everyone needs assistance in expanding their respective  levels of awareness. At the same time, everyone in the society needs to be protected from the negative actions of those with lesser awareness, too, for the society to thrive. The same scenario happens in a school, where there are certain common rules, guidelines, and regulations for the conduct of all students at every level to ensure the highest good of the school and its students. Every student in the school must maintain such a behavioural pattern at all times, consciously and consistently, for their highest collective welfare.   

Ancient Indian Sages named such a conscious and consistent behavioural pattern, which always upholds and fosters the highest good of everything that exists, as Dharma.  Adharma, meaning that which is not dharma, is a behavioural pattern, such as enforcing slavery, exploitation, or deceiving, that undermines the collective well-being of a society.

Ancient Indian Sages had an extraordinarily high level of awareness. Their knowledge and wisdom were unparalleled.  With heightened awareness, the ancient Indian sages devised the Varna Ashrama Dharma system to guarantee the highest good of society as a whole. In Varna Ashrama Dharma, no one exploits anyone and everyone contributes to the wellbeing of the society, despite their individual strengths and weaknesses. 

Principles of Varna Dharma

All the people in the world are not different anatomically from one other. However,  each person is entirely different from the other in their inborn nature, tendencies,  temperaments, abilities, knowledge, intelligence, behaviours, in their likes, dislikes, and in their ability to respond to situations. This variance in temperament is attributable to the disparity in their awareness, as previously discussed. If we combine all of these different characteristics and put them into one word, it can be called a person’s ‘birth-trait’ or ‘temperament’  or ‘guna’ in Sanskrit. 

Each person is a conglomeration of several sets of Gunas combined in proportions unique to each of them. Even plants and animals have these ‘gunas’ or ‘birth-traits’. Gunas can be easily understood by comparing the ‘guna’ of a lion with that of a deer, or that of an ant;  or comparing the guna of a mango tree with that of a grass; or comparing the guna of a sand grain with that of a salt or a piece of iron.  They all have their unique set of gunas, which is the reason all of them respond to the same situation differently. Each of them behaves as compelled by their inherent gunas. A lion cannot do the job of a lamb because each of their behaviours is limited by their guna, or inborn quality, which is in turn controlled by their state of consciousness/awareness. 

A few examples from history will further illustrate this principle. Hitler was different from Mother Theresa. Albert Einstein was different from either of them. A fisherman  or a deep-sea diver is different from all of them.  This does not mean that a fisherman can never do the  job of Albert Einstein – but, for that, the consciousness/awareness of the fisherman needs to expand to the level of Einstein’s. Each activity necessitates its own gunas,  birth-traits, level of consciousness, awareness, and knowledge sets to excel in that specific activity.  Only when the right activity is performed by the befitting guna-set holder does the highest good  happen to   the society and to that guna-set holder.  This is the essence of Varna Ashrama Dharma. 

The Three Gunas

The ancient sages of India knew the complexities of gunas very thoroughly, and they broadly classified the large spectrum of  gunas in to three predominant categories. They called it three predominant ‘gunas’, meaning  three predominant ‘inborn qualities’. Satva, Rajas, Tams are these three gunas. Everything that exists in the universe has all these three gunas in them, but they will be combined in different proportions in different entities.

If the ‘satva’ guna is present in a person, it gives that person the noblest tendencies. The quality of ‘satva’ is a tendency in which the qualities such as joyfulness, happiness, peace, sense of well-being for all, freedom, love, compassion, equanimity, empathy, friendship, attention, self-control, contentment, faith, fulfilment, calmness, gratitude, fearlessness, and selflessness are prominent. These qualities will be more or less reflected in all the activities of all the people  with ‘satva’ as their predominant ‘guna’. The ability to understand, the willpower to realize what is understood, the ability to share what is already understood, etc. are clearly evident in them. The symbolic colour code (‘varna’ in Sanskrit) for Satva  is white.  

