Rta,.Dharma, and Sanatana Dharma in Indian Culture: A Critical Appraisal

Abstract

Sanatana dharma literally means eternal law, principle, or norm. But in order to understand the concept of Saniitana dharma, as it is used in our cultural heritage, it is important that we first have a working knowledge of what dharma stands for. The word dharma is not easily translated into the English language. Dharma has been used in different contexts to means different things, but it is usually understood as that principle or law which sustains, supports or maintains (dhiiralJaY individuals as well as the social order, and when applied beyond the context of society to a broader universal context, it would mean that law which sustains or maintains the world as a whole, the universe itself.