Let’s begin with the definition. This word has a large number of different definitions, a lot of meanings. The most important thing-to choose from them that, which is suitable to one or another situation. In one or another context meaning of this word take one or another color. We will consider one of the basic senses of this word. As a word Dharma sometimes understand a certain spiritual doctrine, sometimes a condition of a certain truth or a quite concrete sect. The most capacious and explaining Dharma concept – is a certain way of life, individual for each person; following it a person avoids suffering at most, how much allows his Karma to avoid sufferings. Dharma-It is a way, going on which, the negative side of Karma is reduced as much as possible, and positive effect of Karma extremely increases, besides, going on this way, the person in general leaves sooner or later an action field of Karma. Therefore, speaking to simple words, Dharma- It is that way, which guards us against sufferings.
We still do not know that level, where there is no cause and effect, where there is not Karma, but we perfectly feel, what are the sufferings and pleasures. Always there is a question to itself, whether correctly I have passed the course of life or any moments could be avoided. By the long analysis the person understands that if he acted in some situations differently, he could have avoided a large quantity of sufferings. Certainly, there are some things which fall to us regardless of our actions. For example, natural calamity or the mass social phenomena or something else, which does not depend on us, whether we have acted anyhow all the same under this wave have got. But there are such moments in our life, where we absolutely clearly understand, that ourselves caused that we have felt this or that negative experience. There is a following question- whether it is possible to avoid on-maximum a negative in the future?! It is clear that we cannot destroy in three days our Karma, we gained it during many lives, and it should be fulfilled. We understand, that we have a negative Karma, and there and then we ask a question – While this negative Karma is not developed, how we should operate in a life, where to go, what to do, what not to do. If we recognize this way, it starts to coincide with a Dharma way; it is that path, which is most acceptable to us in a life.
I come to the definition of a Dharma from a practical side. What is yoga advantage? Yoga gives a method. Yoga explains many things, but does not stop on this; Yoga tries to apply these explanations in a quite concrete situation, to use it in practice. Yoga is the system of self-knowledge, which adheres to two principles – a principle of Non-injuring any live being and a principle of not wasting yourself on trifles. Yoga calls upon to wend your way through the life adhering these principles. Based on these principles, we can approach to a technique, which help to define the Dharma or that way, on which we should go through life. Yoga is not static, it does not tell something unequivocally, and unequivocally recommendations for all cannot be given. Yoga gives certain methods, following which, you can develop this recommendation for yourself, like a constructor from what you can collect that you can apply exactly in your life. The same situation is with the Dharma definition. If we adhere to yoga system, we should follow to the first and the second principle, i.e. we try to avoid injuring any live being and at the same time we try to adhere to common sense. Actually, can happen in human life that the first principle and the second principle collide (contradict each other), when to take the following step you tread on blade, beetle or a spider and crush them, but also not to do this step you cannot. This conflict between two principles can arise in the most unexpected places, the hidden conflict when the family expects from us something one, but we understanding that this one is not included into our life plans, we do something another, thereby, upsetting the family. Always there is a question- what should I do? It is very difficult question, we go to one side – someone suffer, we go to other side – we break the second yoga principle, i.e. expediency (reasonability). The yoga says that it is indirectly possible to define the degree of your negative Karma. If in your life the first principle and the second principle collide (contradict each other) too often, means, your Karma is not so cheerful. On the contrary if they do not contradict each other, you can effectively do everything that have planned, thus nobody will not suffer. The first and the second principles like two big mountains, it is necessary to pass between them, but it is necessary to find this path. Any yogin tries to execute the first principle to cause a minimum harm, I underline, a minimum harm, instead of absence of harm in general, we cannot avoid harm totally, we should reduce it. And to what degree we should reduce it? Only the second principle can help us to know it. Otherwise, being afraid to injure, we will transform our life into a hell. If you are going by the path where the first principle of yoga is infringed in the minimum degree and the second principle of yoga is fulfilled to the maximum, it is a Dharma path. To define your Dharma, we should at first try to follow the first and the second yoga principles.
