Dharma-yuddha is a

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

word made up of two roots: ''

dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

'' (धर्म) meaning righteousness, and ''yuddha'' (युद्ध) meaning warfare. In the

Hindu Scriptures Hindu texts are manuscripts and voluminous historical literature which are related to any of the diverse traditions within Hinduism. A few of these texts are shared across these traditions and they are broadly considered Hindu scriptures. These ...

, dharma-yuddha refers to a war that is fought while following several rules that make the war fair. For instance, in a righteous war, equals fight equals. Chariot warriors are not supposed to attack

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

and

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

, those on elephants are not supposed to attack

, and so on. The rules also forbid the usage of celestial weapons (divine weapons bestowed by the gods) on ordinary soldiers (as opposed to soldiers of noble birth). The build-up of weapons and armies is done with the full knowledge of the opposing side and no surprise attacks are made. The rules of engagement also set out how warriors were to deal with noncombatants. No one should attack an enemy who has temporarily lost or dropped their weapon. The lives of women, prisoners of war, and farmers were also sacred.

Pillaging Looting is the act of stealing, or the taking of goods by force, typically in the midst of a military, political, or other social crisis, such as war, natural disasters (where law and civil enforcement are temporarily ineffective), or rioting. ...

the land was forbidden. Dharma-yuddha also signifies that the war is not fought for gain or selfish reasons. A dharma-yuddha is waged to uphold the principles of righteousness.

In the ''Mahabharata''

In the ''

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...

'' epic, which describes the

Kurukshetra war The Kurukshetra War ( sa, कुरुक्षेत्र युद्ध ), also called the Mahabharata War, is a war described in the ''Mahabharata ( sa, महाभारत )''. The conflict arose from a dynastic succession struggle be ...

, the two sides agree on the following rules: * Fighting must begin no earlier than sunrise and, should end by exact sunset. (Broken on the 14th day, after Jayadratha was slain). * Multiple warriors must not attack a single warrior. (Broken several times, most notably in the 13th day, when

Abhimanyu Abhimanyu is a legendary warrior from the ancient Hindu history ''Mahabharata''. He was born to the third Pandava prince Arjuna and the Yadu princess Subhadra, who was Krishna's younger sister. The ''Sambhava Parva'' of the Adi Parva sta ...

was slain). * Two warriors may duel, or engage in prolonged personal combat, only if they carry the same weapons and they are on the same mount (no mount, a horse, an elephant, or a chariot). (Broken several times). * No warrior may kill or injure a warrior who has surrendered. (Violated when

Satyaki Yuyudhana ( sa, युयुधान, '), better known as Satyaki ( sa, सात्यकि, ), was a powerful Yadava chieftain of Narayani Sena, belonging to the Vrishni clan to which Krishna also belonged. According to the Puranas, he was ...

slew an unarmed Burishravas). * One who surrenders becomes a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

and will then be subject to the protections of a

. * No warrior may kill or injure an unarmed warrior. (Broken when

Arjuna Arjuna (Sanskrit: अर्जुन, ), also known as Partha and Dhananjaya, is a character in several ancient Hindu texts, and specifically one of the major characters of the Indian epic Mahabharata. In the epic, he is the third among Panda ...

slew

Karna Karna (Sanskrit: कर्ण, IAST: ''Karṇa''), also known as Vasusena, Anga-raja, and Radheya, is one of the main protagonists of the Hindu epic '' Mahābhārata''. He is the son of the sun god Surya and princess Kunti (mother of the ...

when the latter was unarmed trying to take out his chariot wheel from mud ). * No warrior may kill or injure an unconscious warrior. (Broken when

was slain). * No warrior may kill or injure a person or animal not taking part in the war. (Broken several times when warriors slew horses and charioteers of their enemies). * No warrior may kill or injure a warrior whose back is turned away. ( Shakuni and

broke that rule). * No warrior may strike an animal not considered a direct threat. (Broken when

Bhima In Hindu epic Mahabharata, Bhima ( sa, भीम, ) is the second among the five Pandavas. The ''Mahabharata'' relates many events that portray the might of Bhima. Bhima was born when Vayu, the wind god, granted a son to Kunti and Pandu. Af ...

killed an elephant of Ashwathama). * The rules specific to each weapon must be followed. For example, it is prohibited to strike below the waist in mace warfare (Broken in the final combat of

and

Duryodhana Duryodhana ( sa, दुर्योधन, ) also known as Suyodhana, is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata.'' He was the eldest of the Kauravas, the hundred sons of the blind king Dhritarashtra and his queen Gandhari. Being ...

on night of final day of war).

Other texts

Beyond the ''Mahabharata'', the principles of dharma-yuddha are referred to in many other ancient Indian texts, including the ''

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...

'' and the Dharmashastras or law texts.

References

External links

Lessons from India’s wars: Hindus need a new Dharma Yuddha

Chennai Online
Comparison of the nighttime fighting rule in the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. {{HinduMythology Mahabharata Law of war

In the ''Mahabharata''

Other texts

See also

References

External links