Four Purushartha

Kiran: “What is Purushartha?”

Ganesh: “Performing any action to fulfil Dharma, Artha, Kama, and Moksha is Purushartha.”
Ganesh: “Following the rights, duties, and rules connected to a human being’s existence is Dharma.”
Kiran: “I didn’t understand.”
Ganesh: “Every action is connected either to a right, a duty, or a rule—that action is Dharma. Acting against rights, duties, and rules is Adharma.”
Kiran: “Explain with an example.”
Ganesh: “After doing someone else’s work, receiving compensation for it is a right. When someone gives compensation, doing the work honestly is a duty. The framework of which work should be done, when, where, and how—that is the rule. When you take your right, work honestly, and follow the rules of the work, all those actions become Dharma.”
Kiran: “Does that mean only worship and rituals are Dharma?”
Ganesh: “Whether the work is worship and rituals, a job, business, or social service—following the rights, duties, and rules connected to any work is Dharma. Misusing rights, refusing to fulfil duties, and violating rules is Adharma.”
Ganesh: “A human has eight desires. Earning the money needed to fulfil those desires is Artha. Whatever work you do that brings you money—that work is Artha.”
Kiran: “What are the eight desires of a human?”
Ganesh: “Sex, purity, love, pleasure, peace, knowledge, bliss, and liberation—these are the eight desires. A human earns money to fulfil these desires.”
Kiran: “But I have heard that love can’t be fulfilled with money.”
Ganesh: “Love is not something to be obtained; it is something to be lost. It is not something to be taken; it is something to be given. Those who want to obtain love or take love from someone cannot buy love with money. Love is done; to do love, one has to spend.”
Kiran: “How can one attain liberation with money?”
Ganesh: “Being free from debt, being free from a relationship, and being free from responsibility—all these are forms of liberation, for which money is needed.”
Ganesh: “Stupid people want freedom from desires; smart people want to enjoy desires.”
Kiran: “What does that mean?”
Ganesh: “Until death, desires never stop. A desire stops only when it is fulfilled or replaced by another desire.”
Kiran: “If I have a desire to eat vada pav and I want freedom from it, then what should I do?”
Ganesh: “Either eat a lot of vada pav or generate a new desire—like eating biryani.”
Ganesh: “When someone tries to turn a dream into an immediate desire.”
Kiran: “What is the difference between a dream and a desire?”
Ganesh: “Dreams and desires are two different things. Something you want as soon as possible is a desire. Something you want to achieve within 5–10 years is a dream.”
Kiran: “Some people earn money to buy a house or a car, some to expand their business, and some for a picnic. Which desire is all that?”
Ganesh: “A house, a car, a picnic, or a business is for happiness and peace. A person may earn money to buy any object or experience, but behind everything lies the desire to fulfil one of the eight basic desires.”
Ganesh: Whatever sexual activities you engage in to give sexual satisfaction to your life partner and to receive sexual pleasure yourself—that is Kama.
Kiran: “I don’t have a life partner. Does that mean I cannot perform Purushartha?”
Ganesh: “A warrior has a sword. There is no war right now, so the sword is not being used. But when war happens, swordplay occurs with that sword. A warrior not engaging in swordplay when there is no war does not lose his position as a warrior. But when there is war and the warrior does not use his sword, then he loses his position as a warrior. This means that when you do not have a life partner, not engaging in sexual activity does not reduce your Purushartha. But when you have a life partner and do not engage in sexual activity, then your Purushartha will be reduced.”
Kiran: “Is Purushartha applicable only to men?”
Ganesh: “Purushartha is not related only to men; it applies to all human beings. The meaning of Purushartha is to fulfil the duty of being human. The duty fulfilled by a woman, a transgender person, or a homosexual who completes the duty of being human is also called Purushartha.”
Ganesh: “Moksha is giving completeness and expansion to the human mind.”
Kiran: “What do you mean by completeness of the mind?”
Ganesh: “The human mind has eight compartments, which are called eight states. Experiencing sufficiently the eight states—void, conscious, semi-conscious, subconscious, emotion, creation, temperament, and restraint—gives completeness to the human mind.”
Kiran: “I didn’t understand anything about conscious and subconscious.”
Ganesh: “Imagine the mind as a showcase with eight compartments. In one compartment there is a marble of the Void brand. In the second, a marble of the Conscious brand. In the third, a marble of the Semi-conscious brand. In the fourth, a marble of the Subconscious brand. In the fifth, a marble of the Emotion brand. In the sixth, a marble of the Creation brand. In the seventh, a marble of the Temperament brand. In the eighth, a marble of the Restraint brand. When the number of marbles of the respective brand in all compartments reaches 108, all compartments become completely full, and we say the mind has achieved completeness.”
Kiran: “But what is the void state?”
Ganesh: “When there is no thought or imagination in the mind, when the mind is inactive, that state is the void state of the mind.”
Kiran: “When does the mind become inactive? Something or other keeps running in my mind.”
Ganesh: “When you are in deep sleep, or sometimes in a meditative posture, when you are not dreaming of any girl and not talking to me, then your mind is in an inactive state, which is called the void state.”
Kiran: “What is the conscious state?”
Ganesh: “When you thoughtfully do some work—deciding what to do, when to do it, and what to say to whom—your mind is in the conscious state.”
Kiran: “What is the semi-conscious state?”
Ganesh: “When you are doing a task but also imagining a story related to it, such as imagining a future girlfriend while working, with half your mind on the work and half on imagination, your mind is in the semi-conscious state.”
Kiran: “What is the subconscious state?”
Ganesh: “When you regularly perform a task for 21 to 40 days, its pattern gets imprinted in the mind and intellect. Later, the body and intellect perform it automatically without thinking. For example, while riding a bike, you change gears without thinking. This is the subconscious state.”
Kiran: “What is the emotional state?”
Ganesh: “When you experience any emotion and are not thinking or working at that time, your mind is in the emotional state.”
Kiran: “What is the creation state?”
Ganesh: “When you plan or perform constructive work like cooking, designing a website, writing, preparing a cricket pitch, or planning an event or picnic, your mind is in the creation state.”
Kiran: “What is the temperament state?”
Ganesh: “Whenever you react to the words or behaviour of a person or situation, your mind is in the temperament state.”
Kiran: “What is the restraint state?”
Ganesh: “When you feel a desire but consciously control it—for example, not staring at someone or averting your eyes—your mind is in the restraint state.”
Ganesh: “Not everyone fully experiences all eight states. Some people experience only two or three deeply, not all. Therefore, they do not attain Moksha.”
Kiran: “Is there no grace or exception?”
Ganesh: “Moksha is not like a college exam. Even if one compartment is incomplete by one experience, the mind cannot achieve completeness.”
Kiran: “If I accumulate only 105 experiences in one state, what will happen?”
Ganesh: “You will be reborn, and the journey will continue from those 105 experiences. After gaining three more, Moksha will be attained.”
Kiran: “In the next life, do I need to accumulate 108 experiences again?”
Ganesh: “No. Experiences accumulate permanently. If you have 50 experiences at death, you will need only 58 more in the next life.”
Kiran: “I have heard Moksha means liberation.”
Ganesh: “Moksha means completeness of the mind. Liberation follows Moksha. After Moksha, the cycle of birth and death on Earth ends, and the next cycle begins in heaven.”
Ganesh: “Sufficiently experiencing the eight desires is the expansion of the mind.”
Kiran: “How?”
Ganesh: “Just as overeating increases body weight, experiencing desires increases the “weight” of the mind, leading to expansion.”
Kiran: “If I experience happiness, love, and bliss, will my mind expand?”
Ganesh: “Yes. When the mind expands sufficiently, Moksha is attained.”
Kiran: “If I go on a picnic, will I get Moksha?”
Ganesh: “Only if it does not violate your duties. Otherwise, it leads to sin.”
Kiran: “What about eating vada pav?”
Ganesh: “Eating one at the right time helps. Overeating harms the body and leads to sin.”
Kiran: “Is it necessary to experience all eight desires?”
Ganesh: “No. Experiencing one or two deeply can be sufficient.”
Ganesh: “He was starving for respect. By fulfilling responsibilities, ego arose. When praise did not come, he became unhappy. He was performing Purushartha, but he expected praise in return.”

