Divisions Sama vedic Yajur vedic Atharva vedic Vaishnava puranas Shaiva puranas Shakta puranas Dharma-yuddha is a Sanskrit word made up of two roots: dharma (धर्म) meaning righteousness, and yuddha (युद्ध) meaning warfare.
The build-up of weapons and armies is done with the full knowledge of the opposing side and no surprise attacks are made.
The lives of women, ascetics, prisoners of wars, and farmers were also sacred.
Dharma-yuddha also signifies that the war is not fought for gain or selfish reasons.
In the Mahabharata epic, which describes the Kurukshetra War, the two sides agree on the following rules: Beyond the Mahabharata, the principles of dharma-yuddha are referred to in many other ancient Indian texts, including the Ramayana and the Dharmashastras or law texts.