A Comparative Study: Abraham Maslow Hierarchy of Needs Vs Purushartha and Ashram concept of Vedas

ABRAHAM MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS:

Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is an intriguing concept. It makes one understand the pattern of human needs & goals from a psychological point of view since Maslow was an acclaimed psychologist.

It consists of the following five stages:

1.       Physiological needs: Food, water, Sleep, Shelter, Sex,etc.

2.       Safety Needs: Personal security, Job security, emotional security, financial security, Health and well being, etc.

3.       Social Belonging/Affiliation Needs: Friendships, Intimacy, Family, Networking, Affiliations,etc.

4.       Esteem Needs: Recognition, Status, Importance, Respect from others, etc.

5.       Self Actualization: This is actually a Goal. It is stated as the Realization of one’s full potential.

Now interestingly, in later years, Maslow chose to be critical of his Self Actualization concept and added one more level to this hierarchy that is over and above Self-Actualization. He called it:

6.       Transcendence: This too is a Goal. One finds fullest realization in giving oneself to something beyond oneself – for example, in altruism or spirituality. The desire to reach the infinite. "Transcendence refers to the very highest and most inclusive or holistic levels of human consciousness, behaving and relating, as ends rather than means, to oneself, to significant others, to human beings in general, to other species, to nature, and to the cosmos" (Farther Reaches of Human Nature, New York 1971, p. 269).

All of the needs are basically aims to the goal which is self actualisation and Transcendence.

Now there is a lot of criticism that are associated with Maslow’s concept with regards to its sequence and its applicability, its validity, its methodology or lack of it, etc.

However, we still are very much indebted to its appeal and relevance across all quarters of academia and outside of it.

The aspect we are going to dwell upon here is of a different nature and scope. It is going to be a comparative study which will open up a lot of new academic avenues of the readers with regards to deeper study of the theories we read about in our academic books.

THE PURUSHARTHA CONCEPT IN THE VEDAS:

In ancient Indian texts of Sanatan Dharma, the Vedas, detailed the four aims of human life. The Purushartha – Purush meaning Human and Artha meaning Purpose. The Purpose of being Human or the Purpose of Human Life. The way Human Life should be guided by proper,value oriented and correct actions.

The ancient Sanatan Dharma seers believed that motivation of human behavior was based on four important needs: physical and bodily comforts, security needs through proper order and regulation of family as well as society, need for name and fame as well as recognition through thorough reading and knowledge of the scriptures as well as applying them in practical life, and last but not the least, the need to actualize one’s hidden Self through meditation and living an austere life with spiritual enlightenment to gain salvation and join with the Divine forever.

The ultimate Goal of human life is to attain Moksha. Moksha is salvation, Nirvana, freedom from the cycle of birth & death, the realization of inner spirituality of man.

Now this concept written thousands of years ago is strikingly similar to the modern theory of Maslow’s. Before going on to a comparative study of the same let us explain the Purushartha concept briefly in order to make it amply clear and relatable.

The four Purusharthas are:

• Dharma: Righteousness, Duty
• Artha: Wealth
• Kama: Desire
• Moksha: Liberation

It need not be in the hierarchial order as it is stated but it is supposed to be in an order of priority.

Dharma: Dharma which is often confused with religion, simply means one’s rightful duty in all circumstances and if one needs to do away with the confusion as to what is right or wrong while performing a duty for a correct life then he/she should refer to the Vedas,the Vedangas, the Sutra literature of which the most important are the Dharmashastras, and scriptures such as the Bhagavadgita. for guidance. Dharma is responsible for It is responsible for order, regularity, harmony, control, predictability and accountability in human life and Earth.

Artha: It means wealth. Wealth earned is not wrong but wealth accumulated by loot or deceit is forbidden and leads to a lot of havoc in life. One has to follow the right way of accumulating wealth based on right intention, right means and moderation. Dharma has to be followed while earning wealth as well.

Kama: It simply means desire. Desires could be of any kind whether personal or professional. It needs to follow the right code of conduct/Dharma as well else it would lead to one’s own downfall.

Moksha: It is the ultimate goal of a human life to attain salvation and oneness with the Divine. A stage of Nirvana and inner realization of the individual self and the universal connect we all have inside us in the form of the soul. It leads to selfless deeds then which helps the society/mankind as a whole.

