Indian Ethics II: Karma, Ṛta and Satya, Yogakṣema, Aṣṭāṅga Yoga, and Jaina, Buddhist and Cārvāka Ethics

This chapter completes Unit 3. It takes the law of karma and its ethical implications, ṛta and satya, yogakṣema and Patañjali's aṣṭāṅga yoga, and then the three heterodox ethics the syllabus names: Jaina saṃvara-nirjarā, the three jewels and the five vows; the Buddhist upāya-kauśalya, the four brahmavihāras and the bodhisattva ideal; and Cārvāka hedonism. The syllabus spells several of these loosely: "Yoga-kśema" is yogakṣema, "Astānga" is aṣṭāṅga, "Tri-ratṇa" is triratna, "Panch-vrata" is pañca-vrata, "Upāya-Kaushal" is upāya-kauśalya, and "matri" and "upeksha" are maitrī and upekṣā. The chapter uses the standard forms.

1. The law of karma and its ethical implications

The law of karma holds that every intentional action produces a result proportionate to its moral quality, to be experienced by the agent in this life or a later one: as one sows, so one reaps. It is accepted by every Indian school except Cārvāka, though each explains its mechanism differently: through apūrva (Mīmāṃsā), adṛṣṭa under God's supervision (Nyāya-Vaiśeṣika), subtle karmic matter clinging to the soul (Jainism) or the continuity of a mental series driven by intention (Buddhism, where "intention, I say, is karma").

Three stores of karma (Vedānta)
KindMeaningWhat knowledge does to it
SañcitaThe accumulated stock from past lives, not yet bearing fruitBurnt up, "as fire reduces fuel to ashes" (Gītā 4.37)
PrārabdhaThe portion that has begun to bear fruit in this life and bodyMust be exhausted by experience, like an arrow already shot
Kriyamāṇa (āgāmī)Karma being made now, to bear fruit in futureDoes not cling to the knower who acts without attachment
  • Moral responsibility: I am the author of my condition and of my future, so the law of karma is a principle of responsibility, not of blind fate. Present effort (puruṣakāra) shapes future karma, even though past karma conditions present circumstances.
  • Moral order and justice: apparent inequalities of birth and fortune are explained as the fruit of past action, so the universe is held to be morally ordered; the same explanation has been criticised for making existing inequalities seem deserved.
  • The fatalism objection: if my present is fixed by my past, am I free? The standard reply separates circumstances (given by prārabdha) from the response to them (free), and holds that karma inclines but does not compel.
  • Liberation: since all karma, good as well as bad, binds, the final goal is freedom from karma, reached through knowledge, devotion or desireless action, not through accumulating merit alone.

2. Ṛta and satya, yogakṣema and aṣṭāṅga yoga

Ṛta is the Vedic cosmic and moral order (Chapter 1) and satya is truth, both as correspondence of speech to fact and as the real. The Ṛgveda pairs them as the first things born from ardent heat (tapas) in the hymn 10.190, and in ethics they express the demand that conduct conform to the order of things. Satya becomes a supreme value: "speak the truth, practise dharma" (satyaṃ vada, dharmaṃ cara) is the teacher's instruction to the departing student in the Taittirīya Upaniṣad (1.11), and "truth alone triumphs" (satyam eva jayate) comes from the Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad (3.1.6).

Yogakṣema joins yoga, the acquisition of what one does not have, and kṣema, the preservation of what one has: the whole of worldly welfare and security. In the Kaṭha Upaniṣad the fool chooses the pleasant for the sake of yogakṣema; in the Gītā (9.22) Kṛṣṇa promises to carry the yogakṣema of those who worship him with undivided devotion. As an ethical and political idea it names the ruler's and society's duty to secure both the means of life and their protection.

Patañjali's aṣṭāṅga yoga (Yoga Sūtra 2.29)
LimbContent
1. Yama (restraints, 2.30)Ahiṃsā, satya, asteya, brahmacarya, aparigraha; when universal and unconditioned by birth, place, time or circumstance they are the "great vow" (mahāvrata, 2.31)
2. Niyama (observances, 2.32)Śauca, santoṣa, tapas, svādhyāya, īśvara-praṇidhāna
3. ĀsanaA steady and comfortable posture (sthira-sukham āsanam, 2.46)
4. PrāṇāyāmaRegulation of breath
5. PratyāhāraWithdrawal of the senses from their objects
6. DhāraṇāFixing the mind on one place
7. DhyānaAn unbroken flow of cognition toward that object
8. SamādhiThe object alone shines, as if empty of one's own form
🧠 Outer and inner limbs
The first five limbs are bahiraṅga (external aids); the last three, dhāraṇā, dhyāna and samādhi, practised together on one object, are called saṃyama and are antaraṅga (internal). The yamas are the ethical core, and they coincide with the Jaina five vows.