In this context, it must be noted that the term “varna” or “colour” does not refer to the colour of one’s skin. It is a symbolic representation of one’s inherent ‘quality’ that is the strongest in their total personality.  It is analogous to the customary practice of assigning a red or brown cable to the phase, a blue, or black cable to the neutral, and a green cable to the earthing cable within an electrical system. Likewise, the uniform colour of the police force will be different from that of a national army.  The ‘varna’ convention is a code to identify the overall function of them.

The guna of Rajas exhibits an energetic  nature,  with full of activity, mobility, and dynamism.   The nature of Rajas exhibits attraction, desire, and attachment. Furthermore, the Rajasic nature enslaves one and binds one to their activities. They are passionate about their works.  Anger, joy, anxiety, fear, irritation, restlessness, stress, courage, suspicion, and determination are the other Rajasic qualities. Red is the symbolic colour code (‘varna’ in Sanskrit)  for the quality of Rajas.  

The guna of Tamas reflects the nature of darkness, inertia, inactivity, and materiality. Tamas arises from ignorance and keeps all beings away from their spiritual and higher truths. Other innate qualities of Tamasic nature are laziness, ignorance, hatred, addiction, depression, helplessness, doubt, guilt, shame, boredom, pain, sadness, apathy, confusion, and dependence.  Black is the symbolic colour code (‘varna’ in Sanskrit)  for Tamas.

Human beings are obviously on a higher evolutionary pedestal in comparison to the minerals, plants, and animals. As a result, any one of these three gunas or any combination of the two of these gunas will be prominent in human beings. It is this specific combination of gunas that makes one unique in their own ways.  The ancient Indian sages practically simplified these guna combinations by categorising humanity  into  four  broad archetypical tendencies, referred to as Varna groups. Brahmin, Kshathriya, Vaisya, and Shudra are the four Varna archetypes formed by the combinations of  three gunas, namely Satva, Rajas and Tamas. To summarise in simple terms, the broad four categories of  inborn-tendencies of human beings are referred to as Varnas. They are not their skin colour or job class. Even within the siblings of a family, the Varna can be different. The intrinsic qualities that each person previously acquired and brings with them at birth are called “varnas.” 

The Four Varnas                                                                  

Each one of us is born with any one of these four Varna archetypes, namely, Brahmin, Kshathriya, Vaisya, and Shudra.  The etymological meaning of the Sanskrit word ‘Varna’ is ‘vyayathe ithi varna’, meaning, ‘that which is acquired by us is varna’. A particular ‘varna’ is given to us by the predominant tendency or temperament that we had acquired and brought with us at birth.  Gunas  are  symbolically   colour coded, as stated earlier.  The  terminology ‘varna’ also, therefore, refers to the symbolism of colour and colour combinations.  

The misunderstanding on Varna is widespread by quoting only the first line of what Sri Krishna said in the fourth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita, “Chaturvarnyam Maya srishtam, guna karma vibhagasaha”. The meaning of this stanza is that the four varnas are created by ‘me’  based on the distinctiveness of people’s qualities and activities.    In this quote,   the second line, “guna karma vibhagasaha” (based on the distinctiveness of people’s qualities and activities) is not usually quoted or does not  receive the attention it requires. What Krishna essentially said  is that ‘I created the occupational (karma) categories of four Varnas based on  birth gunas.  Here, one should also understand that the word “I” refers to the creator principle of ‘Brahman’ or ‘super Consciousness’ that is indwelling in all created bings, including Krishna.   

‘Varna’ is not ‘Jaati’

It is important to understand that ‘Varna’ is not ‘Jaati’. Both are two different topics altogether. The  commonly used word ‘Jaati’ derives from the Sanskrit root word ‘jaata’, meaning,  “born or brought into existence.” It has nothing to do with ‘quality’ of the person, but with the biological ascendancy of the person. Substituting the word ‘Jaati’ in the place of  ‘varna’ is sheer ignorance. 

The four varnas formed by the combination of three gunas are described briefly below. 

