VAC

Unit 1 (A)
Secularism and Sarva Dharma Sambhava

Introduction

• The term "Secular" means being "separate" from religion, or having no religious basis.

• A secular person is one who does not owe his moral values to any religion. His values
are the product of his rational and scientific thinking.

• Secularism means separation of religion from political, economic, social and cultural
aspects of life, religion being treated as a purely personal matter.

• It emphasized dissociation of the state from religion and full freedom to all religions
and tolerance of all religions.

• It also stands for equal opportunities for followers of all religions, and no discrimination
and partiality on grounds of religion.

Secularism in the History of India

• Secular traditions are very deep rooted in the history of India. Indian culture is based on
the blending of various spiritual traditions and social movements.

• In ancient India, the Santam Dharma (Hinduism) was basically allowed to develop as a
holistic religion by welcoming different spiritual traditions and trying to integrate them
into a common mainstream.

• The development of four Vedas and the various interpretations of the Upanishads and
the Puranas clearly highlight the religious plurality of Hinduism.

• Emperor Ashoka was the first great emperor to announce, as early as third century
B.C. that the state would not prosecute any religious sect.
In his 12th Rock Edict, Ashoka made an appeal not only for the toleration of all religious
sects but also to develop a spirit of great respect toward them.

• Even after the advent of Jainism, Buddhism and later Islam and Christianity on the
Indian soil, the quest for religious toleration and coexistence of different faiths continued.

• In medieval India, the Sufi and Bhakti movements bond the people of various
communities together with love and peace.

• The leading lights of these movements were Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti, Baba Farid,
Sant Kabir Das, Guru Nanak Dev, Saint Tukaram and Mira Bai etc.

• In medieval India, religious toleration and freedom of worship marked the State under
Akbar. He had a number of Hindus as his ministers, forbade forcible conversions and
abolished Jizya.

• The most prominent evidence of his tolerance policy was his promulgation of
'Din-i-llahi' or the Divine Faith, which had elements of both Hindu and Muslim faith.

• That this was not imposed upon the subjects is obvious from the fact that there were few
adherents to it. Along with this he emphasized the concept of 'sulh-i-kul or peace and
harmony among religions.

• He even sponsored a series of religious debates which were held in the 'Ibadat Khana' of
the Hall of Worship, and the participants in these debates included theologians from
amongst Brahmins, Jains and Zoroastrians.

• Even before Akbar, Babar had advised Humayun to "shed religious prejudice, protect
temples, preserve cows, and administer justice properly in this tradition."

• The spirit of secularism was strengthened and enriched through the Indian freedom
movement too, though the British have pursued the policy of divide and rule.

• In accordance with this policy, the British partitioned Bengal in 1905.

• Separate electorates were provided for Muslims through the Indian Councils Act of
1909, a provision which was extended to Sikhs, Indian Christians, Europeans and
Anglo-Indians in certain provinces by the Government of India Act, 1919.

• Ramsay MacDonald Communal Award of 1932, provided for separate electorates as

well as reservation of seats for minorities, even for the depressed classes became the
basis for representation under the Government of India Act, 1935.

• However, Indian freedom movement was characterized by secular tradition and ethos
right from the start.

• In the initial part of the Indian freedom movement, the liberals like Sir Feroz Shah
Mehta, Govind Ranade, Gopal Krishna Gokhale by and large pursued a secular approach
to politics.

• The constitution drafted by Pandit Moti Lal Nehru as the chairman of the historic Nehru
Committee in 1928, had many provision on secularism as: There shall be no state religion
for the commonwealth of India or for any province in the commonwealth, nor shall the
state, either directly or indirectly, endow any religion any preference or impose any
disability on account of religious beliefs or religious status'.

• Gandhiji's secularism was based on a commitment to the brotherhood of religious

communities based on their respect for and pursuit of truth, whereas, J. L. Nehru's
secularism was based on a commitment to scientific humanism tinged with a progressive
view of historical change.

• At present, in the context of India, the separation of religion from the state constitutes
the core of the philosophy of secularism.

Philosophy of Indian Secularism

• The term 'secularism' is akin to the Vedic concept of 'Dharma nirapekshata' i.e. the
indifference of state to religion.

• This model of secularism is adopted by western societies where the government is

totally separate from religion (i.e. separation of church and state).
• Indian philosophy of secularism is related to "Sarva Dharma Sambhava" (literally
it means that the destination of the paths followed by all religions is the same, though the
paths themselves may be different) which means equal respect to all religions.

• This concept, embraced and promoted by personalities like Vivekananda and Mahatma
Gandhi is called 'Positive secularism' that reflects the dominant ethos of Indian culture.

• India does not have an official state religion. However, different personal laws - on
matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, alimony varies with an individual's
religion.

• Indian secularism is not an end in itself but a means to address religious plurality and
sought to achieve peaceful coexistence of different religions.

