Author Name: – Madhubanti Dhar, Vaishali Gahlyan Date:- 17 March 2026
Background: Most major ethical theories in Western philosophy can be classified within either consequentialism, deontology, or virtue ethics. The centrality of ‘duty for duty’s sake’ in both Kantian ethics and the Bhagavad Gita invites comparison, yet the two traditions diverge profoundly in how they understand and define the scope of ‘duty’. This paper examines whether Svadharma and situational ethics in the Bhagavad Gita offer a more flexible, holistic and contextually responsive moral framework compared to Kant’s absolutist deontology. The objectives are threefold: to analyse the foundational principles of Kant’s moral philosophy; to outline the Gita’s conception of dharma focusing on its distinctions between general, contextual and personal duties; and to demonstrate how the Gita’s model of svadharma provides a compelling alternative to the rigidity of deontological ethical reasoning. By drawing these traditions into dialogue, this paper argues that the Gita’s approach to ethical dilemmas — rooted in self-knowledge and responsibility — offers a richer and more adaptable paradigm for real-world moral issues than the categorical and absolutist rules of Kantian ethics.
Keywords: bhagavad gita, kantian ethics, svadharma, dharma, categorical imperative, applied ethics.
