Open AccessMorality and moral development: Traditional Hindu concepts
Author(s) -
Chhitij Srivastava,
Vishal Dhingra,
Anupam Bhardwaj,
Alka Srivastava
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
indian journal of psychiatry/indian journal of psychiatry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.485
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 1998-3794
pISSN - 0019-5545
DOI - 10.4103/0019-5545.105552
Subject(s) - morality , moral development , personality , hinduism , relevance (law) , psychology , subject (documents) , epistemology , moral character , social psychology , sociology , environmental ethics , philosophy , law , political science , computer science , theology , library science
Morality (from the Latin word moralitas that means "manner, character, proper behavior") is the differentiation of intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are good (or right) and those that are bad (or wrong). It is determined by how one's genetic makeup interacts with the environment. The development of morality has been a subject of investigation for a number of decades, and our understanding of neuro-biological and psychological mechanisms has increased manifolds in the last few decades. Development of morality has been of particular significance to psychiatric literature because of its significant contribution to the development of one's personality and it's aberration in various disorders. Cultures that have been just, equal and moral have been widely accepted and appreciated. In this review, we shall summarize the modern theories of moral development and then look into a part of our past and cultural heritage and review the traditional Hindu concepts of morality and their contribution to development of one's personality and their relevance in the current times.