On the Nacirema concept of Dharma
I have previously written about the many strange traditions of the Nacirema tribe. However there is one aspect that I purposely left out in my previous writing simply because it is difficult to comprehend. That is the Nacirema concept of Dharma. Now I know what you are saying: “many societies believe in a concept of karma, namely that good deeds will reap good rewards and ill deeds will reap ill rewards.” However the differences between the Nacirema’s Dharma and the idea of karma as commonly understood are sufficiently great and perplexing that I believe they deserve a greater examination
A basic explanation of Dharma
As I have said, Dharma and karma have much in common: namely a belief that good and ill deeds have their rewards. However, in most societies karma is but rarely invoked and often only afterwards “well, I guess that’s just karma”. Karma is also generally seen as a matter to be handled during the afterlife. The Nacirema, by contrast, are constantly obsessed with Dharma as a part of their daily living. Their society is graded into various castes based on the amount of Dharma that a person possesses and these castes determine virtually ever aspect of a person’s life — where they live, whom them associate with, what jobs they are allowed to work in, whom they will engage in sexual relationships or marry. Indeed, it is difficult to list an aspect of Nacirema society that is not regulated by Dharma.
And yet, curiously, any member of the Nacirema society will insist that Dharma hardly exists at all. “We are all equal” is a common refrain. This “equality” seems not to consist in equality of opportunity or equal enjoyment of life’s pleasure, but rather equality in the right to pursue Dharma. This despite the fact that nothing could be further from the truth. It is obvious to even the most casual of observers that those with high Dharma pass this benefit on to their children and even to close friends. Meanwhile those of low Dharma are blocked at every turn from increasing their Dharma so that the obstacles soon become insurmountable.
Another curious practice, along with the insistence “we are all equal” is that there is a strict taboo on directly asking about the Dharma of another person. It is forbidden to ask how much Dharma another person has. And to speak of one’s own Dharma is considered in extremely bad taste. Nonetheless, the Nacirema spend their time talking about virtually nothing else. This is done through an elaborate set of coded messages and signals. Members of the various castes differ in not only clothing, but in the food that they consume, the music that they appreciate, and the activities that they participate in. There is even a strange ritual in which those members of society who have especially high Dharma will take on the clothing and tastes of those in society with the lowest Dharma in order to flaunt their mastery over the social system.
On the various uses of Dharma
As I have said, it is difficult to overstate the pervasiveness of Dharma in Nacirema society. A man with high Dharma will find himself welcomed in every corner of society, offered the best food and lodging, and invited to pass almost all of his time in leisure meditating in the great temples of Dharma that sit at the center of all Nacirema villages.
A man with poor Dharma, by contrast, finds his life to be a never-ending sequence of toil and dread. Only the lowliest of occupations are available to him, he will be forced to subsist on foods which are reputed by the Nacirema to have negative spiritual qualities, and he may even be reduced to sleeping outside. This despite the fact that high Dharma individuals live in large dwellings with many empty rooms.
Separate forms of transportation are assigned to the various castes of Dharma and members of the different castes will make a great show of complaining if forced to use a different form of transportation (although the society’s leaders might make a show of using a form of transportation of the lower caste to symbolize their unity with the people).
Similar distinctions occur in dress — with the lower castes generally preferring clothing that is more baggy — among men — or which exposes more skin — among women. The changes in their fashion of dress, however, are rapid — often occurring with the seasonal changes in the weather. All members of Nacirema society make it their duty to make sure they wear the clothing of their caste and to change that clothing as soon as trends demand so as not to be misidentified.
Despite the obvious and near universal differences in lifestyle between those with high and low Dharma, most members of the Nacirema tribe claim to belong to the “middle” Dharma caste. This claim of “middle” status is so highly valued that nearly all Nacirema insist upon it. One man may be a pauper with barely enough food to eat, and another a member of the high nobility with multiple servants and dwellings, and yet both will claim to possess only “middle” Dharma despite the fact that the difference is known to all — as attested to by their treatment by society.
Depictions of and distinctions between Dharma in the arts
The Nacirema are a highly artistic people, and their art no less than any other aspect of society reflects this obsession with Dharma. Many of their morality plays tell mythical stories of ancient heroes who sought to improve their Dharma — either by good or ill deeds. Men and women who improve their Dharma may be alternately praised and reviled depending on the method of their ascension.
The visual arts enjoyed by the high and low castes differ greatly and much like clothing, the Nacirema spend a great deal of time studying the arts and making sure that they appreciate the appropriate types of art for their caste. It is difficult to explain the differences between “high” and “low” caste art — as this is a lifelong study for most Nacirema. To give one example, high Dharma art is often highly abstract and exhibited in large temples. I have seen a room in one such temple filled entirely with rectangles painted entirely with one or two colors.
