Model Answer, Dharma

‘Dharma is subtle and difficult to know’.
Analyse this claim with reference to some of the leading

characters of the Mahabharata [30 marks].
The Sanskrit word ‘Dharma’ has many translations, which should already be enough to support the
claim that Dharma is subtle and difficult to know. There are two dimensions of Dharma in Hinduism
– ‘descriptive’ which refers to a person’s innate nature or temperament and ‘prescriptive’ which
alludes to the right course of action to take based on a person’s situation or responsibilities. This is
known as a person’s varnashrama dharma as it considers a person’s varna – or position in society
and ashrama – their stage in life, when guiding them on how to behave. The Mahabharata, through
its infamous storyline, teaches the importance and application of dharma.
The purpose of varnashrama dharma is to guide humans on what is the most moral course of action
to take when faced with a predicament. For example, Arjuna followed his varnashrama dharma
when he protected the helpless Duryodhana from the Chitrasena Gandharvas. As a Kshatriya Prince
and the brother of Duryodhana, it was his duty to protect him. When the right course of action is
obvious, it convinces a person to believe dharma is easy to comprehend. However, just as in life, the
Mahabharata was plagued with circumstances whereby following ones varnashrama dharma was
not feasible. It is at these times when dharma is subtle and difficult to know.
There are times where a person is pulled in all different directions if they complied to their
varnashrama dharma- the most obvious example is during Draupadi’s vastraharan during the game
of dice. She pleaded everyone present in that court, including the women, to protect her yet she was
left to defend herself - being abandoned by her five valiant husbands and senior members of her
family. These great and virtuous men valued their own varnashrama dharma or vows and so they
protected these rather than Draupadi.
Consequently, Draupadi faced a crisis in which she couldn’t heed to her varnashrama dharma as it
didn’t provide a clear path. Her stri dharma – duties as a woman – required her to be subordinate to
the elders before her. The Pandavas were her husbands who she must regard as God, by being
disobedient, she would be insulting them. However, as a woman she must protect her chastity and
dignity, and this would require her to go against the men in the court. Furthermore, her dharma as a
kshatriya woman means she has a duty towards protecting the weak – in his case, herself. After
contemplating every single possible option presented to her by her varnashrama dharma, Draupadi
knew that the only right action to take was to appeal to her highest ideal for guidance – in other
words follow her sanatana dharma. In that moment, she stopped protecting herself and raised both
of her hands up to completely surrender to the Lord – ‘prapannam pahi govinda kuru-madhye
avasidatim’.
Your varnashrama dharma should act as a template that aids or guides your decisions but should not
be a mould that binds and limits you. The right path is not always presented obviously, and this is
where the nuances of dharma must be considered. The virtuous men present at the court were
confused with their dharma, it was Bhishma who said ‘dharma is subtle and difficult to know’. In one
sense they all knew that protecting Draupadi was the right thing to do, and no doubt they had the
capabilities to do so, yet their own self – righteousness stopped them from doing so.
Your descriptive dharma may also hinder your prescriptive dharma. An animal’s dharma is
straightforward; they simply adhere to their inherited temperaments, and this is why a lioness
protecting her cubs is not blamed for being hostile, it is expected of her as her dharma. However,
humans have been granted a higher consciousness which allows them to comprehend the
consequences of their actions and thus the willpower to restrain from immoral actions.
1
Consequently, one must be very careful when justifying their actions by following their dharma –
what is most significant is the true intention by which an action is performed - Yudhishthira is a
perfect example of this.
When the game of dice was presented to him, he accepted the challenge despite being advised
against doing so by the wise Vidhura. He justified doing so because of a vow he had taken to never
refuse a challenge and due to the fact that he must obey his elders – the king, his ‘father’ had
summoned him.
However, before the game had even begun, it was obvious there was treachery involved on behalf
of the Kauravas. Shakuni was a master-gambler and was rolling on behalf of Duryodhana using dice
that obeyed his commands. Can Yudhishthira’s reasons to carry on playing still be valid once he
found out that the game was not set up fairly, not to mention when he bet his brothers and wife?
In my opinion, this is when Yudhishthira should have sought after his sanatana dharma and avoided
the disaster that awaited. But something was compelling him against it, maybe he was too self-
righteous and had to abide by his own vows, even at the expense of the dignity of his wife? Or
maybe his descriptive dharma was too prominent; Yudhishthira was known for his addiction of
gambling and this weakness of his was taken advantage of by Shakuni. Yudhishthira was blinded by
the fog of his addiction and so used his varnashrama dharma as a scapegoat for his impulsive
decisions.
Dharma can lead a person to carry out great deeds, but if misinterpreted, also has the potential to
sway a person as righteous as the son of Dharmaraja himself. If these great souls struggled to
understand their dharma, there is no doubt it is a difficult subject to comprehend.

Model Answer, Dharma

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Model Answer, Dharma

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‘Dharma is subtle and difficult to know’.

Analyse this claim with reference to some of the leading

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