Brahmin 

Those whose main guna is Satva guna are considered to have Brahmanical quality. It must be remembered that it is not a ‘jaati’.  These individuals with predominant Brahmanical qualities  possess the ability to regulate their thoughts, senses, willing to undergo hardships for learning, maintain a pure interior and exterior, pursue the right path, seek and acquire knowledge, comprehend and disseminate their knowledge. Their spiritual qualities will make them stand out. Whatever profession requires these qualities, it will be the swadharma for these people. Swadharma is that ideal  occupation that is most compatible with one’s predominant guna.    For example, someone with the Brahmanical qualities  explained earlier will make a good teacher or a good spiritual preceptor. It has nothing to do with the ‘family’ he or she is born into. Even siblings born to the same parents, raised in the same socio-economic conditions, and with similar academic backgrounds are seen with different varnas – different intrinsic tendencies, attitudes, and inclinations. It is proof enough that varna is not the same as the colonial ‘jaati’ or the ‘casta’ system.    

Kshatriya

The Kshatriya varna is a combination of gunas, in which the Satva guna and Rajo guna are both present in an individual, but the Rajo guna is the predominant one. Kshatriya varna is often associated with qualities such as bravery, courage, the ability to kill when dharma (non-negotiable duty) requires it, not hesitant to do good karma, swiftness in action, self-discipline, willpower, resourcefulness,  resilience, etcetera.  They will never turn back from a task, even if it is initially unsuccessful.  The practice of charity, the willingness to give away one’s possessions, and above all, the presence of divine attitudes are all indications of Kshatriya. High-ranking administrative positions, and  in the army,  are some suitable areas of occupation for those with the Kshatriya varna.  In essence, the swadharma of Kshatriya varna pertains to dharmically protecting the wealth generated by hard work of the Shudras and distributed by the vaishyas, both of which will be discussed soon. 

Vaishya

Even though the Tamo guna and the Rajo guna are both present, the Rajo guna is at the forefront in  the Vaishya varna. They will make good farmers and traders.  Their swadharma is to dharmically distribute  the wealth generated by the handworks of the Shudras.

Shudra

The Tamo guna is predominantly displayed in the shudra varna. They will not do any work using their own intelligence or initiative. They are those who are willing to work under someone else. Furthermore, they will do the work just as they are told. Those in the shudra varna are well-prepared for jobs that teach them how to serve ethically under someone else.  This naturally includes all physically demanding manual jobs.

Right Varna for Right Service, a Win-Win Situation

Every profession is inevitably  one type of service or other to the society. Every individual through his or her occupation contributes to the welfare of others in some manner or another. A doctor, an engineer, a teacher, a farmer, a labourer, a soldier, and a king, are all serving the society, with their respectively specialised services. There is no one service that is more important or less important than another. There are certain specific intrinsic tendencies, inclinations, skill-sets, and knowledge-sets that are particularly appropriate for every service provider.  When a specific service is provided by someone with those required traits, the highest level of production takes place, and consequently, societies thrive.  When the individuals with the right varna perform the right service, the service  provider too enjoys immense self-satisfaction. It is a win-win situation. It is that specific win-win service which is one’s swadharma. 

Just as a manual labour requires certain inborn abilities and skill-sets, the ruler of a country also needs certain other types of abilities and skill-sets.  Consider what happens if a person, with the birth-traits suitable to work in a field under the supervision of someone else, over-ambitiously endeavors to rule a country? The same thing will happen when a person with the birth qualities to rule a country endeavors to work in the field. Tilling the land and ruling a country are both  honourable responsibilities to learn and self-develop; they are not ornamental titles. To be born with the birth-traits suitable to work in the field is not a setback or a disgrace. This is an introductory opportunity to participate in the production of food, while simultaneously acquiring and cultivating numerous superior skills to move up the capability ladder. All varnas are opportunities to elevate not only one’s skill-sets, but also one’s awareness and knowledge to new heights.   

