From the Netherlands to New Zealand, from the American “Indians” to those Indians who follow Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism) in India (Bharatvarsha) located in South Asia, archetypes are all considered to be universal human qualities. They do not belong to any religion or culture.
But, some traditions around the world have maintained and nurtured them longer and more successfully than others.
Vedas and Vedic comes from the Vedic lineage of India. Dharma Typology does not belong to India, although the country has made considerable efforts over time to develop them and also unfortunately in today’s modern age – manipulate and corrupt them.
Here in this manifesto, I will discuss and explore the pure essence of these typologies ignoring and putting aside any cultural dogma.
It is important for you to note that the word Vedic is not used in an academic sense, but more to describe a living tradition that, whilst deeply rooted in India, it has spread its branches far and wide – across time and territory to offer its eternal fruits to us here in the modern world.
Even more so in the age of AI that we are living in right now.
Today the Vedic lineage is clearly demonstrated in the fruits, flowers, and dare I say even weeds that make up the culture of the whole Indian subcontinent.
Just like branches on a big tree, its branches are known well by anyone of you who may have taken a yoga class or practices meditation.
From health and healing to Vedic astrology the effects of Vedic thought and wisdom has spread quickly around the world and words like dharma and karma are now known to many.
In the capitalist society of the West the test for success is your ability to make money. From relaxation to religion, Vedic imports like yoga and meditation are multimillion industries around the world particularly in America. This kind of makes me chuckle as these are more or less free in India.
But beyond their monetary successes there is a major reason why these Vedic imports have found a permanent home in the West. This is because they offer you and I an unbroken link to our ancestral past, and beyond that, to our divine roots.
Divine Dharma anyone?
Here clearly lies the difference between modern personality assessments and tests like Kolbe, Strength Finder, Myers Briggs etc… and the Vedic archetypes, between systems based in the last one hundred years, and those that probe deeper into the aeons of time.
Vedic archetypes recognise your connection to a scared self that is evidently primordial, ancient, and unseen, though very much governed by universal and natural laws.
Many self-help strategies that are available today cover some portion of our human experiences, but NONE have the breadth, depth and scope of the dharma typologies.
These modern day tests do not go as deeply into the spiritual dimension of your existence or can trace their lineage back as far into the ancient past.
These self-help strategies are recent innovations of an industrialised world while dharma archetypes have been around forever and speak to a more lasting aspect of our life – our dharma and how we find purpose and prosper.
It is painful to be anything but yourself.
As the glorious Srimad Bhagavad Gita clearly states in Chapter 3 Text 35:
“It is far better to discharge one’s prescribed duties, even though faultily, than another’s duties perfectly. Destruction in the course of performing one’s own duty is better than engaging in another’s duties, for to follow another’s path is dangerous.”
Simply meaning:
“It Is better to be bad at what you do then good at what is bad for you.”
Once we find our Dharma which is fixed and eternal, we remain at home wherever we go – no matter what is happening in the external world.
It is an instruction manual (see life does come with one) to determine your purpose and live a life fulfilled.
Yoga, Vedanta (Vedic philosophy), and Ayurveda enjoy massive popularity today because people find in them, as they peel back the layers, something deep real and everlasting – an unbroken connection to the past that naturally brings them in contact with their authentic selves.
Being “just yourself” in a world which is constantly trying night and day for you to be anything but… is a mighty godsend.
Click here to read how you can “be yourself,” in Part 4.