Comparative Religions for Four Ashrams of Hindu - myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theComparative Religions for Four Ashrams of Hindu Religion. Answer: Introduction In the Vedic tradition of Hindu religion the ashrams represents the four stages of human life named Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha and Sanyasa Ashram.[1] In this each stage of life, one has to follow certain duties where initial two stages are dedicated to that persons training and the later two stages are for his development. Brahmacharya Ashram This stage is the student period of all the young people. They start acquiring knowledge from their guru at the age of 8 through the Upanayana ceremony.[2] They students stay in the gurus house and learn how to dress, talk, walk, plough land and every kind of job form their guru. The students take vows of chastity, hard work, simplicity, respect towards their guru and devotion to knowledge. Example We can take example from the Hindu epic The Mahabharata where Kauravas and Pandavas went to Guru Dronacharyas house to complete their Brahmacharya.[3] Grihastha Ashram This is the ideal married life that the students enter after completing the education after completing their education at the gurugrihas. In the stage they are expected to perform their household duties appropriately. The purusharthas named Artha (career, wealth), Kama (desire, love), Dharma (righteousness) and Moksha (eternal bliss) will be fuilfilled here.[4] They have to maintain the companionship, up bring the children, show admiration to his ancestors and move towards the moksha. Example In Hindu epic The Ramayana Rama entered into the Grihastha stage with his wife Sita. He followed Dharma when he accepted mother Kaikayees order of banishment from the kingdom and to the forest and he took his wife and brother along with him.[5] Vanaprastha After completing the Grihastha, they hand over the family responsibilities to their children and engage with social work. The person leaves all familial attachments and lives as a hermit in the forest.[6] He only leaves the family only when his sons have earning capability and daughters are married off. They inhabit in a forest far from the locality and offer help to the villagers. Example Raja Harishchandra, following a dream and Vishwamitras order gave up all his wealth and materialistic possession to the saint and left for Vanaprastha along with his wife.[7] Sanyasa Sanyasa is the final stage of the journey of human life. This stage is the complete renunciation from all the materialistic or emotional attachments. In the stage the person aims for development of interest and motivation. If one observes carefully the world of the person is getting expanded gradually and outside the domestic sphere or society now the person cares for the whole universe. Here the person does not think of the end result and get engaged with disinterested actions. Here the person waits for his karmafala to be completed and waits for the ultimate liberation through death. Example For example in the Ashramvasika Parva of The Mahabharata Dhritarashtra and Gandhari took sanyasa and lived hermits life. In modern day Swami Vivekananda was an example who left everything and followed the pat of sanyas.[8] Conclusion Modern society can learn a lot from the great principles of Hindu life. The ashrams teach that every human has certain responsibilities towards his family, society and life. The ashrams teach everyone to become responsible adults and always respect the elders. The human existence does not have any meaning without its significant contribution to the people, society and the universe. Reference "The Mahabharata". 2011. Gita-Society.Com.https://www.gita-society.com/pdf2011/mahabharata.pdf Dalal, Roshen. "Hinduism and its basic texts."Reading the Sacred Scriptures: From Oral Tradition to Written Documents and their Reception(2017): 20. Jnanamritananda Puri, Swami, and , Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi. 2014. "Eternal Wisdom: Upadeshamritam Volume 1". https://Eternal Wisdom: Upadeshamritam Volume 1, Volume 1. Patil, Vinutha S. "Swami Vivekananda on Service."Pragmata: Journal of Human Sciences3, no. 1 (2016): 83-93. Singh, Shri Prakash. "Concept Of Rajdharma In Adi-Kavya: Ramayana And Mahabharata."The Indian Journal Of Public Administration(2015): 132. Srivastava, Chhitij, Vishal Dhingra, Anupam Bhardwaj, and Alka Srivastava. "Morality and moral development: Traditional Hindu concepts."Indian journal of psychiatry55, no. Suppl 2 (2013): S283. Srivastava, S. K., and Kailash Chandra Barmola. "Rituals in hinduism as related to spirituality."Indian Journal of Positive Psychology4, no. 1 (2013): 87. Suryavanshi, Priyanka. "Vedic Ashrams of Life: a Step Towards Successful Ageing and Accepting Death Gracefully."Indian Journal of Gerontology30, no. 4 (2016).