Success on paper, but empty inside? You’ve climbed the ladder. Hit the metrics. Earned the title. By every outward measure, you’ve made it. And yet—something feels off.

Welcome to the modern paradox.

Driven, disciplined, high-performing professionals often face a quiet, unspoken crisis. It’s not always burnout or exhaustion. Sometimes it’s harder to name: a sense of meaninglessness.

This inner disquiet—the feeling that even a successful life can feel strangely incomplete—is not new. But today, it’s easier than ever to ignore, buried under the noise of achievement and busyness. Behind polished LinkedIn profiles and year-end bonuses, the question lingers, “Is this all there is?”

In the timeless perspective of Sanātana Dharma, this question is not a flaw to fix but a moment of awakening. It is the soul’s quiet nudge—a reminder that what we long for cannot be fulfilled by ambition, achievement, or acclaim alone. True fulfilment arises only through self-actualisation.

Puruṣārtha

To desire material success and pleasure is natural. To build, to create, to enjoy- these are part of the human condition. Our systems of education, economy, and even personal aspiration are built around the accumulation of these two.

However, modern lifestyle celebrates the grind. Wealth, success, and influence are pursued relentlessly. Many professionals pour decades into growing businesses and building wealth. But when pursued single-mindedly, this become a source dissonance, not joy, often coming at a personal cost- disconnection, emotional numbness and spiritual stagnation. This is a signal to adjust, not give up—to restore balance.

Sanātana Dharma does not reject success. It defines success as the harmony of purpose. It encourages the pursuit of Puruṣārtha, the integrated goal of human life, comprising four distinct aims:

• Dharma– alignment with the natural order, which includes ethics and duties- towards self, family, and society
• Artha– prosperity, professional success, economic stability
• Kāma– sensual gratification, emotional fulfilment, aesthetic pleasure
• Mokṣa – self-realisation, freedom from ego, illusion, and suffering

These are not sequential steps; rather they are parallel aims. Like the four legs of a chariot, each is essential for balance, each drawing the individual towards self-actualisation. While all four aims are valid, Dharma and Mokṣa anchor the pursuits of Artha and Kāma. Crucially, Dharma provides direction and Mokṣa provides meaning– without them, the other two can become chains rather than wings.

1. Svadharma

Svadharma is one of the most important aspects of Dharma. It refers to one’s own inherent nature, and the consequent functions or duties that follow.

Following Svadharma is a central teaching in the Bhagavad Gītā and a key factor in self-actualisation. In Chapter 3, Verse 35, Krishna declares, “It is better to perform one’s innate duty, even if imperfectly, than to follow another’s duty, even if perfectly executed,” reminding us that true fulfilment lies in living authentically. In modern terms, this means aligning one’s career with one’s intrinsic qualities.

For example, a person with a logical, analytical mind may thrive as a software engineer, while one with compassion and empathy may find meaning as a therapist or teacher. A natural leader may be drawn to entrepreneurship, while a creative soul may flourish in design or the arts.

When professionals ignore these inner inclinations in favour of social approval or financial reward, they often experience burnout or emptiness. Living one’s Svadharma fosters inner harmony, purpose, and lasting fulfilment- core aspects of self-actualisation that go far beyond material success.

2. Dhārmika Action

In Sanātana Dharma, Artha (material success) is not rejected and Kāma (desire) is not demonised.

Think of Dharma as the compass and Artha as the journey. When we chase Artha without Dharma, we may reach distant lands, but find ourselves lost in the vast arid desert of emptiness. Why? Because the pursuit lacked alignment with deeper values. The success came at the expense of relationships, personal peace, or integrity. Artha is expected to flow through Dharma – just means, ethical work, managing relationships, and social contributions that uplift rather than exploit.

Kāma is natural human longing. However, unexamined desire becomes compulsion. When desire is guided by Dharma, it refines itself into love, intimacy, beauty, and joy. When it is not, it degrades into obsession, distraction, addiction, and perpetual discontent. The echo of obsession is found in modern life- the professional who, having reached one summit, feels compelled to climb another, yet, finds no deeper peace at the peak.

Dhārmika action allies thought and effort with principles. Rooted in integrity, it brings clarity, purpose, and peace to both work and life.

3. Mokṣika Mindset

In modern psychology, freedom  of the self consists of our ability to think, our self-assurance to freely express thoughts and feelings, and our autonomy to act according to our convictions. While Sanātana philosophy accepts this in the mental context, its concept of freedom is much more expansive.

The pinnacle of human purpose in Sanātana Dharma is Mokṣa – liberation from illusion and ego. It is the realisation of the Ātman, the true Self, which is beyond identity, roles, and achievements. It is the dissolution of the illusion that we are merely the body, the mind, the profession, or the narrative.

To live with Mokṣa in view is not escaping from the world, but to radically reorient identity. It is to live with the awareness that all achievement is transient, and yet act- joyfully, ethically, lovingly- because action becomes an offering to our privileged human birth, and not an assertion of ego.

Self-actualisation, in this light, is not the crowning of the self, but the realisation that the true Self has no crown, needs no crown, because it is whole. The  Mokṣika mindset inspires you to go inward. To explore your awareness. To understand the impermanence of external success, and to seek joy that is unshakable- because it comes from within.

You are not your job title. You are not your productivity. You are not your reputation. Ironically, many professionals only begin to glimpse this truth after achieving worldly success. When there’s nothing left to chase, the real question arises, “Who am I, really?”

Realigning the Professional Path

So how do we bring this ancient wisdom into the modern boardroom, startup, or corporate career?

• Go beyond metrics. Ask not only, “What must I do?”, but also,  “Why must I do what I do? Is it aligned with my core values? Is  right for me to do it?”
• Choose roles, projects, and partnerships that reflect integrity and long-term impact.
• Enjoy the fruits of success, but don’t let them define your worth.
• Nurture longstanding relationships based on respect, loyalty, and love.
• Make space for silence. Let your metrics include stillness, joy, inner clarity. Keep some time aside for reflection and self-inquiry that will anchor you beyond the material.

A meaningful journey is more fulfilling than chasing an illusion called success. So, ask yourself whether you are walking your path in alignment with your true Self, or if you have lost sight of who you are along the way.

Conclusion

The modern professional, though rich in opportunity and access, is often poor in purpose. Sanātana Dharma invites us to a deeper vision of purpose- you must act not to become someone, but to express who you already are.

Puruṣārtha, the framework to leading a fulfilled life, reveals that self-actualisation is a conscious shift from outer conquest to inner clarity. And when Dharma, Artha, Kāma, and Mokṣa  move together in harmony, life stops feeling hollow.

The Mokṣika mindset is not about renouncing the world; it is about reintegrating with life more consciously. It engages you with life’s rhythm- not to rise above it, but to sink deeper into its essence. Dhārmika action brings clarity and calm. You can still lead, build, innovate, and earn- but the motive changes. The centre realigns. The emptiness recedes, and a sense of wholeness begins to emerge.

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© Sujata Khanna. All rights reserved.

Sujata Khanna’s book, ‘The Eternal Law’, explores Sanātana Philosophy in its elemental form. Available on Amazon worldwide: India, USA, UK, Canada, Australia, Singapore, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherland, Poland, Sweden, Japan

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