Achara

(“conduct”) Appropriate or approved
behavior according to customary law,
which is established in the dharma literature. The dharma assumes that society is made up of different social
subgroups known as jatis, which are
usually defined (and hierarchically
arranged) by the group’s hereditary
occupation. Each jati had its own customary code of appropriate behavior,
and there were often sharp differences
between them. For example, it was often
acceptable for members of lower-status
jatis to eat meat and drink liquor,
whereas these practices were forbidden
to higher-status groups. Aside from the
customary rules of one’s social group or
subgroup, notions of appropriate
behavior for a particular person would
also be shaped by age and gender considerations: A young and sexually fertile
woman would be subject to far greater
restrictions than a postmenopausal
woman, since any sexual scandal (or
even the hint of it) could ruin a young
4
Achala Ekadashi
woman’s opportunities for a good marriage or produce an illegitimate child.