adharma | अधर्म
Adharma ( adharma (Devanagari: अधर्म ISO15919: adharma ) means going against dharma , or irreligion.
Dharma and adharma are not decided by human opinion, culture, or common sense—they are decided only by the Vedas , the eternal words of God. What the Vedas declare as right is truly right, and what they forbid is truly wrong.
According to the Vedas, there are layers to adharma :
- vikarma (forbidden actions) are always adharma.
- Not following one’s duties prescribed in Vedas according to one’s varna (social role) and ashram (stage of life) is also adharma .
Most importantly, the jiva who neglects bhakti —loving devotion to God—remains bound in adharma . Such a soul experiences suffering in narak (hellish realms) as a merciful warning from God, to turn them away from the destructive path and guide them back to the path of bhakti .
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