The Four Pillars of a Balanced Life and why the World is Out-of-Balance

 

The modern concept of work-life balance is known to most people. Its origin can be traced to the late 19th century, when factory workers toiled for long hours in grueling conditions. Labor rights movements, then, began to advocate for 8 hours of work per day, to allow time for family responsibilities and recreation.

The sages of ancient India had also pondered over the question of what constitutes a balanced life - one that would lead to material, emotional and spiritual fulfillment. 

They recommended a framework consisting of 4 purposes for a balanced life: Dharma (Duty), Artha (Work), Kama (Pleasure) and Moksha (Liberation). These four objectives are together known as the four Purusharthas. It is a Sanskrit term composed of two words: Purusha meaning “soul” or “spirit”, and Artha meaning “purpose” or “objective”. 

The Purusharthas have been mentioned in various ancient texts, although, in some of them, only the first three objectives were specified and moksha i.e. liberation from the cycles of birth and death, was not included. That’s because the activities associated with the attainment of moksha were included as a part of the first pillar i.e. dharma. 

Let us try to understand what each of these four terms mean, and how they apply to us in the modern day.

Dharma

The term "dharma" has two meanings, depending on its usage. It can mean duty or responsibility, as in, “You must fulfil your dharma.” It can also mean righteous conduct, as in, “You must act in accordance with dharma.” In the context of the four pillars of a balanced life, dharma means duty or responsibility, since righteousness must be adhered to when we are following each of the four objectives. 

The ancient sages advocated that one must fulfil one’s duties, responsibilities and obligations in order to ensure harmony within the family and the society at large. If we ignore or evade our responsibilities, the consequences come back to bite us and spills over to the rest of the society. If there is discord and disharmony within the family, or is adequate attention is not given to the children or the spouse, it has wider social ramifications. 

Not only do we have a duty to our family, we also have responsibilities to society and to the environment which supports us all. The idea, then, is to live in an environmentally conscious manner and try to fulfil our obligations to family and society. That will create a world that is vibrant, joyful and nurturing.

Artha

The term “artha” means wealth, but here it means working for a living. The ancient sages were quite clear that a person’s material and security needs have to be fulfilled in order to for him to lead a life that is balanced and harmonious. 

However, one must not violate the principles of dharma or righteous action while performing work. What is it that constitutes dharma? The Padma Purana has a simple definition: “If the entire Dharma can be said in a few words, then it is this - that which is unfavorable to us, do not do that to others.”

In other words, we should treat others in the same way that we would like to be treated - with respect, kindness, understanding, dignity, truthfulness, honesty and forgiveness. Dharma, the, is no different from the Golden Rule. If we digress from dharma, it does not take long for the entire society to be plunged into fraud, corruption, hatred and violence. 

In the ancient times, most people used to follow the profession of their ancestors, but in the modern day we need to choose our career. In spite of the fact that we have various choices, many people end up doing work that they find boring or tedious. 

What is the kind of work that is most fulfilling? The Japanese framework for choosing a career called Ikigai (meaning, “a reason for being”) is helpful in this respect. 

As per Ikigai, your ideal career lies at the intersection of four criteria i.e. it fulfills each of the following four criteria: 

1. What you love doing i.e. your passions and interests.
2. What you are good at i.e. your talents and skills.
3. What the world needs i.e. the products, solutions or services people are looking for.
4. What you can get paid for i.e. the goods and services that people are willing to pay for.

Ikigai diagram. Credit: Eugenio Hansen, OFS, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons 

In order to follow Ikigai, a person should to be willing to explore possibilities and trust one’s instincts and judgement. It has been seen that people who follow the principles of Ikigai have higher levels of motivation and continue working well into their old age.

Kama

The term Kama broadly means pleasure, although, over time, it has become strongly associated with love and conjugal pleasures. The ancient sages did not recommend that people lead an austere life devoid of pleasurable activities. Rather, they encouraged people to spend time with friends and families, participate in social and cultural activities, engage in fun and games, and pursue one’s desires, talents and vocations.

The only catch: You must not deviate from dharma in the pursuit of pleasure. That means, we should not harm, deceive or exploit anyone, including ourselves. In the modern day, a lot of what passes recreational activities are detrimental to our health and consciousness, and impacts our family and social ties in a negative way. 

