Dharma is the bedrock of all existence.
The word dharma is derived from the root डुधाञ् (dudhay) whose meaning is broadly mentioned as धारणपोषणयोः (dharanaposhanayoho). Sustenance is the key to understanding Dharma. Hence, the etymology of dharma is धारणात् धर्मः (dharanaat dharma). Basically, यद् ध्रियते स धर्मः (yad dhriyate sa dharma), that which is sustained is dharma. यो धारयति स धर्मः (yo dharayati sa dharma), that which upholds is dharma. And धारणं धर्मः (dharanam dharma) the act of upholding or the act of sustenance is dharma.
As the Taittirīya Upaniṣada says, धर्मो विश्वस्य जगतः प्रतिष्ठा, (dharmo viśvasya jagataḥ pratiṣṭhā), Dharma is the one on whom this entire creation rests. This perpetuity of Dharma is denoted by the word Sanātana. ‘सनातनसदातनः’ (Sanatana sadatanah) is how the Amarakośa1 explains it, that which ‘always exists’. It is also described by the word ‘अनादि’ (anadi), which means “without beginning or end” and “beyond space and time.”
Therefore, Sanātana Dharma is not a religion but a ‘Way of Life’.
Amarakośa* is a Sanskrit thesaurus written by Amarasimha in verse format.
Glossary
Prastavana - Introduction
Sanātana - Sanaatana
Taittirīya - Taittireeya
Viśvasya - Vishwasya
Jagataḥ - Jagataph
Pratiṣṭhā - Prathishthaa
Amarakośa - Amarkosh
