dharma

In Hinduism, the religious and moral law governing individual and group conduct. It is treated in the dharmasutras, the oldest collection of Hindu laws, and in the compilations of law and custom called the dharmashastras. In Buddhism, dharma is the universal truth common to all individuals at all times, and it is regarded as one of the primary sources of Buddhist doctrine and practice. In Jainism, dharma signifies moral virtue as well as the eternal life force.

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