adharma

Adharma is a term in Hindu philosophy and religious literature that denotes unrighteousness or moral wrong. The word combines a- meaning "not" with dharma, which signifies duty, virtue, law, or cosmic order. Thus adharma refers to conduct that violates dharma and disrupts social harmony and the larger order, or rita.

In Hindu thought, dharma is multifaceted, covering duties appropriate to one's age and social role, virtues such as truthfulness and nonviolence, and the maintenance of order in personal and public life. Adharma, then, includes deceit, exploitation, violence, hypocrisy, and neglect of one’s duties. It is often described as arising from ignorance and desire and as producing suffering and disorder.

The conflict between dharma and adharma is a central theme in classic Sanskrit literature. The Mahabharata treats adharma as the force that opposes rightful action, while the Bhagavad Gita presents action as dharma when performed with discrimination and detachment. Over time, later smriti texts offered more codified discussions of dharma and adharma, though modern scholarship emphasizes their historical and interpretive contexts.

In contemporary usage, adharma is a normative label for conduct judged unethical or unjust, invoked in debates about justice, law, and social morality. As a concept, it remains the counterpoint to dharma, illustrating how Hindu ethical discourse seeks to restore order by aligning conduct with a broader moral and cosmic frame.