Tamil Nadu HSE First Year Ethics and Indian Culture key terms

The systematic study of what makes actions right or wrong and of the standards by which human conduct and character are judged good or bad.

The lived code of conduct a person or community actually follows, covering rules and habits about right behaviour rather than the theoretical study of it.

A deeply held belief about what is desirable or worthwhile, which guides a person's choices, priorities, and judgements about people and situations.

A stable good quality of character, such as honesty or courage, formed through repeated practice and admired as making a person excellent in conduct.

The inner sense of right and wrong that prompts feelings of approval or guilt and urges a person to act in line with their moral standards.

The whole way of life of a group, including its language, beliefs, customs, arts, food, dress, and shared values, passed from one generation to the next.

Practices, beliefs, and customs handed down across generations and treated by a community as worth continuing, though they may be revised over time.

The inherited legacy of a society, both physical remains such as monuments and manuscripts and living elements such as festivals, crafts, and oral knowledge.

The Indian principle that many languages, religions, and regional customs coexist within one nation, and that this variety strengthens rather than weakens national unity.

A process in which a lower-status group adopts customs, rituals, or vocabulary associated with higher-status groups in order to improve its social standing.

A household in which parents, their married sons or daughters, and grandchildren live together and share property, work, and responsibilities under senior guidance.

A household made up of a married couple and their dependent children only, without grandparents or other relatives living in the same home.

The duty of children to respect, obey, care for, and support their parents, especially in old age, as a repayment of the care they received.

The lifelong process through which a person learns the norms, values, language, and roles of their society, beginning in the family and continuing in school and community.

In Indian thought, the duties and right conduct appropriate to a person's role, stage of life, and situation, often understood as what sustains moral and social order.

The principle that intentional actions produce consequences that shape a person's present and future circumstances, and that moral responsibility therefore attaches to every deed.

The principle of non-violence, meaning the avoidance of harm in thought, word, and deed; it was central to Jain and Buddhist teaching and to Gandhi's method of struggle.

A large collection of ancient Sanskrit narrative texts that present cosmology, genealogies, and moral teaching through stories of gods, sages, and kings.

Philosophical texts appended to the Vedas that explore the nature of the self, ultimate reality, and liberation through dialogue and reflection rather than ritual instruction.

The path of loving devotion to a personal deity, expressed in prayer, song, and service, which became a powerful popular movement across India and Tamil country.

The earliest surviving body of Tamil poetry, comprising anthologies of love and heroic verse composed roughly between the first centuries BCE and CE.

A Tamil ethical work of 1,330 couplets by Thiruvalluvar, arranged in three sections on virtue, wealth, and love, widely respected as a universal moral text.

The Tamil word for virtue or righteous conduct, used in classical Tamil ethics to mean action that is morally right and socially beneficial.

The classical Tamil system that divides landscape and poetic theme into categories such as hill, forest, farmland, seashore, and wasteland, each linked to particular emotions.

A Sangam-era Tamil poet remembered for the verse declaring that all places are one's own and all people one's kin, a classic statement of universal brotherhood.

The standards of conduct expected within a particular occupation, covering competence, honesty, confidentiality, and fair dealing with clients, colleagues, and the public.

The quality of holding consistently to moral principles, so that private belief and public action match and promises are kept even when no one is watching.

The obligation to answer for one's decisions and actions to those affected or to a lawful authority, accepting consequences rather than shifting blame.

Openness in decision-making and record-keeping, so that the reasons for actions and the use of resources can be examined by those concerned.

Meeting present human needs without destroying the ability of future generations to meet theirs, balancing economic growth with environmental care and social fairness.

The branch of ethics examining the moral duties humans owe to animals, plants, ecosystems, and future people, and how those duties limit present use of nature.

A measure of the land and water area needed to supply the resources a person or group consumes and to absorb the waste they produce.

Basic entitlements belonging to every person by virtue of being human, such as life, liberty, equality, and dignity, independent of nationality, sex, or status.

The fair distribution of opportunities, resources, and treatment within a society, with special attention to groups that have suffered historical disadvantage.

The process of building a shared sense of belonging and loyalty among diverse regions, languages, and communities within one country, while respecting their differences.

In the Indian constitutional sense, the state has no official religion, treats all faiths equally, and may intervene to reform religious practices that violate fundamental rights.

Eleven obligations listed in Article 51A of the Indian Constitution, added in 1976, urging citizens to respect the Constitution, protect the environment, and promote harmony.

Planned teaching that helps learners reflect on moral, social, and civic values and develop the judgement to act on them in daily life.

The statutory right of citizens to obtain information held by public authorities, used to expose corruption and make officials answerable for their decisions.

Gandhi's method of resisting injustice through truthful, non-violent action such as civil disobedience and fasting, aiming to change the opponent's heart rather than coerce him.