RIDDLE NO. 17
THE FOUR ASHRAMAS—THE WHY AND HOW ABOUT THEM
The division of society into four orders called Varnas is not the only peculiar feature of Hindu Society. What is called Ashram Dharma is another. There is however one point of difference between the two. The Varna Dharma is a theory of the organization of society. The Ashram Dharma on the other hand is a theory of regulating the life of an individual.
The Ashram Dharma divides the life of an individual into four stages
(1) Brahmacharya, (2) Grahasthashram, (3) Vanaprastha and (4) Sannyas. The state of Brahmacharya has both de jure and de facto connotation in that it means an unmarried state of life. Its de jure connotation means the stage of study under a teacher. Grahasthashram is the stage of a householder, a stage of a married family life. The stage of Sannyas is a stage of renunciation of civic rights and responsibilities. It is a stage of civic death. The stage of Vanaprastha is in between Grahasthashram and Sannyas. It is a stage in which one belongs to society but is bound to live away from society. As the name implies it prescribes dwelling in forest.
The Hindus believe that this institution of Ashram Dharma is as vital as that of the Varna Dharma for the well-being society. They call the two by a joint name of Varnashram Dharma as though they were one and integral. The two together form the steel-frame of the Hindu Society.
To begin with it would be better to have a full understanding of the Ashram Dharma before inquiring into its origin and its purpose and its peculiarities. The best source for an exposition of the Ashram system is the Manu Smriti from which the following relevant extracts are reproduced:
This is an 18-page Manuscript. This is the typed first copy with a title written in the author’s handwriting.—Ed.