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Dharma is set of rules which are devised to accommodate all the components of society which are ready to evolve and adapt.
Those components which do not show this drive to evolve in accordance to time and conditions, they are weeded out.. Trying to preserve such components is adharma because it hinders growth of all others which is not rightful and just. There may be different opinions on how to "weed-out" these anachronistic memes.. But thrown out, they must be...
Now, what matters is, attitude towards weeding them out.. Should every thing be thrown out? or should things that still can be salvaged, be salvaged? India's nature has typically been in favour of latter. We try to preserve as far as possible. Hence we find such a diversity of opinions and traditions and antique-artifacts in India. Because it in our nature to "preserve".
However, when certain factors start hurting and direly threatening this tendency of Indians to "preserve and propagate" all kinds of diverse ideas, those factors are detrimental to very "idea" that India stands for - "Dharma".
In this case, in modern times and place, those factors are
1. Political Islam aka Islamism and the Qazi-Mullah class (to be differentiated from ordinary Muslims who live and face problems in India just like any other citizen)
2. Foreign Christian missionaries and related NGOs on foreign pay-roll doing forcible conversions in tribal areas (to be differentiated from millions of nationalist Christians who have been living amicably in India for 2000 years and who form integral part of Dharmic India)
3. Indian Communists and Leftists on foreign pay-roll (to be differentiated from nationalistic-leftists which should be preserved at all costs)
These three factors are trying to bring about a kind of "standardisation and homogenization" in India which will destroy not only the diversity of India but also the tendency of Indians to stand and tolerate myriad of different opinions, learn from them, grow with them and co-synthesize newer variants and ideas. In case of standardisation of any kind, what will happen to India can be seen in what is currently happening with Pakistan. Its is a direct litmus test for all indians to see that what will happen to them, if they leave Dharma and if Dharma leaves them.
Sustenance of this "value-system" based of "just-preservation of diverse memes" is "Dharma" and to make it well-established in entire population of India, we need examples. This sustenance requires all sorts of human emotions, sentiments and hence actions. We require anger, violence, love, non-violence, logic, justice, strength, weakness, robustness, delicateness. Various personalities in history and in mythology give example of such conditioned behaviour taken by those personalities which led to preservation of "Dharma".
Shri Raam is one such epitome of examples which leads and inspire millions to perform all actions (violent/non-violent, attractive/unattractive, good/bad) which are required and demanded by time and environment for preservation of Dharma. Indian mind is usually non-violent. It tends to "adjust" with few "uncomfortabilities" and live on. It requires a very strong justification to carry out an essential but unpleasant task for preservation of this system. Examples like Raam, Krishna, Buddha, Mahaveer, Chaarvak, Adi Shankaracharya, Shivaji, Guru Govindsingh, Rana Pratap, Durga, Kaali, Shiva, Jaichand, Aambhi, Kauravas, Pandavas, Ravana etc give a "perspective" to every Indian mind to justify the necessary action.
As Kapila says in Saamkhya darshan and Krishna in Geeta, without "action" this world and this system won't exist. This is also (in a way) supported by second law of thermodynamics. The system always tends to go towards disorder. We need to keep on doing work "on the system" continuously just to keep it in order. Of course it increases disorder somewhere else, but can't help.
Raam symbolizes the justification and example of those actions which are required to be performed by every individual, every community, every state and every nation for preservation of "Dharma" as described in earlier paragraphs. He also symbolizes and justifies all those actions which is required to be performed by body, mind, intellect and ego of every individual for preservation of "dharma" within self (Swadharma).
You see, when idea of "dharma" and "Raam" is relevant and interconnected on so many dimensions, we can't let him go, can we?
You see, when idea of "dharma" and "Raam" is relevant and interconnected on so many dimensions, we can't let him go, can we?