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| | The (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-30) |
 | | The word dharma is derived from a verb meaning "to support" or "to uphold," and this is the function that dharma plays in society (which shows why all those translations could make sense in context). |
 | | The texts on Dharma (dharmashastras), often referred to as the "Law Books," are most concerned with laying down guidelines for an organized and orderly society, in which each person has a well-defined status and role, based on social status, age, and gender. |
 | | The dharmashastra writers presupposed an unequal society, in which birth into high or low status groups was determined by the quality of one's karma (good, bad, or mixed). |
| www2.carthage.edu /~lochtefe/IHdharmashastras.html (733 words) |
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