Dharma Devatā

Dharma Devatā is Dharma, the principle of right conduct, in the form of a person. The Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, in the Brahma Khaṇḍa, Chapter 3, says that he arose from the chest of Śrī Kṛshṇa at the start of creation. He is white, gentle and smiling. He is free from violence and anger. He is a witness to all beings and all their deeds.

He bowed fully before Kṛshṇa, lying flat on the ground, and sang a stotra (hymn of praise) made of twenty-four sacred names. Chapter 9 gives his family, his wives and sons, as part of the family tree of creation.

Other texts tell more. The Padma Purāṇa says he was born three times among people, after a śāpa (curse) from Durvāsa. In the Mahābhārata he tests King Sudarśana, and he is Yudhishṭhira and Vidura.

Origin

Dharma came out of Kṛshṇa’s chest at the beginning of sṛshṭi (creation). His form is described like this.

  • White (śukla).
  • Wearing jaṭās (matted locks).
  • Sākshī-bhūta, a witness to all.
  • Sarva-jña, knowing all.
  • Sama-dṛshṭi, looking at all beings and all their deeds with an equal eye.
  • Dayā-yukta, full of mercy.
  • Free from hiṃsā (violence) and krodha (anger).
  • Dharma-jñāna-yukta, holding the knowledge of dharma.
  • Dharma-parāyaṇa, given wholly to dharma.
  • Dharma-svabhāva-kārin, one who brings the nature of dharma to others.

His face was smiling. He stood for right conduct at its best, among both people and devas. (Brahma Vaivarta Mahā Purāṇa, Brahma Khaṇḍa)

Stotra to Kṛshṇa

Dharma bowed before Kṛshṇa with a daṇḍa-praṇāma (a full bow, lying like a staff). He sang twenty-four sacred names of Kṛshṇa. Then he greeted Brahmā, Vishṇu and Śiva. At Kṛshṇa’s command he took his seat. (Brahma Vaivarta Mahā Purāṇa, Brahma Khaṇḍa)

Part in bringing Upabarhana back

In Chapters 17–18, Dharma took part, with others, in bringing Upabarhana back. His gift was dharma-jñāna, the knowledge of dharma. It was one of the main things given back to Upabarhana. The others were prāṇa (life breath) from Bhagavān Vishṇu, jñāna (knowledge) from Bhagavān Śiva, sight from Bhagavān Sūrya, speech from Sarasvatī and kānti (radiance) from Lakshmī. (Brahma Vaivarta Mahā Purāṇa, Brahma Khaṇḍa)

Family (Chapter 9)

Chapter 9 gives the wives and sons of Dharma as part of the family tree of creation. His descendants make up important lines in the account of creation. (Brahma Vaivarta Mahā Purāṇa, Brahma Khaṇḍa)

Dharma’s three births among people

The Bhūmi Khaṇḍa of the Padma Mahā Purāṇa, in Chapters 12–14, tells how Dharma was born three times among people. The ṛshis Dattātreya and Durvāsa had done tapas (austerity) for ten thousand years to see Dharma in his own form.

At last Dharma came with his whole retinue. They were Satya, Tapas, Dama, Niyama, Śauca, Śuśrūshā, Dhātrī, Kshamā, Śānti, Lajjā, Ahiṃsā, Śraddhā, Medhā, Dayā and others, each in person. Durvāsa became angry that Dharma had not come sooner. Dharma explained, but Durvāsa spoke three śāpas.

  1. “Become a rājā!” This came true in Dharmarāja Yudhishṭhira, the eldest Pāṇḍava, the fullest example among people of rāja-dharma (the dharma of a king).
  2. “Become a dāsī-putra!” This came true in Vidura, born to Vyāsa and a dāsī (a maidservant) in the Kuru house. He is the voice of dharma most steady through the Mahābhārata.
  3. “Become a caṇḍāla!” This came true in the time of Hariścandra’s hardest trial at the hands of Viśvāmitra. Dharma took birth as a caṇḍāla in the midst of the most intense suffering for the sake of dharma known to the Purāṇas.

Dharma accepted all three śāpas without a word. (Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Bhūmi Khaṇḍa, Chapters 12–14)

Testing Sudarśana’s vow of hospitality

This account is the Sudarśanopākhyāna in the Anuśāsana Parva. King Sudarśana was a gṛhastha (householder). He had vowed to conquer Mṛtyu (Death) by perfect hospitality to guests. Dharma took the form of a shining brāhmaṇa atithi (guest) to test whether Sudarśana could keep his vrata (vow) even to the very end.

Dharma came while Sudarśana was away gathering samidhas (sticks for the fire). As the brāhmaṇa he asked for Sudarśana’s wife, Oghavatī, as the hospitality he wanted. She agreed. Her husband had told her always that nothing a guest wished for should be refused. Mṛtyu followed behind Dharma throughout this test. He carried a kūṭamudgala (a false mace). He hoped to catch Sudarśana in a failure of dharma and kill him.

Sudarśana came back and learned what had happened. He gave up all jealousy and anger and was glad instead. He swore an oath of truth on his own body before ten inner witnesses. They were pṛthivī (earth), vāyu (air), ākāśa (space), jala (water), agni (fire), buddhi (intellect), ātmā (the self), manas (mind), kāla (time) and dik (direction).

Dharma was pleased and showed his true form. He declared that Sudarśana had conquered Mṛtyu, the five elements (pañcabhūtas), intellect, time, mind, space, and desire and anger together, by his own dhairya (steadiness).

Dharma foretold that Oghavatī, through her tapas, would become a holy river bearing her own name. In her other half she would stay always in her husband’s service by yogabala (the power of yoga). Then Indra came with a chariot drawn by a thousand white horses. He carried the couple in their own bodies to the eternal worlds from which none return. (Mahābhārata, Anuśāsana Parva, Chapter 2)

Vidura and Yudhishṭhira, two avatāras of Dharma

The Āśramavāsika Parva states plainly that Dharma took two avatāras (descents), as Vidura and as Yudhishṭhira. Vyāsa said before Dhṛtarāshṭra, “He who is Dharma is none other than Vidura. He who was Vidura is none other than this son of Pāṇḍu.”

Vyāsa explained that the eternal Dharma was born as Vidura, in a śūdra mother’s womb, under the śāpa of Maharshi Māṇḍavya. Then this same Dharma, “by the strength of yoga”, took avatāra a second time as Yudhishṭhira.

Vyāsa also taught that Dharma is nourished by satya (truth), dama (self-control), śama (calm), ahiṃsā (non-violence) and dāna (giving). Dharma fills the whole moving and unmoving world, as fire, air, water, earth and space do. The sinless devas see him everywhere at once.

In Chapter 26 this ended in a yogic event. Vidura’s prāṇa (life breath) entered Yudhishṭhira’s own body. The two avatāras of Dharma became one again. (Mahābhārata, Āśramavāsika Parva, Chapters 26 and 28)

Sources

  • Brahma Vaivarta Mahā Purāṇa, Brahma Khaṇḍa (Chapter 3, Chapter 9, Chapters 17–18)
  • Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Bhūmi Khaṇḍa, Chapters 12–14
  • Mahābhārata, Anuśāsana Parva, Chapter 2
  • Mahābhārata, Āśramavāsika Parva, Chapters 26 and 28