Music, too, is highly stratified. The low Dharma castes seem to listen to music that is highly percussive and which produces a sense of excitement in the listener. High Dharma music, by contrast, is often extremely complex and has the tendency of producing sleepiness in its listeners. In music, however, perhaps more so than in other aspects of society high Dharma individuals will make a show of appreciating music created and listened to by lower Dharma individuals. By contrast, hardly any low Dharma individuals will claim to enjoy the music produced and enjoyed by those of high Dharma.
Several unique rituals involving Dharma and mating
Both men and women in Nacirema possess Dharma and mating is mostly assortative — those with high Dharma marry others with high Dharma and those with low Dharma marry others of low status. A curious twist, however, is that all women of the Nacirema race aspire to marry a man with higher Dharma than her own. Obviously if the Dharma of men and women were equal this would be impossible. The difference is accomplished, therefore, by requiring women to have lower Dharma than men generally speaking. Certain occupations which are reserved exclusively for women have much lower Dharma than others reserved for men. This is despite the fact that the requirements and difficulties of these careers are nearly equal.
When a man wishes to court a woman, he will engage in an elaborate ritual which involves the consumption of various foods normally reserved for those with high Dharma. Often a man will offer his preferred mate various gifts which symbolize his high Dharma while the woman will make a diligent effort to verify that his Dharma is as he claimed — inspecting his dress, occupation, companions, dwelling place, and other features.
The wedding ceremonies of the Nacirema are not particularly elaborate — often taking only a few hours. They do, however, involve the investment of a considerable amount of Dharma — generally by the father of the bride to be. And an important part of the marriage is the giving of gifts intended to increase the Dharma of the future husband and wife. In keeping with the taboo on openly speaking of Dharma, these gifts are often secretly solicited and given and not actually displayed during the wedding. Most of these gifts serve no purpose other than to elevate the Dharma of the couple. For example, a common gift is the giving of various pottery and utensils which are practically forbidden to use but which are highly reputed for increasing the Dharma of a household.
How one acquires good and bad Dharma
As I have said, much of Nacirema folklore speaks about ancient heroes who increased their Dharma. And the stated aspiration of almost all members of the Nacirema race is to increase their own Dharma. This despite the fact that few members of the Nacirema race actually change their Dharma substantially. Those who are born to the lower castes generally remain so, and similarly for the high castes.
Nonetheless, all Nacirema work to increase their own Dharma. Generally speaking, there are two “paths” one may use to increase one’s Dharma. As in in many Eastern religions, there is a “right handed” path which consists of hard work and virtuous deeds, and a “left handed” path which consists of daring exploits and often trickery and deception. Both of these paths are equally glorified in film, although the “right handed” path is most often the one pursued by members of the Nacirema race.
Many members of the Nacirema race strive to increase their Dharma, generally by adopting the styles, careers and tastes of those in a slightly higher caste. This is made more difficult by the fact that the styles and tastes of each caste are constantly changing, and that careers for the higher Dharma individuals are restricted only to members of their own caste — either by explicit requirements for various pieces of paper proving one is a member of a certain caste, or by a careful process of discernment where a person applying for a certain career is carefully appraised for their ability to dress and speak like a member of the caste for which they are applying. One might think that the taboo about asking about one’s Dharma would make such discernment quite difficult, but in practice it is nearly flawless due to the number of subtle differences between the castes which are practically impossible for an outsider to imitate.
Women of low Dharma often seek to increase their status by marrying men of higher Dharma. Such schemes are rarely successful due to the tendency of people to marry only members of their own caste. Nonetheless stories of such romances are greatly celebrated in the arts and are a common topic of female conversation.
Another common artistic trope is of great windfalls or misfortunes that may move someone from one caste to another. Almost all low Dharma individuals participate in a system whereby a member of their caste will be randomly chosen for elevation to the highest possible Dharma. This usually results in great tragedy for the “winner” of such a competition and within a few months or years they will have returned to their former Dharma — or much lower.
Similarly, members of the Nacirema race take great vindication in the repudiation of high Dharma individuals who are supposed to have partaken in evil deeds. These villains are ritually stripped of their Dharma and made to spend long periods of time in the detention houses — which are normally reserved only for those people with the lowest Dharma. Even the detention houses of the high Dharma individuals, however, are of finer condition than those for low Dharma individuals. And it is usually not long before a person of high Dharma comes up with some scheme to return to their former high status.
Systems for the regulation of Dharma
There are a number of institutions which serve to reinforce the separation between those who have high and low Dharma. This begins at the youngest ages, when all individuals are separated into various schools based off of their Dharma. The schooling not only assures that children spent time around and acquire the habits of those with their same Dharma. But they also provide various pieces of paper which can be used to acquire higher Dharma by applying for certain careers.