For instance, the ancient Indian texts routinely denounce gambling and intoxication as vices that cloud our judgment, foster dishonesty, destroy health, and lead to the ruin of families and empires. But today, gambling, alcohol and drugs are some of the leading industries of the world, generating trillions in revenue.   

It has been asked: Is the fulfillment of sensual desires at odds with a spiritual life? The ancient sages did not think so. The suppression of sensual desires was not regarded favorably, for that could manifest in the form of anger, frustration, perversions and many other mental disorders. Celibacy was not even a thing in the ancient times. All the sages of antiquity were married with many children. 

Moreover, human love was always regarded as a doorway to divine love. And not without reason. A person in love will feel the impulse to get rid of his or her negative character traits and transform into a better version of himself or herself. The willingness to sacrifice the ego at the altar of love, inevitably takes a person closer to the divine within oneself – and thereby turn into a personification of the divine masculine or feminine principle that lies at the core of creation.

Shiva and Shakti (Parvati) represent the divine masculine and feminine principles. A Hoysala-era carving from c.1150 CE, Birmingham Museum of Art. Credit: Sean Pathasema, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons 

Moksha

The final, and the most important component of a balanced life, is Moksha or Liberation from the cycles of birth and death. Not surprisingly, it gets the least amount of attention at the very end of the Kali Yuga.
The ancient sages regarded the earth as a “school” for the evolution of consciousness, where we reincarnate periodically from the spirit world in order to learn the life lessons that can purify our minds of the egoic dross that we tend to acquire, such as greed, anger, lust, hatred, vanity selfishness, dishonesty etc. 

A mind free of impurities can tap into the inner self and radiate the virtues of the soul – love, truth, joy, wisdom, peace and contentment. This state of identification with the inner self is called self-realization, upon attaining which, the lessons are completed, and one is released from the cycles of birth and death i.e. you attain moksha.

There are two ways for us to learn our life lessons: either by facing the consequences of our actions or karma, which is a long and arduous process that entails much suffering; or by learning from the wisdom teachings and spiritual techniques left behind by our enlightened ancestors - which is a quicker and easier method. 

Many techniques have been recommended by our ancestors to guide us on our path to moksha - such as selfless service, acquiring wisdom, meditation, self inquiry, yoga asanas, chanting, singing, prayers, breath control, devotional rituals, satsang etc. 

Since it is very difficult in this age of mass deception to find a genuine spiritual adept who can truly instruct and guide us, it is good to keep an open mind, learn from different sources, and gradually evolve and refine our own philosophy and go-to spiritual practices that can help us on our journey of evolution.

One of the outcomes of the awakening process is that there is a growing awareness of a strong desire within us to be of service to the world in a specific way. That’s our soul purpose. It is a pledge that we had made even before we were born, to bring certain gifts to the world. Unlike the Ikigai – which is career oriented - the soul purpose cares naught about whether anyone is willing to pay for the service, the market size, or whether one has the necessary skills to make it happen. The soul purpose is what we came here to do and those who make an effort to find and follow their soul purpose feel fulfilled and content with their life and work, irrespective of the material outcome. The soul purpose, therefore, is the real “reason for being” and not the Ikigai, which is the ideal type of work.

Now that we have looked at the four pillars of a balanced life – Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha – it is easy to see why our world is out of balance. Most people do not devote adequate time to each of the four pillars of life, and their actions are not guided by a conscious awareness of dharma or the Golden Rule. 

Work and the pursuit of wealth takes up most of the available hours of the day. The pursuit of Kama i.e. recreation is often done in a way that is harmful to the body, mind and spirit. Many people feel too tired or disinterested to fulfill their duties; but surely, the elephant in the room i.e. the source of biggest imbalance, is the apathy towards the pursuit of moksha, which is the primary reason for our reincarnation. 

It is our spiritual grounding that renews and enlivens us every day, and gives us the clarity and peace of mind to perform the other activities effectively, in the proper spirit. It allows us to see through deceptions, avoid discord, steer away from negativity and be more productive. In the absence of a spiritual grounding, it is easy to lose our way and succumb to greed, dishonesty, frustration, anger and violence or fall into sadness and depression.

While the relative importance of each of these pillars changes throughout our life, none of them should be ignored at any stage. Each of us should ask ourselves if we are devoting adequate time to each of the four pillars on a daily basis, and if we are performing our activities in the right spirit, in alignment with dharma. When we make the necessary adjustments in our life in order to get back into balance, it will automatically lead to greater peace, harmony, joy and a sense of fulfillment.