Kiran: “What is Dharma?”

Kiran: “What is Artha?”

Kiran: “I have heard about freedom from desires. What is that?”

Kiran: “Is getting freedom from desire stupidity?”

Ganesh: “Not always. Getting freedom from unrealistic desires is smart, but staying attached to unrealistic desires is stupidity.”

Kiran: “What is an unrealistic desire?”

Ganesh: “If you can’t afford petrol but still desire a luxury car, that is an unrealistic desire.”

Kiran: “How do you know if a desire is unrealistic?”

Kiran: “What is Kama?”

Kiran: Anyone can have sex. How is it purushartha?

Ganesh: Kama is not only about sexual pleasure; it is also about sexual responsibility. Having sex and taking responsibility for your partner’s satisfaction are two different things. When someone takes responsibility for their partner’s fulfillment, that is the Purushartha of Kama.

Kiran: “What is Moksha?”

Kiran: “The mind easily passes through all these states—then why doesn’t everyone attain Moksha?”

Kiran: “What is expansion of the mind?”

Kiran: “What was that customer doing that made him think he was performing Purushartha?”

Note: This content represents one half of a chapter from Kedi Purana, a 40-chapter work authored by Kedi Ganapati.

Kedi Purana is a modern Purana of the present and final Kaliyuga of the current Kalpa.

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