3. Jaina ethics: saṃvara, nirjarā, the three jewels and the five vows

Jaina ethics follows from its metaphysics of karma. Karma is fine matter that flows into the soul (āsrava) through activity of body, speech and mind, and binds it (bandha) because of passions (kaṣāya). Liberation needs two things. Saṃvara, stopping the influx, is achieved by vigilance, restraint and the vows; nirjarā, shedding karma already bound, is achieved above all by austerity (tapas). The seven tattvas of the Tattvārtha Sūtra state the sequence: jīva, ajīva, āsrava, bandha, saṃvara, nirjarā and mokṣa.

  • Triratna, the three jewels: "right faith, right knowledge and right conduct together are the path to liberation" (samyag-darśana-jñāna-cāritrāṇi mokṣa-mārgaḥ, Tattvārtha Sūtra 1.1). None suffices alone; the plural noun with a singular "path" makes the point.
  • Pañca-vrata, the five vows: ahiṃsā (non-injury, the first and chief), satya (truthfulness), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacarya (chastity) and aparigraha (non-possession). Monks and nuns take them in full as mahāvratas; lay people take them in a limited form as aṇuvratas.

4. Buddhist ethics and Cārvāka hedonism

  • Upāya-kauśalya (skill in means): the capacity of a Buddha or bodhisattva to adapt the teaching to the capacities of the hearer. The Lotus Sūtra's parable of the burning house illustrates it: a father lures his children out of a burning house by promising them different carts, then gives them all the best cart. Teachings are means, not ends, like a raft left behind once the river is crossed.
  • The four brahmavihāras ("divine abodes", also the four immeasurables): maitrī (loving-kindness, wishing others happiness), karuṇā (compassion, wishing them free of suffering), muditā (sympathetic joy in others' good fortune) and upekṣā (equanimity, an even mind towards all). Each has a "near enemy" that resembles it (attachment for maitrī, worldly grief for karuṇā, in Buddhaghosa's Visuddhimagga) and a "far enemy" that opposes it (ill will, cruelty).
  • The bodhisattva: in Mahāyāna the ideal is not the arhat who seeks his own nirvāṇa but the bodhisattva, who vows to attain awakening for the sake of all beings and postpones final nirvāṇa out of compassion. The bodhisattva path perfects six pāramitās: generosity (dāna), morality (śīla), patience (kṣānti), vigour (vīrya), meditation (dhyāna) and wisdom (prajñā), later extended to ten; Śāntideva's Bodhicaryāvatāra is its classic guide.

Cārvāka hedonism follows from its materialism. With no soul surviving death and no heaven or hell, the only end of life is pleasure (kāma), and wealth (artha) is its means; dharma and mokṣa are rejected as priestly inventions. The verse ascribed to it runs: "while life remains let a man live happily; let him feed on ghee even though he runs in debt; when once the body becomes ashes, how can it ever return?" To the objection that pleasure is mixed with pain, the Cārvāka replies that we do not throw away rice because of its husk or fish because of its bones. Later sources distinguish crude (dhūrta) Cārvākas from refined (suśikṣita) ones who allowed that some pleasures are finer than others.

⚠️ Brahmavihāra, not brahmacarya
The four brahmavihāras are attitudes toward other beings; brahmacarya is chastity, one of the five yamas and Jaina vows. And upekṣā here is equanimity, not the unknowing indifference that Buddhaghosa calls its "near enemy".

Key takeaways

  • Karma: intentional action bears proportionate fruit; sañcita, prārabdha and kriyamāṇa; a principle of responsibility, answered against fatalism by separating circumstance from response; liberation is freedom from all karma.
  • Ṛta and satya: cosmic order and truth (satyaṃ vada, dharmaṃ cara; satyam eva jayate, Muṇḍaka 3.1.6); yogakṣema: acquisition and preservation (Gītā 9.22).
  • Aṣṭāṅga yoga: yama, niyama, āsana, prāṇāyāma, pratyāhāra, dhāraṇā, dhyāna, samādhi; five yamas (mahāvrata when universal) and five niyamas; the last three form saṃyama.
  • Jainism: saṃvara stops the influx of karma, nirjarā sheds it; triratna (right faith, knowledge, conduct, TS 1.1); five vows as mahāvratas for ascetics and aṇuvratas for the laity.
  • Buddhism: upāya-kauśalya (the burning house), maitrī, karuṇā, muditā, upekṣā, the bodhisattva and six pāramitās. Cārvāka: pleasure the only end, wealth its means; "yāvaj jīvet sukhaṃ jīvet".

Practice questions (10)

Attempt each one before opening the answer. Every explanation names the tempting wrong option as well as the right one, because that is where marks are lost.

