Achara is appropriate or authorized conduct as defined by customary law as found in the dharma canon.
The dharma believes that society is made up of several social groupings known as jatis, which are typically defined (and organized hierarchically) by their hereditary profession.
- Each jati had its own set of rules for proper conduct, and there were frequently significant variations between them.
- Lower-status jatis, for example, were frequently allowed to eat meat and drink wine, while higher-status groups were prohibited from doing so.
Aside from the usual norms of one's social group or subgroup, age and gender factors influence what constitutes acceptable conduct for a certain person:
- A young, sexually active woman would face much more limitations than a postmenopausal woman, since any sexual scandal (or even the suggestion of one) might jeopardize her chances of finding a suitable marriage or giving birth to an illegitimate child.
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