Question

Origin of the Sanatan Dharma

Answer

Why "Hindu Dharma" and "Sanatan Dharma" are synonym? :

First of all, the Sanskrit term Sanatan means eternal or ancient.

  1. From Wikipedia:

    Sanātana Dharma (Devanagari: सनातन धर्म meaning "eternal dharma" or "eternal order") has been proposed as an alternative, "native" name for Hinduism (Hindi Hindu Dharm हिन्दू धर्म "Hindu religion".[5] The term was mentioned and explained in depth in Vedic literature (Rig Veda) (4-138) and was used during the Hindu revivalism movement in order to avoid having to use the term "Hindu" which is of non-native (Persian) origin.[6][7]

    The phrase dharma sanātana does occur in classical Sanskrit literature, e.g. in the Manusmrti (4-138)[11] and in the Bhagavata Purana,[12][13] in a sense akin to "cosmic order".

  2. According to सनातन धर्म:

    वैदिक काल में भारतीय उपमहाद्वीप के धर्म के लिये 'सनातन धर्म' नाम मिलता है। 'सनातन' का अर्थ है - शाश्वत या 'हमेशा बना रहने वाला', अर्थात् जिसका न आदि है न अन्त।

    English: In vedic era, the name "Sanatan Dharam" is founded for the Dharma of Indian sub-continent, The meaning of "Sanatan" is eternal, 'Would remain forever' i.e. which has no beginning and ending.

    Quoted verse:-

    • Athervaveda 10/8/23:

      सनातनमेनमहुरुताद्या स्यात पुनण्रव्

      Meaning: Sanatan is called which is innovative/renewed even today.

    • Rigveda 3-8-1:

      "यह पथ सनातन है। समस्त देवता और मनुष्य इसी मार्ग से पैदा हुए हैं तथा प्रगति की है। हे मनुष्यों आप अपने उत्पन्न होने की आधाररूपा अपनी माता को विनष्ट न करें।"

      Meaning: This path/route is sanatan. All deities and human beings are born and progressed from this....

  3. From Bharatdiscovery:

    भारत का सर्वप्रमुख धर्म हिन्दू धर्म है, जिसे इसकी प्राचीनता एवं विशालता के कारण 'सनातन धर्म' भी कहा जाता है

    English: It is called "Sanatan Dharam" for its ancientness and hugeness

  4. Important note from Britannica Encyclopedia:

    Sanatana dharma, in Hinduism, term used to denote the “eternal” or absolute set of duties or religiously ordained practices incumbent upon all Hindus, regardless of class, caste, or sect. Different texts give different lists of the duties, but in general sanatana dharma consists of virtues such as honesty, refraining from injuring living beings, purity, goodwill, mercy, patience, forbearance, self-restraint, generosity, and asceticism. Sanatana dharma is contrasted with svadharma, one’s “own duty” or the particular duties enjoined upon an individual according to his or her class or caste and stage of life. The potential for conflict between the two types of dharma (e.g., between the particular duties of a warrior and the general injunction to practice non-injury) is addressed in Hindu texts such as the Bhagavad Gītā, where it is said that in such casessvadharma must prevail.

    The term has also more recently been used by Hindu leaders, reformers, and nationalists to refer to Hinduism as a unified world religion. Sanatana dharma has thus become a synonym for the “eternal” truth and teachings of Hinduism, the latter conceived of as not only transcendent of history and unchanging but also as indivisible and ultimately nonsectarian.

You may also refer:

Sanatan Dharma is the original name of Hinduism. - From wikidot and wikipedia.

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