The Encyclopedia of World Religions

dharma in Hinduism and Buddhism S 117

But in religious terms dharma refers most spe cifically to the moral standard by which human actions are judged. The impact of this standard is very broad ranging. At its most universally human, dharma is sometimes said to be the Hindu equiva lent of the English word “religion.” Starting perhaps in the second century B . C . E ., dharma was systematized in books known as Smritis or Dharmasastras, the most famous is the Laws of M ANU . These books recognize that differ ent dharmas or ideals of behavior are appropriate to different groups of people. It is customary to identify these ideals in terms of the varna or RITUAL class into which one is born ( see CASTE IN H INDU ISM ), the asrama or stage of life in which one finds oneself, and, although it is not often stated, one’s gender. Technically, the stages of life apply only to males of the highest three varnas: BRAHMINS , kshatriyas, and vaisyas. In youth boys should study the V EDA . In maturity they should marry, support a household, perform the household ritu als, and have children, especially sons. In old age they should retire. Some choose yet a fourth stage, a life of total renunciation. The traditional ideal for women stresses their subservience to men: in youth to their fathers, in maturity to their husbands, and as widows to their sons. This ideal has often made life very hard for Indian women. Nevertheless, powerful and inde pendent women have emerged in every period of Indian history. BUDDHIST DHARMA Buddhism rejected the ritual classes of Hindu dharma. Indeed, it rejected Hindu rituals altogether. In Buddhism, dharma was originally identi fied with the B UDDHA ’s teaching. Then it became the teachings of Buddhism in general. With this meaning it appears as one of Buddhism’s three jewels. An example is the formula, “I take refuge in the Buddha; I take refuge in the SANGHA ; I take refuge in the Dharma.” Buddhist dharma is summarized in the Bud dha’s FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS . For T HERAVADA Buddhists

hand in other places from Cambodia to Bosnia as well. However that may be, devils and demons live on as parts of many religious worldviews. Further reading: Peter J. Awn, Satan’s Tragedy and Redemption [On Iblis in Islam] (Leiden: Brill, 1983); James W. Boyd, Satan and Mara (Leiden: Brill, 1975); Wendy Doniger, The Origin of Evil in Hindu Mythology (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1976); Robert Muchembled, Damned: An Illustrated History of the Devil (San Francisco: Sevil/Chronicle, 2004); Jeffrey Burton Russell, The Prince of Darkness (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1988), and other works by this author. devotion, devotionalism Religious acts and inward attitudes marked by deep emotional feel ings of awe, love, and fervent commitment to G OD . Movements like B HAKTI in H INDUISM , H ASIDISM in J UDAISM , or the spirit of St. F RANCIS OF A SSISI and Franciscanism pietism and much of Evangelical ism in C HRISTIANITY may be regarded as devotional. The devotionalist typically centers WORSHIP , in the mind and often on the ALTAR , on a vivid, precise representation of the divine in some form: the god K RISHNA , the Sacred Heart of J ESUS , C HRIST on the cross, and god in one’s own heart. Simple prayers, chants, and moving hymns, and even the dance of P ENTECOSTALISM are among the varied expressions of devotion, though it may also be subjective and free-form. Devotional attitudes and movements have done much to keep religion alive throughout the ages. dharma in Hinduism and Buddhism From the Sanskrit verb dhri, which means “to sustain.” Dharma is the order that sustains the universe. Although it always retains this root meaning, it is used somewhat differently in H INDUISM and B UDDHISM . HINDU DHARMA In Hinduism, dharma refers to all forms of order. Thus, it can refer to the regular cycles of the sun.