Now, the interesting part is that the pursuit of Dharma begins when one is initiated into studies at a young age, the pursuit of kama & Artha begins after one completes their studies and becomes a professional and householder. The pursuit of Moksha can begin at any time when one feels the pull.

PURUSHARTHA CARRIED OUT VIA THE FOUR ASHRAMS/STAGES OF HUMAN LIFE:

The path of these Purusharthas also have a designed stage for it that is detailed in the four ashrams/stages of human life.

Source – Wikipedia:

The Ashram system
Ashram or stage	Age (years)[8]	Description	Rituals of transition
Brahmacharya (student life)	Till 24	Brahmacharya represented the bachelor student stage of life. This stage focused on education and included the practice of celibacy.[2] The student went to a Gurukul (house of the guru) and typically would live with a Guru (teacher), acquiring knowledge of science, philosophy, scriptures and logic, practicing self-discipline, working to earn dakshina to be paid for the guru, learning to live a life of Dharma (righteousness, morals, duties).	Upanayana at entry.[9][10] Samavartana at exit.[11]
Grihastha (household life)	24–48	This stage referred to the individual's married life, with the duties of maintaining a household, raising a family, educating one's children, and leading a family-centred and a dharmic social life.[2][12][13] Grihastha stage was considered as the most important of all stages in sociological context, as human beings in this stage not only pursued a virtuous life, they produced food and wealth that sustained people in other stages of life, as well as the offsprings that continued mankind.[2][4] The stage also represented one where the most intense physical, sexual, emotional, occupational, social and material attachments exist in a human being's life.[14]	Hindu wedding at entry.
Vanaprastha (retired life)	48–72	The retirement stage, where a person handed over household responsibilities to the next generation, took an advisory role, and gradually withdrew from the world.[15][16] Vanaprastha stage was a transition phase from a householder's life with its greater emphasis on Artha and Kama (wealth, security, pleasure and sexual pursuits) to one with greater emphasis on Moksha (spiritual liberation).[15][17]
Sannyasa (renounced life)	72+ (or anytime)	The stage was marked by renunciation of material desires and prejudices, represented by a state of disinterest and detachment from material life, generally without any meaningful property or home (Ascetic), and focussed on Moksha, peace and simple spiritual life.[18][19] Anyone could enter this stage after completing the Brahmacharya stage of life.[1]

Alternate classification system of life stages:

Developmental stages of life[citation needed]		Period	Ashrama (stages of dutiful life)	Purushartha (aims of life)	Description
Saisava		0–2 years			No moral codes during this period
Balya		3–12 years	Brahmacharya	Dharma	Vidyarambha, Learning of alphabet, arithmetic, basic education
Kaumara (13–19)	Kaishora	13–15 years	Brahmacharya	Dharma and Moksha
	Tarunya	16–19 years	Brahmacharya	Dharma and Moksha
Yauvana (20–59)	Yauvana-I (Tarunayauvana)	20–29 years	Brahmacharya or Grihastha	Dharma, Artha and Moksha
	Yauvana-II (Praudhayauvana)	30–59 years	Grihastha	Dharma, Artha and Kama and Moksha
Vardhakya (60+ )	Vardhakya (Period-I)	60–79 years	Vanaprastha	Dharma and Moksha
	Vardhakya (Period-II)	80+ years	Sanyasa	Dharma and Moksha

COMPARATIVE STUDY:

Now if one compares this with Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs it bears an uncanny mirror image reflection of the former on the latter.

Kama can be equated with Physiological needs and Belonging/Affiliation needs

Artha can be equated with Security needs and Esteem needs.

Dharma can be equated with Self Actualization.

Moksha can be equated with Transcendence.

And all these are taught or fulfilled during the various Ashrams/stages of human life as mentioned above as well.

CONCLUSION:

With this one should understand that in order to enhance one’s knowledge and work upon existing theories as well as understand modern theories it is imperative to find their base in ancient scriptures that are scientifically valid even today and withold the test of time. Also due credit should be given to them. There is a vast repository of knowledge lying hidden and untouched that needs to be brought to the fore and imbibed as a student of the discipline of Social Sciences.