The ancient sacred scriptures of India speak of four goals of life: dharma (virtue), artha(success), kama(pleasure) and moksha (salvation). They are called ‘Sadhya’ which means ‘that which needs to be attained’ viz goals of life. They are also called ‘Purusharthas’ or that which is desired by every human being. The seers of India, the Rishis of yore delved deep into themselves in meditation and studied their basic desires and wishes and then identified four goals of life. These four goals of life are common to all mankind irrespective of status, sex or nationality. These four goals are universal and also basic needs for survival of man. We all aspire to be virtuous, successful, fulfil our desires and also be dear and close to God. Our lives will be incomplete and unsatisfactory even if one of the goals remains unfulfilled. Having identified the goals, we must understand them and work hard in order to achieve them. By doing so, we attain a well rounded life.
Dharma: means being virtuous. It is a righteous way of living. It is living an ethical life with principles. The definition of virtue depends on caste and the ashramas. A brahmin is supposed to offer worship and sacrifices and teach the society. A vaishya should trade or do land cultivation to the best of his ability. Every person was expected to do the work allotted to him as per his caste. This was the primary duty of all. It also depended on the stages of life or ashrama. A brahmachari or student was expected to study and gain knowledge and learn his craft or trade. Dharma also means living peaceful with all so that the atmosphere and society are conducive to attaining our material and spiritual desires. Dharma is so fundamental that even a murderer expects others to be good and truthful to him.
Artha: is achievement of success. It is earning of wealth and power for man needs both. We need wealth for survival, living in comfort and enjoying some luxuries. Having wealth helps us to fulfil our duties and obligations towards family, society and nation. It also gives us security in times of emergency and sicknesses and in old age. Religion gave power and sanctioned man to work hard and earn wealth, success, fame and name. Religion also gave guidelines on how to achieve name, fame, success and wealth – do it virtuously and ethically. Achievement of artha is easy and possible when a man is a Grahastha or householder.
Kama: is all kinds of pleasures including artistic pleasures. This includes arts, music, dance, drama, literature, poetry, painting and sex. Religion says man must develop and relish all kinds of arts in a virtuous manner. Hinduism believes all literature, speech, music, dance and other pleasures are divine and they must be respected and honoured and used and not misused. Desires can also be about things beyond. When we try to quench desires, we understand the futility of our quest. After many futile trials and failures, we let go and move towards the divine.
Moksha: it is striving for salvation; for release from the cycle of births and deaths. We are not born to just eat, sleep, work and continue our lineage. There is a higher purpose to life – we need to find out from where we have come and why and how we can go back to our original state. Moksha means total freedom. It is freedom from limitations of time and space, from our dependence on artha and kama. Practices for moksha lead us to Enlightenment, the Supreme Power.
When we look at the life of all beings in world today, we see that these four goals are true and still applicable since ancient times. When we follow the guidelines given by the Rishis, we achieve our goals and live a successful and happy life.
