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Perceptions of the purpose of human life in the Indian philosophical traditions have substantial links to the conception of the human person. All major schools of Indian thought suggest that the purpose of human life is to achieve the union of the ‘self’, the soul with the Divine. The Vedic tradition holds that the human life is the opportunity for spiritual improvement in order to achieve the ultimate goal of realising the fundamental truth about oneself, which is the realisation that I am the Eternal One, ‘Aham Brahmāsmi’ (meaning: ‘the soul and the world are one’, Dalal, 2009); that is, to achieve a state of self-realisation, where the ‘self’, the soul is indistinguishably identical and one with the Brhaman, the Divine. This realisation is the ultimate liberation of the human soul, which is also commonly known as mukti or moksha.
Different schools have laid emphasis on different aspects of human life that lead to achieving this liberation, moksha. According to the orthodox Indian philosophical view it is in achieving perfection through three goals of life: artha (prosperity), kāma (desire) and dharma (righteous living) that the fourth and the ultimate goal of life, moksha can be attained (Mohanty, 2001). However, most schools consider dharma (righteous living) as the foremost of the three goals. They regard dharma as the canon that gives moral foundation for human life: to be honest, attempt to fulfil moral obligations, to be genuinely concerned about others, etc. (Vade, 2002). Dharma, in addition to facilitating the attainment of the ultimate liberation of the individual soul, also maintains social stability and harmony. For example, dharma implies responsibility of the ‘self’ in the society is the ‘moral obligation’ a father has to his children; a son has to his parents, and everyone in the society to everyone else. The self being able to accomplish these moral obligations is important for the attainment of the ultimate liberation of the soul. Scholars have argued that the role of rituals in the Indian society was to operationalise dharma – providing a framework for executing these moral obligations. They also indicate that these rituals were propagated through oral poetry in communities and helped consolidation of social values (Subramaniyan, 1982).
It is evident that many of the Indian philosophical traditions emphasise ‘living a disciplined life with righteous actions’ is the way to achieve the ultimate purpose of human life, the ultimate liberation, moksha. Demonstrating a similar understanding, Sai Baba, (Baba, 1976) another renowned Hindu spiritual leader, holds that ultimate goal of life is to attain the union with the divine through a ‘good and peaceful death’:
We must recognise the truth that all the Sādhanā (Sādhanā refers to a disciplined life undertaken towards a goal. (Iyengar, 2004) that we do is not for the sake of a pleasurable life but for a good and peaceful death. All the great saints and yogis [sage] direct all their prayers towards aspiring for an easy and good death, and they pray that they be enabled to merge into the Lord easily. Our attempts should be directed to the objective of ultimately merging with divinity. This is the sacred lesson that is contained in the Shanthiparva (‘The Book of Peace’, is one of eighteen books of the Indian Epic Mahabharata. Baba, 1976, p. 132)
Philosophers who follow this thought argue that the righteous actions of disciplined living of human persons bring a good and pleasurable life both for oneself and for others. However, the purpose of living a disciplined life is not to be limited to the good and pleasurable life for all here in this life. It is so that the self will attain the ultimate purpose of human life, moksha, the union with the Divine.
The understanding of the concept of karma is important in this regard. Karma is a significant and complex concept in the Indian philosophy that governs the perception of ‘duty’ (Konwar, 2013). Ghosh (2014), among many others, indicate that Karma – action or work (resultant of previous actions and having implications for the future of the soul) – and dharma – accomplishing duties in the ‘right way’ – embody the way Indians make sense of the present as well as the possibility of the achievement of the union with the Divine. Many Indian philosophical traditions commonly hold the belief that being able to complete ones duties destined to a person in this life (Karma) in the right way (dharma) helps the ‘self’ achieve the ultimate goal of liberating their soul from the cycle of rebirth to be united with the divine (Mahadevan, 1953). The purpose of human life, therefore, is to complete the responsibilities, which are moral obligations for the soul, in righteous ways.