Darwin described the evolution of life from the simplest to the most complex, and man stands today at the apex of physical evolution on planet earth. Although it has been millions of years since the emergence of humans happened, no species superior to humans has emerged yet. For humans,  hereafter, all that there is, is the evolution of the human mind and its capabilities. Even the human body does not grow after the age of 20 or 25. Thereafter, it’s only the human mind and human awareness that can grow.  Ancient sages, recognized this and encouraged the society to carry out their respective swadharmas so that the evolution of our consciousness unfolds with ease and swiftness. 

Every occupation is a significant part of society. In our body, the work done by the eyes is not done by the ears. The liver doesn’t do the work of the ears. However, we do not consider any organ in our body to be less or more prestigious than another. Depending on their morphology and structure, they all have separate swadharmas. If our eyes stop working, if our heart decides to put aside its work for a while and rest, or our bowl stops its movement, we will soon realize the immense value of the work done by those organs. Likewise, every service rendered by differently abled members of a society are significant.

Principles of Ashrama Dharma

At the same time, it must be noted that varna dharma is always associated with another important corroboratory principle called ‘ashrama dharma’. It is evident that the ‘Varna dharma‘ encourages one to practice the appropriate swadharma, which is focused on fulfilling one’s social obligations.  Ashrama dharma ensures that one fulfils his or her responsibilities to himself or herself  while going through the various stages of his or her life cycle.  

In Sanskrit, “ashramas” means “place”, or “phase”, or “position”, or “stage”. As there are four Varnas, there are four Ashramas too. There are distinct disciplinary responsibilities for all four ashramas.  

Ancient Indian Rishis recognized that the first 12 years of one’s life is the childhood period, when the child’s physical and mental faculties are being developed  to an optimum level. The first twelve years from birth are the childhood stage. There is nothing special to do during this period. All that is required during this period is to adhere to a balanced diet, play, and sleep. This is the time required for the child’s brain and nerves to reach full growth and capacity. 

Thereafter, the remainder of one’s life is broadly divided into four significant stages, the duration of each of which is around 12 years or multiples thereof.   These four stages of the life cycle are collectively referred to as the four Ashramas or milestone life cycle stages. The names given to these four milestone phases of life are Brahmacharya, Grahastha, Sanyasa, and Vanaprastha.

The life cycle phase of educational development is the first stage, which is from the age of 12 to 24 in broad terms. This phase is called, the Brahmacharya stage. The literarily meaning of the word Brahmachari is one who is on the path of higher knowledge. The second stage is when one gets married and starts a family life. This stage roughly spans from the age of 24 to 48 or at times even up to 60 years, and is called the Grahastha stage, meaning, the stage of a householder. This is when the varna principles discussed earlier come  into full play.  Later on, when one is retired and all the  children become completely independent, the third phase of life is reached, which is called Sanyasa stage. This stage is for the following 12 years. This is a stage in life characterised by asceticism or  detachment from materialism, and a full-time pursuit of spiritual development.  One’s fourth and final stage in life is one’s old age, which is after 72 years of age. This stage is called the Vanaprasatha stage.  Vanaprastha indicates a life in seclusion preparatory to the final conscious exit from the school of life. Ashrama dharma is about training  to fulfil one’s own responsibility to oneself in self-development.  It’s interesting to note that this is the same training that Sage Patanjali envisaged through the ‘Niyama’ component of his highly acclaimed Ashtanga Yoga.

Within each of these four “ashrama” stages, there are certain self-disciplinary codes of conduct. These rules of conduct emphasize one’s own obligations to oneself. Performing swadharma in complete compliance  to the codes of conduct of one’s prevailing ashrama is described as “ashrama dharma”.  Varna dharma and Ashrama dharma  together is Varna  Ashrama Dharma. Both work together in tandem, synergistically.  

A state of celibacy needs to be strictly followed from the age of twelve to twenty-four. “Brahmacharya” means to walk on the path of the highest non-dual knowledge, “Brahma”. That is, the rule to follow in the  Brahmacharya stage is  to immerse oneself in formal Varna-based studies to increase one’s knowledge and skills,  without digressing.  “Brahmacharya” has a broader meaning too. “Brahmacharya” also means remaining unmarried, without any sexual thoughts or grahastha types of indulging activities. Another expanded meaning is to use all the resources of life only for the purpose for which they are originally intended. Money is to be used only for essential things, and sex is to be used only for the continuation of the race at the grahastha stage. Food is to be used only to provide energy and maintain the body in balance. None of the above should be used for entertainment or pleasure.  Needless to say, all these are essential for a student, and they play a major role in shaping his or her fine character.

