Dharma
noun /ˈdɑː.mə/ — Sanskrit: one's moral duty, cosmic order, and the path true to one's nature
Definition
A central concept in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism: the cosmic order that underlies existence, and each individual's duty or right path within it. To live according to one's dharma is to live in accordance with both one's nature and the larger order of things.
Beyond the definition
The path that was always yours. Dharma is not a rule imposed from outside but an inner truth about what you are for — the shape of the life that fits you. Violating it produces a specific discomfort; following it produces a specific rightness.
Origin & history
From Sanskrit 'dharma' — from the root 'dhr' (to hold, to sustain). That which holds or sustains — the underlying order that holds existence together, and the individual's role within that order. One of the most ancient and complex concepts in human thought.
Example sentences
Illustrative sentences for learning, not verified community posts or sourced quotations.
The Bhagavad Gita is, among other things, a sustained meditation on dharma: Arjuna's struggle to understand his duty when it conflicts with his love.
There is a secular dharma: the sense that some people have of what they are for — the specific work that, done badly, leaves them less themselves.
Living out of alignment with one's dharma has a particular texture: not guilt exactly, but a sense of being the wrong shape for one's own life.
Synonyms
moral duty, cosmic order, right path, sacred law
Antonyms
adharma, disorder, deviation
Related words
Word in the Wild
See how this word appears in life, language and stories.
Illustrative sentences and imagined stories for learning — not verified sightings, interviews, or sourced quotations.
Fictional scene
Ordering Interlocking Wooden Pieces
An adult works at a bright, large table, meticulously arranging complex wooden pieces into a clear, ordered, and structured formation.
Dharma is the cosmic order underlying existence and the right path within it. The researcher’s methodical process of arranging the pieces into a logical, harmonious whole represents the pursuit of living in accordance with one's nature and the larger order of things, finding truth through structured investigation.
Image credit: Wordspun · AI-generated conceptual illustration