Dharma and Karma Blog
This post is part of our ongoing series featuring the works of Professor LeBoeuf 's students in her Introduction to Religions of Asia course at Whittier College!
The topic of my presentation was on Dharma and Karma which can be related the religion of Hinduism. I chose this topic because these two terms that are fairly well known in western society especially Karma (what goes around comes around) and dharma because it connects with karma but dharma in a lot bigger. In addition of that it one of the topics I’m mostly familiar when it comes to religion because it one of the biggest religion in the world for people who believe in Hinduism.
I have experience learning about the topic of dharma and karma because they are strong beliefs in Hinduism that have caught my attention. In the beginning the only thing I knew about Hinduism was the part where people meditate for hours but then I started to build up more knowledge once I started reading more about it. I put a lot of thought to both dharma and karma but especially karma because of the meaning that karma give “what goes around comes around” and I strongly believe that is true because good and bad thing happens to us and the fact that when we do something good, something good comes our way or when we do something bad and something bad comes our way. I have had lots of fun learning from this religion in general because of the amount of people that believe is Hinduism is amazing because it is like 1/7 of the world population who believe in it. When I think of karma I think of all the things I have done that are good and all the things I have done that are bad and I tell myself that “Karma is true” and it is like working out at the gym, you get what you put into it and the results will vary on what you have done. For dharma, I have come to believe that the world is the way it is for a reason and the people living where they are being for a reason.
Firstly, dharma is about the principal of cosmic order which talk about how the universe is. In dharma, it’s the foundation of all order weather its comic, social or moral. Dharma has the ability to make things how they are. In addition, in dharma everything happens for a reason.
Dharma has combined with the caste system. The caste system details social classes ranging from the ruling class to what is considered the lowest of society. The caste system in India includes the following: the Brahmins which were the seers, the priests; Kshatriyas who were the administrators, warriors; Vaisyas were the skillful workers, the merchants; and the Shrudas who were the laboring class, the servants. There are also a group of people that were without caste and did the lowest and most polluted works known as the Untouchables. In Hinduism Dharma has 10 rules that include the following: patience-always have inner peace, forgiveness-never stay with the negative things inside you, piety and self-control- always wait for the best, honesty- be true to others, sanctity- cleanse your body mentally, control senses- control your inner self, reason- there is a reason for everything that happens, knowledge and meaning-the more you know the better, truthfulness- always be true with others and yourself, absence and anger- do not let negativity control your inner self.
Then karma is another part of my presentation that is a big influence in the religion of Hinduism. Karma means that doing something good or bad effects where you go in the afterlife. Karma appearedin the oldest Hindu text the Rigveda for 1500 BCE. Karma has 12 laws and the following of them are: the great law, the law of creation, the law of humility, the law of growth, the law of responsibility, the law of creation, the law of connect, the law of focus, the law of giving and hospitality, the law of change, the law of patience and reward, the law of significance and inspiration.
About Charly Zepeda
My name is Charly Zepeda and I commute from Pico Rivera which is like 10 minutes away from Whittier from where I currently live. My goals in Whittier College is to double major in Psychology (specifically in Social Psychology, Child Development Psychology, and or Counseling Psychology and in Spanish so I can improve my Spanish and be a translator. An interesting fact(s) about me is that I like to play and watch Soccer and my favorite soccer teams are Real Madrid and PSG, in addition I also like to work out in my garage, specifically in weight training at my house.
Sources
Religions of South Asia An Introduction.Sushil Mittal and Gene Thursby.