We as humans, living in a civilised society, naturally and quite instinctively seek happiness and peace. Nobody wants sorrow. No one wants the erosion or disruption of inner peace. For that reason, there are accepted norms of social behaviour. We have defined good manners and moral behaviour at both the individual and institutional levels. We are taught to be polite, courteous, honest and transparent.
But in actual practice, do things work out so easily? Is speaking the truth beneficial in every situation? Does transparency always pay? Does it always help to be pliable? Is it advisable to follow a forgive-and-forget policy at all times? Does it pay to be ever simple and straightforward in your dealings with others? Should one be generous to all?
The answer to the above questions is borne out by the sweet and sour experiences of mundane life. As the life experiences of each of us will suggest, it is not wise to be kind to the wicked. Nor is it prudent to be straightforward while interacting with the devious.
Being good is not always good. Behaving nicely with everyone without forethought and discrimination can sometimes cost you enormously. Being meek and submissive to the point of getting exploited is certainly not a healthy approach. Showering favours and largesse on the undeserving can cause resentment among others and can be highly detrimental.
The universal, timeless code of human behaviour called dharma enjoins us to be thoughtful, circumspect and prudent. It calls for a way of interaction that is conducive to the welfare of all, in the shorter or longer term. It tells you to be humble and polite in general, but also to be stern and curt when needed. It teaches you to eschew anger but also to use the negative energy associated with anger in dealing with the deviant and the delinquent. It tells you to forgive but also carries the injunction that you should uphold justice and be fair. It preaches non-violence but, at the same time, permits the use of violent means to protect and preserve righteousness. It tells you to be accommodative and tolerant, but not at the cost of moral principles. It enjoins you to be truthful, but not in all circumstances—the exceptional situations being those involving your nation’s enemies and their inimical actions, for deceptive techniques to defeat such enemies will be categorised as virtuous actions.
Our wise savant and philosopher Chanakya had pronounced the dictum 'shathe shathyam samachareyt', which means that one should act cunningly with the cunning. It advises that your behaviour should match the nature of the person you are dealing with—treating the dishonest with caution and matching their cleverness, rather than responding with naïveté. In other words, you should behave with reciprocity, responding to trickery with smartness and firmness.
Avoid letting your goodness be mistaken for weakness by those who wish to deceive or defraud you. It is for these reasons that Swami Dayanand Saraswati, the founder of Arya Samaj and a distinguished sage-scholar-yogi of modern times, declared in one of the ten principles of Arya Samaj enunciated by him: ‘We should behave with others courteously, righteously and deservedly.’ The last term, ‘deservedly’, says it all about the way to treat persons given to deception or uncouth behaviour.
Sage Chanakya had stated that in the jungle, it is the straight-stemmed trees that are felled first; therefore, one should not be too straightforward and naïve, trying to display that goodness at all times and with everyone. The vile and vicious folks must be treated in a manner that will discourage them from behaving so, because ultimately, dharmic conduct lies in actions that are conducive to the welfare of all.
Once the comprehensive definition of dharma is understood by the common individual, it gives them clarity to deal with different individuals in different situations in accordance with its divine dictates. The principles of dharma are for promoting the welfare of all—the virtuous and the vicious. Life is complex, and the human individual is inherently limited in knowledge and understanding. Hence, the strands of divine Vedic knowledge must be grasped by everyone for his multifaceted progress—physical, mental, intellectual and spiritual. Only such progress will enable him to fulfil his mundane desires and develop his propensity for adhering to dharma. This will pave the way for steering the human soul towards its ultimate divine destination of salvation, which is marked by the end of all sorrow and the attainment of almost eternal divine bliss.