  1. Which of the following is NOT one of the four brahmavihāras?

    1. Upekṣā
    2. Maitrī
    3. Muditā
    4. Brahmacarya
    Show answer

    Answer: D — Brahmacarya

    The four brahmavihāras are maitrī, karuṇā, muditā and upekṣā. Brahmacarya (chastity) is one of the five yamas of Yoga and the five Jaina vows.

  2. "Samyag-darśana-jñāna-cāritrāṇi mokṣa-mārgaḥ" is the opening sūtra of:

    1. The Nyāya Sūtra
    2. The Tattvārtha Sūtra
    3. The Brahma Sūtra
    4. The Yoga Sūtra
    Show answer

    Answer: B — The Tattvārtha Sūtra

    Umāsvāti's Tattvārtha Sūtra opens by naming the three jewels as together the path to liberation. The Yoga Sūtra opens with "now the teaching of yoga", the Nyāya Sūtra with the sixteen categories, and the Brahma Sūtra with "now, therefore, the enquiry into Brahman".

  3. In Vedānta, the portion of karma that has already begun to bear fruit in the present body and must be exhausted by experience is:

    1. Kriyamāṇa
    2. Prārabdha
    3. Apūrva
    4. Sañcita
    Show answer

    Answer: B — Prārabdha

    Prārabdha is like an arrow already shot; it runs its course even for the liberated. Sañcita, the accumulated stock, is burnt by knowledge; kriyamāṇa is karma being made now; apūrva is the Mīmāṃsā potency of a ritual act.

  4. The Lotus Sūtra's parable of the burning house illustrates the Buddhist concept of:

    1. Kṣaṇabhaṅgavāda
    2. Anātmavāda
    3. Pratītyasamutpāda
    4. Upāya-kauśalya
    Show answer

    Answer: D — Upāya-kauśalya

    The father promises different carts to lure his children out, then gives each the best: teaching adapted to the hearer, skill in means. The other three are metaphysical doctrines, not ethical-pedagogical ones.

  5. In Jaina ethics, the shedding of karma already bound to the soul, chiefly through austerity, is called:

    1. Nirjarā
    2. Bandha
    3. Āsrava
    4. Saṃvara
    Show answer

    Answer: A — Nirjarā

    Nirjarā is the shedding of accumulated karma. Saṃvara stops new influx, āsrava is the influx itself and bandha the binding of karma to the soul through the passions.

  6. Assertion (A): The yamas of Patañjali become a "great vow" (mahāvrata) when practised universally. Reason (R): Yoga Sūtra 2.31 calls the yamas mahāvrata when they are not limited by birth, place, time or circumstance. Choose the correct option.

    1. Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
    2. Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A
    3. A is true, but R is false
    4. A is false, but R is true
    Show answer

    Answer: A — Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A

    Both are true and R explains A: the sūtra itself defines the great vow as the yamas held without exception of class, place, time or occasion.

  7. Assertion (A): The Cārvāka accepts dharma as a puruṣārtha that regulates the pursuit of pleasure. Reason (R): For the Cārvāka there is no soul surviving death and no heaven or hell. Choose the correct option.

    1. Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
    2. Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A
    3. A is true, but R is false
    4. A is false, but R is true
    Show answer

    Answer: D — A is false, but R is true

    A is false: the Cārvāka accepts only artha and kāma and rejects dharma and mokṣa. R is true, and it is the reason for rejecting them: with no afterlife, there is nothing for dharma or mokṣa to secure.

  8. Which of the following are niyamas in Patañjali's Yoga Sūtra (2.32)? Select all that apply.

    1. Aparigraha
    2. Santoṣa
    3. Svādhyāya
    4. Asteya
    Show answer

    Answer: B — Santoṣa; C — Svādhyāya

    The niyamas are śauca, santoṣa, tapas, svādhyāya and īśvara-praṇidhāna. Aparigraha and asteya are yamas, the restraints.

  9. Which of the following are among the six pāramitās of the bodhisattva? Select all that apply.

    1. Upekṣā (equanimity)
    2. Nirjarā (shedding of karma)
    3. Kṣānti (patience)
    4. Dāna (generosity)
    Show answer

    Answer: C — Kṣānti (patience); D — Dāna (generosity)

    The six are dāna, śīla, kṣānti, vīrya, dhyāna and prajñā. Nirjarā is a Jaina concept, and upekṣā is a brahmavihāra; it appears among the ten pāramitās of the Pāli tradition but not among the six of Mahāyāna.

  10. How many tattvas does the Tattvārtha Sūtra list, from jīva to mokṣa? Type the number.

    Numerical answer — type the value.

    Show answer

    Answer: 7

    Seven: jīva, ajīva, āsrava, bandha, saṃvara, nirjarā and mokṣa. Some Jaina texts add puṇya and pāpa to make nine padārthas.