Secularism and the Indian Constitution

• There is a clear incorporation of all the basic principles of secularism into various
provisions of the constitution.

• The term 'Secular' was added to the preamble by the forty-second constitution
Amendment Act of 1976, (India is a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic, republic).

It emphasizes the fact that constitutionally, India is a secular country which has no State
religion. And that the state shall recognise and accept all religions, not favor or patronize
any particular religion.

• While Article 14 grants equality before the law and equal protection of the laws to all,
Article 15 enlarges the concept of secularism to the widest possible extent by prohibiting
discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.

• Article 16 (1) guarantees equality of opportunity to all citizens in matters of public

employment and reiterates that there would be no discrimination on the basis of religion,
race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth and residence.
• Article 25 provides 'Freedom of Conscience', that is, all persons are equally entitled to
freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion.

• As per Article 26, every religious group or individual has the right to establish and
maintain institutions for religious and charitable purposes and to manage its own affairs
in matters of religion.

• As per Article 27, the state shall not compel any citizen to pay any taxes for the
promotion or maintenance of any particular religion or religious institution.

• Article 28 allows educational institutions maintained by different religious groups to

impart religious instruction.

• Article 29 and Article 30 provides cultural and educational rights to the minorities.

• Article 51A i.e. Fundamental Duties obliges all the citizens to promote harmony and
the spirit of common brotherhood and to value and preserve the rich heritage of our
composite culture.

Indian vs. Western Model of Secularism

Over the years, India has developed its own unique concept of secularism that is
fundamentally different from the parallel western concept of secularism in the following
ways:

• As per the western model of secularism, the "State" and the "religion" have their own
separate spheres and neither the state nor the religion shall intervene in each other's
affairs.

• Thus, the western concept of secularism requires complete separation of religion and
state.

• However, in India, neither in law nor in practice any 'wall of separation' between
religion and the State exists.
• In India, both state and religion can, and often do, interact and intervene in each other's
affairs within the legally prescribed and judicially settled parameters.

• In other words, Indian secularism does not require a total banishment of religion from
the State affairs.

• As per the western model, the state cannot give any financial support to educational
institutions run by religious communities.

• On the other hand, the Indian model has chosen a positive mode of engagement.

• In India, the state provides all religious minorities the right to establish and maintain
their own educational institutions which may receive assistance from the state.

• In the western model, the State does not intervene in the affairs of religion till the time
religion is working within the limits of the law.

• On the other hand, in Indian secularism, state shall interfere in religion so as to remove
evils in it.

• India has intervened by enforcing legislation against the practices of sati or

widow-burning, dowry, animal and bird sacrifice, child marriage, and preventing Dalits
from entering temples.

• In western concept of secularism, religion is relegated entirely to the private sphere and
has no place in public life whatsoever.

• The western model prohibits any public policy to be drafted on the basis of religion
therefore; state is absolutely distanced from the religious activities and practices of its
citizens.

• In India, the state has the policy of setting up Departments of Religious Endowments,
Wakf Boards, etc. It is also involved in appointing Trustees of these boards.

Threats to Secularism
• While, the Indian Constitution declares the state being absolutely neutral to all religion,
our society has steeped in religion.

• Mingling of Religion and Politics that is mobilization of votes on grounds of primordial

identities like religion, caste and ethnicity, have put Indian secularism in danger.

• Communal politics operates through communalization of social space, by spreading

myths and stereotypes against minorities, through attack on rational values and by
practicing divisive ideological propaganda and politics.

• Politicization of any one religious group leads to the competitive politicization of other
groups, thereby resulting in inter-religious conflict.

• One of the manifestations of communalism is communal riots. In the recent past also,
communalism has proved to be a great threat to the secular fabric of Indian polity.

• Rise of Hindu Nationalism in recent years have resulted into mob lynching on mere
suspicion of slaughtering cows and consuming beef.

• In addition to this, forced closure of slaughterhouses, campaigns against 'love jihad',

reconversion or ghar- wapsi (Muslims being forced to convert to Hinduism), etc.
reinforces communal tendencies in society.

• Islamic fundamentalism or revivalism pushes for establishing Islamic State based on

sharia law which directly comes into conflict with conceptions of the secular and
democratic state.

• In recent years there have been some strayed Hindu as well as Muslim youth being
inspired and radicalized by groups which is very unfortunate for both India and the
world.

Way Forward

• In a pluralistic society, the best approach to nurture secularism is to expand religious

freedom rather than strictly practicing state neutrality.
• It is incumbent on us to ensure value-education that makes the younger generation
understand and appreciates not only its own religious traditions but also those of the other
religions in the country.

• There is also a need to identify a common framework or a shared set of values which
allows the diverse groups to live together.

• The prerequisites to implement the social reform initiative like Uniform Civil Code are
to create a conducive environment and forging socio-political consensus.

Sarva Dharma-Sambhava and its relevance today

Introduction:

Philosophy is the pursuit of wisdom and includes the metaphysical enquiry into the
nature of reality as a whole and the moral and spiritual endeavor to realize it.

