The document discusses the Indian concept of dharma or swadharma, which goes beyond charity. Dharma refers to fulfilling one's allocated duties and responsibilities according to their stage of life, relationships, and obligations to others. These obligations are seen as debts that must be repaid. Fulfilling one's dharma does not promote ego or humiliation like charity can. The concept of dharma is akin to how cells maintain homeostasis for the body. While the old forms of dharma may not be possible today, its essence of having a global perspective and fulfilling one's role in society can still be practiced, such as through namasmarn. This allows one to work towards holistic solutions for social problems

1. CHARITY
AND
SWADHARMA
DR.
SHRINIWAS
KASHALIKAR

2. Most of us usually accept that it is
good to be charitable.
Because most of us agree that
being callous, crude and indifferent
to the needs of other people is the
lowest stage of development of
mind. This stage neither allows us
to grow from within and manage
any form of stress healthily, nor
does it ensure any development of
the society.

3. Being kind to others is a higher
stage. Kindness to others is
actually enriching and fulfilling to
self in as much as it benefits many
people around us. This is why most
of the religions have upheld
charity.
Indian concept of DHARMA or
actually SWADHARMA goes
beyond the concept of charity or
rather evolves and refines the
concept of charity.

4. DHARMA is a highly refined and
appropriate solution proactively
allocated duty to different
individuals; at different stages of
life; according different personal
and social relationships, different
seasons and different auspicious
days!
DHARMA is not a matter of
individual’s feelings, fancies,
idiosyncrasies, whims or choice
but it is inseparable from an
individual’s life; as a matter of
fulfilling various responsibilities

5. and obligations. These obligations
or responsibilities are somewhat
akin to loans or debts called
RUNA. Thus there are PITRU
RUNA (debt of father), MATRU
RUNA (debt of mother), and
SAMAJ RUNA (debt of society)
etc. Naturally there is a concept of
“repaying these loans”.
This repayment of loans or
fulfillment of social obligations is
called DHARMA. Thus there is
PUTRA DHARMA (the sacred
obligations of a son), MATRU

6. DHARMA (sacred obligations of a
mother), PITRU DHARMA
(sacred obligation of a father),
RAJA DHARMA (sacred
obligation or responsibilities of a
king) etc. This concept of
obligations and their fulfillment
used to be prevalent in the different
stages of life such as student stage
(BRAHMACHARYASHRAMA),
married family person’s stage
(GRUHASTHASHRAMA), retired
stage
(VANAPRASTHASHRAMA) and
stage of renouncement or

7. renunciation
(SANYASASRHAMA) and were
referred to as ASHRAMAS.
Thus a student is expected to
observe celibacy and study. This is
obviously a wise thing if one
considers the menace of AIDS and
other sexually transmitted diseases
and the problems of unmarried
mothers.
The GRUHASTHA or family
person had the sacred duty of
offering hospitality to a guest

8. (ATITHI) and hence it was said
that ATITHI DEVO BHAVA
which means a guest is to be
treated like God.
The stage of retired life and the
stage of renunciation were also
characterized by consultative
sacred duties.
The importance the concept of
DHARMA is that it does not give
rise inflation of condescending
attitude and ego on the one hand
and destruction of self esteem and

9. humiliation on the other; as it
usually does in case of charity.
The concept of DHARMA is akin
to the role a cell in maintenance of
internal environment i. e.
homeostasis. Thus just as a cell
participates in homeostasis in
subservience to health of an
organism, similarly an individual
participates in social homeostasis
in subservience to the health of the
society.

10. Since the fabric of the Indian
society has changed almost
completely the revival of the old
concept exactly in the same form
does not seem possible and
feasible.
But at the same time it is possible
to extract the essence of the
concept of DHARMA and practice
it. Thus the saints say that it is
possible by practice of
Namasmaran to develop global
perspective, global thinking, global

11. policies and globally beneficial
administration and implementation.
This is very important and urgent
because; charity in itself; being a
crude; though egalitarian and
commendable response; does not
reach and act on the roots of the
social and political evils in the
form of perspectives, policies,
plans, administrative machinery,
laws, rules, conventions etc., which
if neglected or deliberately
concealed, keep on nurturing the
evils unabatedly.

12. Moreover; charity is not sufficient
or in fact proves to be
counterproductive in terms of
emotional black mailing and
cheating, tax evasion and vested
interests of political and economic
nature by harboring and
empowering the social evils
responsible for a variety of social
maladies. This is why charity even
if it is sincere; can not give
emotional gratification to
discerning individuals, who find
themselves suffocated in absence

13. of charity and cheated by
practicing charity!
This scenario of failure of
“charity” in every way is evident in
the queues in front of public
hospitals, many restaurants,
temples etc in India.
At one stage of the development of
society these signs of diseased
(exploited) society; could have
been inevitable. Charity in those
times could have been the only

14. way or solution; for individual
gratification and social relief.
But today, by understanding our
DHARMA i.e. SWADHARMA,
and practicing its essence through
Namasmaran or any other method,
we can rectify our cognition, affect
and conation. This can be
explained by taking examples.
By practicing NAMASMARAN, a
doctor would work for the advent
of holistic medicine, a lawyer for
laws for holistic education, an

15. educationist for the development of
holistic education (which nurtures
cognitive, affective, psychomotor
and productive domain of a child)
and so on, in terms of policy
making, planning and
implementation and can effectively
manage the most important, vital
and burning problems such as child
labor, begging, slums, pavement
dwelling, diseases, pollution etc.
DR. SHRINIWAS KASHALIKAR