All careers are regulated by various associations, which similarly work to reinforce the separation between high and low Dharma individuals. Often these organizations are ruled by a small group of high Dharma individuals who do nearly no work, while enforcing the most brutal conditions imaginable on those people in the organization who have low Dharma. A man of high Dharma may relax all day and come and leave as he pleases, while a man of low Dharma is not allowed more than a few minutes for the necessary tasks of eating and relieving oneself.
Those with the lowest Dharma are forbidden from all occupations, and instead spend most of their time in various “rehabilitation centers”. Supposedly the purpose of these centers is to purge the evil low Dharma tendencies from a man, but generally the result is the exact opposite. Women with low Dharma are much less likely to be sent to rehabilitation centers, but are instead required to remain at home with their children while awaiting the return of their children’s fathers, or to work the most menial of occupations such as serving food and cleaning the houses and workplaces of higher Dharma individuals.
Most curiously of all, there exist institutions whose sole purpose is to temporarily boost or “loan” Dharma to those people whose status does not accurately reflect their caste. These institutions exercise great discernment in making sure only to give Dharma to those who would naturally acquire it in society anyway. When those with low Dharma are forced to depend on the aid of such institutions — generally due to such necessities as lack of food, housing, or the death of a family member — aid is offered only on the most humiliating of terms and generally guarantees that the recipient will suffer low Dharma for the rest of their lives.
Relationship between Dharma and dispute resolution
In addition to the system of Dharma, the Nacirema have a system of justice as might be found in any other society. This system of justice, however, reflects their curious attitudes towards the nature of Dharma. In the first case, the laws of the society are written so that those of low Dharma are virtually guaranteed to transgress them, while special exceptions are made for even the worst deeds by those of high Dharma. There exists a whole class of experts whose sole purpose is to make sure that the legal system serves the interests of those with high Dharma.
When a person of low Dharma commits the slightest infraction — such as improper operation of a vehicle — they are subject to a long and Dharma-lowering cycle of trials, fines and various abuse. Certain substances are consumed by both high and low Dharma individuals for pleasure, but low Dharma individuals may be fined, arrested or imprisoned for using these substances while high Dharma individuals need not worry about such consequences. In fact, it is generally acknowledged that those with the highest Dharma may engage in acts generally despised — such as rape, theft and murder — without the slightest fear of repercussion.
The leaders of the Nacirema society not only reinforce this system, but make a habit of putting it on display regularly by engaging in the grossest forms of corruption, theft and sexual abuse with impunity. And the Nacirema not only tolerate these leaders by celebrate them by re-selecting them as leaders every two years.
The various magical rituals involving Dharma and those who perform them
I hope that I have given you a brief overview of how Dharma functions in the Nacirema society. Due to the great secrecy that surrounds much of Dharma, it is impossible for me to speak of it in full detail, however. How to explain the great trading houses where Dharma is created and destroyed despite no real activity happening there? How to explain the society of priests whose job it is to track the Dharma of every individual in Nacirema society? How to tell of the various spells by which Dharma is extracted from the masses for the benefit of the society’s leaders — spells from which those with the highest Dharma are nearly exempt. How to explain the process by which all things — from food and drink to the finest works of art — are assigned a Dharma value. These values are constantly changing — all with the goal of maintaining some kind of Dharmic balance in society. How to explain the work of those who exist solely to teach others how to increase their Dharma — and whose advice is generally useless but nonetheless treated as finest gospel? And how to explain the great collapses when the Dharma of the whole society rises and falls, leading to on the on hand prosperity and the other suffering for all?
It is too much for anyone to comprehend. I believe one could study for centuries and only scratch the surface of this arcane and confusing system. Even to read the texts written by the Nacirema themselves on the system — all of which are extremely difficult to understand and contradict one another — would be the work of a hundred lifetimes.
Consider the following experiment. Take two men — one of high and one of low Dharma. Remove their clothing — which will obviously distinguish them. Shave their hair and beards — which are also according to a fashion determined by Dharma. Remove the various tattoos and marks of surgery on their bodies. Alter by some means the differences in height and weight. Forbid either of them to speak, lest their accents reveal their Dharma. Blindfold them — for those of low Dharma are less apt to make eye-contact than those of high. Require the two men to sit in the same posture and to remain perfectly still — for there are high and low Dharma postures as well. Trim their nails, bleach their skins, pluck their eyebrows (all of these will be different, due to the differences in grooming and different arenas of work). Adjust by some means the different musculature of a man accustomed to leisure versus a man of hard work. Will you then have two men whose Dharma is indistinguishable? I doubt it! Undoubtedly there is some subtle signal I will have missed, some secret tic of body and mind which separates these two castes. And I venture that practically any member of the Nacirema society will be able to identify it in an instant.
Such is the power of Dharma.