The first Yoga principle says: In every way you should avoid injuring any live being without an emergency of that. If there is no such possibility you should act how your duty tells you. In this case a word debt is equivalent to a word a Dharma, a debt is that way which we should adhere. There is one more word meaning a Dharma, as our profession, a way of life, as a certain style of behavior, which we consider acceptable for ourselves. If I am professional military man, means my debt – to protect the motherland with arm in hands. If I face situation which demands from me infringement of the first yoga principle, my debt prompts to me to what degree I can infringe it. On the other hand, the second yoga principle says that you shouldn’t waste time and forces in vain and spend it only on what leads us to our purpose but anything that takes us away from our purpose, necessary to reject. The purpose here is understood as the purpose of our way on a life. Word meaning of Dharma-the certain way conducting us to the purpose. It turns out that the Dharma concept there is in the second yoga principle. How much we can be involved in any actions or reject it, somewhere we intuitively solve for ourselves, and then the person asks yourself – am I assured that what I consider as the debt, really is my debt, whether correctly I have set to myself the aims? It turns out that in the first and the second yoga principles implicitly there is a Dharma concept, and on the other hand the person starts to doubt in a following step, whether really it there was its Dharma or it is necessary to reconsider all. Yoga suggests defining step by step what your debt is. The person take upon oneself the first and the second yoga principles and applies them how he considers it necessary, but further, applying them, it gropes that area between the first and the second principles and follows on it. Following on this path, the person reconsiders the purposes and applies these principles already with other borders. It approaches him more closely to that is its debt. And, so closer and closer, but it is necessary always begin with trying to apply the first and the second principles. If they have not contradict each other, you have a scope in your life, where you can act this way and that, and it will be good in all cases. Much worse when there is not in your life this scope, when the first and the second principles start contradict each other. Here rescues only clear knowledge of the way, the Dharma, but in order to understand that, it was necessary before it to carry out the first and the second yoga principles. The circle is closed on itself. It turns out that the first and the second principles follow from Dharma concept, and the Dharma concept follows from the first and the second principles. It would seem, it’s a question of a hen and egg, but yoga is realistic, she says that today you started to practice yoga; you have already established representations about life, which seem to you the most acceptable. As a basis we take that we have now, that we have generated before started practice yoga, we continue going the same way, but as much as possible applying the first and the second principles. Applying them, we start to see where we were mistaken; the line of conduct appears more accurately, we approach to a Dharma concept more closely; accordingly we can define more accurately borders of the first and the second yoga principles. So we live and constantly analyze. Sometimes the person can sharply change a course of life, the Dharma does not assume a rectilinear way.
The Dharma can be shown in your profession. You were engaged in something one and considered it as the debt, but there comes the moment when you suddenly realize that in what you were engaged, not absolutely yours. Your path of life sharply turns. If you do not pass this turn you will be happy or as much as possible will avoid misfortunes. If you pass this turn your sufferings will go at an ever-increasing rate. Another ways to define the Dharma, not exist. The Dharma concept exclusively individual, that is that path on which you go, can be absolutely unacceptable even for people the most close to you, because everyone have your own Karma. Therefore blind copying a course of life of one person on itself or attempt to impose your course of life to another person is senseless. It is necessary to remember that our path on a life is our path and it is unique. We will generalize some moments. Sometimes the first and the second Yoga principles can contradict each other, it depends on your karmic situation. In this case try to find such decision when the first principle would be satisfied at most (as much as possible) and the second principle wouldn’t be satisfied least of all. Look for such way of life not to break these principles at the same time. For someone it makes easily, for someone it more difficult, it depends on yours Karma. If it is heavy to combine these two principles, means, your situation heavier. The way of life forming when we try to follow the first and second principle as much as possible coincides at most with our Dharma. The Dharma concept is ideally, we can come nearer to it and the first and the second principles will help us with it and sooner or later intuitively catch. Dharma- is a way, which lead us to the higher spiritual peaks of self-knowledge. If the person suddenly decided to become yoga teacher, i.e. to change the way of life, need to determine whether you’re Dharma to be a yoga teacher. Perhaps, your Dharma not to be a yoga teacher, but it concerns any profession and any kind of activity. I remind that there are no recipes. Some think that well to be high in the social scale, that it is necessary to go always only on increase, but yoga says absolutely another, that it is necessary to go on a path of Dharma. If this path at some instant tells to you to refuse career, if you will not refuse, you will suffer, you will take not your place, you will live unacceptable for you. The greatest luck is to find your Dharma quickly and at once. Nobody expects that the person from the first days will find the Dharma, the person make an efforts even before to find the profession. If we follow the Dharma way, we as much as possible avoid all sufferings, which are caused our negative Karma, and at the same time as much as possible we receive pleasure and happiness from positive Karma. Moreover, following the Dharma way, we are going the way of our spiritual development and self-knowledge, that doing all necessary that we can totally overstep the Karma limits, both positive, and negative. Your Dharma defines your debt; your debt defines your acts and your internal code of honor. Each of us has own prehistory and, accordingly, our karmic position is different now, accordingly, ways of an exit from this position can be different for different people. The main thing-to find your own way, the way of other person can be as exemplar for us, especially a way of yoga Teacher, but at the same time it can be completely unacceptable for our life. The first and the second principles will lead you to understanding of your Dharma, the understanding of a Dharma will give you understanding of a debt, the understanding of a debt will give you understanding of your life purposes and correct acts, correct acts yield results useful to us, our understanding of a life increases, and the first and the second yoga principles is better come home to us. While we do not understand all grandness of the first and the second yoga principles, we hardly can understand the Dharma but even if we do not understand them up to the end, but we learn to embody it in a life, that with the lapse of time we start to understand your own spiritual way. It result us on more full understanding of yoga principles. So, passing circles, yogin becomes more perfect, wiser and happier.