Grhastha

(“householder”) In the dharma literature, which gives instruction on religious practice and duties, a grhastha is
a “householder.” According to the
dharma literature, the grhastha is the
second of the four stages of life
(ashramas) in the life of a man born
into one of the three twice-born
groups—brahmin, kshatriya, or
vaishya—which have the highest religious and social status in Indian society. The householder stage is preceded
by that of the brahmacharin or celibate student, and succeeded by the
vanaprastha or forest-dweller, and the
sanyasi or wandering ascetic. In practical terms, for most men the householder stage is the final stage of life,
since most men do not choose to move
beyond it. The householder stage
begins with marriage, and leads to
raising and supporting a family. This
stage is an active and fruitful time of
life, and the householder is indispensable to society since his labors and
resources support those in the other
three stages of life. This is also the only
stage of life in which sexual intercourse is not explicitly forbidden,
since the general fruitfulness of this
stage of life is expressed through procreation. A householder is permitted
to pursue three of the traditional aims
of life (purushartha): wealth (artha),
desire (kama), and religious duty
(dharma). Given the depth and richness of the householder’s life, it is not
surprising that many men have little
inclination to move on to the two
other stages.