[13] In his book Bhagavad-Gita As It Is, Prabhupada describes Purusartha as "material religiosity, economic development, sense gratification and, at the end, the attempt to become one with the Supreme.
[15] Purushartha is a key concept in Hinduism, which holds that every human has four proper goals that are necessary and sufficient for a fulfilling and happy life,[16] Ancient Indian literature emphasizes that dharma is foremost.
[4] The Gautama Dharmashastra, Apastamba Dharmasutra and Yājñavalkya Smṛti, as examples, all suggest that dharma comes first and is more important than artha and kama.
[12] Indian scholars recognized and have debated the inherent tension between renunciation and Moksha on one hand, and the active pursuit of Kama and Artha on the other.
[8][33] Other Indian texts state the same answer to tension between "pursue wealth and love" versus "renounce everything" Purusharthas, but using different words.
[7] The concept of mokṣa appears in the Upanishads, while the preceding Samhitas, Brahmanas and Aranyakas commonly refer to kāma, artha and dharma as the "trivarga" or "three categories" of possible human pursuits.
The Dharmaśāstras and the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata are the first known sources that comprehensively present the notion that integrated living entails the pursuit of four goals or ends.
[37] The hymns of Rig Veda in Book 10 Chapter 136, mention Muni (मुनि, monks, mendicants, holy man), with characteristics that mirror those found in later concepts of renunication-practising, Moksha-motivated ascetics (Sannyasins and Sannyasinis).
These Muni are said to be Kesins (केशिन्, long haired) wearing Mala clothes (मल, dirty, soil-colored, yellow, orange, saffron) and engaged in the affairs of Mananat (mind, meditation).
[48][49] The ancient Tamil moral literature of the Tirukkural focuses on the first three of the purusharthas (Dharma, Artha, and Kama) without discussing Moksha, suggesting that "the proper pursuit of the other three will inevitably lead to the fourth.
[51] The four puruṣārthas are often discussed in the context of four ashramas or stages of life (Brahmacharya – student, Grihastha – householder, Vanaprastha – retirement and Sannyasa – renunciation).
Scholars have attempted to connect the four stages to the four puruṣārthas, however Olivelle dismisses this, as neither ancient nor medieval texts of India state that any of the first three ashramas must devote itself predominantly to one specific goal of life.
[52] With the known exception of Kamasutra, most texts make no recommendation on the relative preference on Artha or Kama, that an individual must emphasize in what stage of life.
In his youth he should attend to profitable aims (artha) such as learning, in his prime to pleasure (kama), and in his old age to dharma and moksha.This text does not mention the ashramas, however.