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Showing posts from January 24, 2016

Understanding Vidhi

Some time ago, I'd written about understanding the concept of " dharma " that has shaped the thought of south and south-east Asian cultures. Common misconceptions about dharma meaning "religion" or "duty" or "ethics" were rejected in favour of an interpretation of dharma as the "principle of sustainability." This interpretation helps us to maximally explain different characteristics of dharmic cultures -- especially the diverse set of ideas and practices that are considered dharmic in different contexts. Imagine interpreting " dharma " as "ethics" leading us to a flawed conclusion that in Eastern cultures ethics is relative. This explains the misplaced contempt with which other conservative cultures view Eastern thought. Another similarly mistaken notion is the concept of vidhi . Vidhi is widely translated as "fate" and the central role vidhi plays in Eastern thought, makes our cultures appear