Ashrama (āśrama)

The four ashramas are the stages of a life lived in order: brahmacharya as a celibate student, grihastha as a householder, vanaprastha as a forest dweller, and sannyasa as a wandering renunciant. The word also means a hermitage, which is why sages' dwellings are called ashramas throughout the epic. The Mahabharata gives the scheme its most literal demonstration when Dhritarashtra, Gandhari and Kunti leave the palace in old age for a forest retreat and die there.