Those who conduct their lives through meditation in this manner are liberated from the bondage of karma. They pass through the stages of ascent leading to the higher regions of life, ultimately landing in Brahma-loka, or the realm of the Creator, for the purpose of ultimate liberation, or salvation; otherwise, there is return, once again, by way of reincarnation, or rebirth (Krishnananda, 1977, p. 47)
The concept of ‘rebirth’ is a significant and popular notion in Indian thought, which is connected with karma. After the death of a living being, depending on the karma of the ‘self’, jiva, the immortal essence or soul of the living being, will take the form of another life. Scholars clarify that the soul takes the form of life in this world several times before it can achieve the ultimate liberation of the union with the Divine:
The self may have gone through many lives before the present one. For an eternal self, changing bodies in different lifetimes and moving from an old body to a new body is like a person discarding worn out clothes and wearing a new one. (Chakrabarti, 1999, p. 156)
The purpose of human life is to use the opportunity of living as a human person to live a righteous life, fulfilling all moral obligations in the right way and thus to try not to get back into another life or rebirth in this world, but to liberate oneself from the cycle of rebirth and to be united with the Divine.
While the thoughts expressed so far signified an action orientated approach to achieving the purpose of life, in terms of ‘doing the right thing’, others focus on having a compassionate heart and ‘God- thought’. Thiruvalluvar, a first-century Tamil poet and philosopher articulated in one of his couplets that living a life with a compassionate heart will liberate one from the cycle of rebirth (Thirukkural, p. 243). Translated, this couplet means: those with graceful and compassionate hearts will not [re]enter this world of darkness and evil. Similarly, in his commentary on Bhagavad Gita, Prabhupada (1983) a renowned scholar of Vaishnavite school of thought, emphasises the importance of God-thought not just at the very end of life but throughout one’s life:
The word smaran (‘remembering’) is important. Remembrance of Krishna (one of the most popular gods in the Hindu religion, Krishna is the eighth incarnation of Lord Vishnu) is not possible for the impure soul who has not practiced Krishna consciousness in devotional service. Therefore one should practice Krishna consciousness from the very beginning of life. If one wants to achieve success at the end of his life, the process of remembering Krishna is essential. Therefore one should constantly, incessantly chant the maha-mantra – Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. (Prabhupada, 1983, pp. 370–71)
Swami Prabhupada implies that only through chanting the name of God the soul can be made pure and with the right thoughts. According to his thoughts, ‘God consciousness’, or God-thought has to be part of a person’s entire life and that this God-thought is associated with purity of the soul, which helps people to achieve ‘success’ at the end of life, which is the union with the Divine.
Another important aspect of understanding the purpose of human life is presented in the notion of the temporality of human life. The most popular concept in this regard relates to the notion of maya, often translated as ‘illusion’. Vivekananda, one of the important philosophers of the Neo-Vedanta school of Indian thought refers to maya as the human person’s clinging to life, one’s inability to release oneself from the bondage of life in this world (Vivekananda, 1991). He explained that the real freedom is liberating oneself from this clinging and bondage to life to the realisation of the union with the Divine, which according to the Vedanta school is within the human being, the soul. This freedom is about detachment from the illusion of the life in this world in order to be united with the Reality, the Divine.
It is in this context that the ideas of ‘detachment’ and ‘renouncing earthly pleasures’ become crucial. Classical Indian texts have numerous references to sages (Vāndaprasātha) who lived as hermits, after giving up all desires of life. These sages withdrew from ‘the illusion of the world’ after completing all duties required of the person (Nilakanta Sāstri, 1972). A classical Tamil poem describes the human life as a ‘canoe made of straw’ trying to cross ‘the ocean of fire’, implying that the human body and the physical world we live in are temporal and will be destroyed. The poem appeals that one should remember that death is awaiting at the corner and should not depend on the body and the physical world. The poet implies that detachment from the body and physical world is the way to achieve what it takes to embrace death to this world, and the realisation of the ultimate purpose of human life (Nīthi nūl 423). This poem is a typical example of the thoughts expressed in many other poems and writings found in Tamil literature right from the classical period. They all reflect this Indian philosophy of human life – detachment from the physical world towards being at peace at death. In the words of Swami Sivananda, a Hindu spiritual teacher: ‘You must get yourself buried in God. Then only you shall live. You gain by losing. You live by dying’ (Singh, 1983, p. 44). He emphasised the view that losing or detaching from everything from this world and life is the way to attain God, which is gain for the human soul.
The purpose of human life, according to Indian thought, is to unite with the ultimate Reality, the Divine. I have identified several ways prescribed by different schools of thought to achieve this purpose. They include: living a virtuous life, completing the moral obligations in the ‘right way’, having a compassionate heart, having God-thought and by renouncing and detaching from the world of illusion. These ways offer the possibility of achieving the ultimate purpose of human life, which is to realise the potential and to unite with the Divine, the ultimate Reality.