A major example of violating the ashram dharma is engaging in sexual activities in the brahmacharya ashram. Similarly, engaging in sexual activities in the Sanyasa ashram and the vanaprastha ashrama is also a violation of the ashrama dharma. Complete dharmacharya is when all activities are carried out in a manner completely  appropriate to the respective  ashrama state, with perfect svadharma morality appropriate for the Varna.   Such a practice of dharmacharya will accelerate the expansion of the consciousness and spiritual evolution of the soul. 

Violation of ashrama dharmacharya will impede  the natural evolution of the consciousness. When Students, Sanyasies, and Vanaprastha pursuivants engage in political, sexual, or trading activities or when they part take in smoking, alcohol, or drug consumption, they violate Ashrama Dharma.  In short, while Varna dharma is designed for imparting training for serving the society, dharmically,  Ashrama dharma is designed for imparting training for one to serve oneself dharmically. 

Varna Ashrama Dharma Analogous with Academic Studies 

The easiest way to comprehensively understand the   interplay of Varna Dharma and Ashrma Dharma  is to use the analogy of a regular academic structure of school curricula. Ancient Indian sages, in their highly conscious state, recognized the existence of a natural training system operating through the lives of individuals, which   gives them a fast-track  route for the evolution of consciousness.  Ancient Indian sages developed this natural training system into a  way of life and called it ‘Varna Ashrama Dharma’.   Each varna is best understood as one of the four  core subjects taught in the school of life. A lifetime is analogous to an academic year in a typical academic curriculum. Each ashrama is to be understood as one of the four semesters of the academic year.  

There are four academic subjects taught in the school of Life. The Level One academic subject is ‘Dharmic Generation of Resources for all’, which is the entry level. The course syllabus in Level One is aimed at developing physical resilience and learning the basic Dharma concepts through dharmically generating  resources for all. The Level Two academic subject is ‘Dharmic Distribution of Resources for all’. One can only go to Level Two after graduating successfully from Level One. The levels Three and Four are also similar progressive levels, requiring one to pass the previous levels to gain entry.  The Level Two syllabus pertains to developing mental resilience and the cultivation of Dharma through practising dharmic distribution of resources for all. The Level Three subject is ‘Dharmic Protection of Resources’. Level three of the syllabus covers advanced levels of physical, mental, spiritual and dharmic practices, so that all human resources are dharmically protected.  The fourth and final level is the graduation level. The subject is ‘Expansion of Consciousness through complete Dharmic Living.’ 

Here the syllabus is centred around the highest levels of physical, mental, spiritual and dharmic practices, so that one becomes fit enough to move on to the next higher level of existence. The first three levels of the syllabus are intended to prepare the students for their solemn responsibilities to everyone and everything else apart from themselves.   It’s interesting to note that this is the same training that Sage Patanjali imparts through the ‘Yama’ component of his highly venerated Ashtanga Yoga.

The ‘varnas’ (meaning, colours) are to be understood similar to the colour of the uniform the students wear for each academic Level. An all-black coloured uniform indicates that the student, who wears it, is doing Level One curriculum. Likewise, a black and red coloured uniform is for Level Two students, a red and white coloured uniform is for Level Three students, and an all-white uniform is for Level Four Students. 

Freedom from Suffering through Evolution

The only worthwhile goal for humans is to attain freedom from suffering and freedom from their limited existence through the evolution of consciousness.  All the mechanisms in the world, all the laws operating in the  nature, and all the events that occur in one’s life,  are only designed to ensure this evolution. Through the gradual development of  human Consciousness, that evolution is made possible.   One of the most powerful  mechanisms for the evolution of human Consciousness is the Varna Ashrama dharma.