Here the question arises mainly are three different lines : what can we know? What
should we do? And what may we hope for?

Answers to these questions relate to what are familiarly known as tatta, hita and
purusartha or the metaphysical, moral and religious aspects of experience.

Philosophy is such a thought, where religion in which the absolute of metaphysics is the
God of ethical religion, and it's also satisfies the highest needs of life.

Religion is a word which is used by different people in different ways. Religion is also a
belief in the ultimate values which are in harmony with the enduring structure of the
universe.

Religion comes from the words - 're' and 'ligare' i.e., binding together, it is binding of the
finite with the infinite, that is man with the God.
The God usually is taken to be creator , with all metaphysical attributes like -
omnipotence, omnipresence, omniscient, benevolent, Absolute, Eternal, Infinite and the
only personality.

The Oxford dictionary defines religion as - Human recognition of superhuman

controlling power and especially of a personal God entitled to obedience, recognition of
conduct and mental attitude.

Indian society is pluralistic and Indian culture is a composite culture.

People belonging to different religions and cultural backgrounds, and they groups work
together and live side by side as good neighbors.

India as a democratic and secular state

Gandhiji was trying to make a strong foundation of a new culture which would be
permeated by all the people, who belong to different religions and cultures, which is
Sarva Dharma-Sambhava, treating all religions with equal reverence.

To discuss this we focus on the following issues :

1. Gandhian ethical religion
2. Gandhi's equal respect for all religions.
3. Tolerance towards other religions.
4. Gandhian Sarva Dharma-Sambhava, a way of resolving religious conflicts.

Gandhian Ethical Religion :

Ethics tells us what is ought to be. Gandhi's philosophy is basically religious and he
called
religion as 'ethical religion'.

Gandhiji conceived religion as all- comprehensive dealing with every aspect of human
life. Religion is essentially practical and hence finds its fullest expression in and through
the ordinary activities of man.
Gandhiji said "must watch my life, eat, sit, talk, behave in general. The sum total of those
in me in my religion"!

For Gandhi truth is God and truth is the substance of all morality. Gandhi believes that
morality is the underlying principles of all religions.

Religion, in the form of a set of dogmatic beliefs and supernatural influences, does not
appeal much to Gandhi. Gandhi's ethical religion is meant for purifying man's character.

He thought that morality must pervade every sphere of human life and activity.

Self-realization for Gandhi, is impossible without a complete identification and merging

of one self with the whole humanity.

He repeatedly asserts that there could be no realization of God apart from the service of
humanity.

Gandhi wrote that through service to humanity one can attain God.

Gandhi's ethical religion has an inseparable bearing on social life.

Self-realization for Gandhi did not signify isolation from society and leading the life of a
recluse.

Self-realization is necessarily connected with service to mankind, and there is no

happiness on earth apart from service to humanity.

Gandhi means by religious ethics or belief in ordered moral governance of the universe.

Gandhi's Equal respect for other religions: Gandhiji regards that all religions have their
origin from the same God though they may differ due to the differences in human
perception and interpretation.

All religions lead to the same goal, that is the supreme God

There are so many religions in our country.

Gandhi argues that all religions are correct from their own standpoint, and we should not
think that one religion is greater than the other because there is only one fundamental
reality pervading the entire universe: there is only one God who is omniscient,
omnipotent, omnipresent for all faiths.

But he is named variously and we remember him by the name whichever is familiar to us.

Gandhi says that it is a misconception to believe that there is a separate God - one for
Muslims, one for Hindus and another for Christians.

Though God is nameless, we pray to him by a thousand names, whichever name pleases
us.

All people worship the same spirit, but each chooses the name according to his
association. He regards that every religion has something good to convey to humanity.

Hence, he appeals to all, not to quarrel with one another on the issue of superiority of one
religion over the other.

All religions have the same goal, that is good conduct, self-realization, or salvation.

Tolerance towards other religions: tolerance plays a key role in religion. Cultivation of
tolerance of other religions will impart to us a true understanding of our own.

Gandhiji wants every person to follow his own religion, and at the same time, he should
be tolerant and appreciative of the good things of all other religions.

He always says that all religions are good and equal. To whatever religious faith a person
may belong, he should cultivate the same regard for other faiths as he has for his own
faiths.. the aim of religion is not separating men from one another, they are meant to bind
them.

Gandhi advises the people of India, to develop the spirit of tolerance, which is a
necessary condition for peaceful co-existence, of people belonging to various faiths.

He is totally opposed to the reckless criticism of other religions on the basis of hatred and
prejudice.
He was against religious conversions. To Gandhi, one's own religion is equal to one's own
mother.

There are many religions in the world - Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism,
Judaism, Sikhism, Jainism etc., due to globalization of economy and development of fast
communication and travel many people are migrating to work in distant countries, far
from their homeland, belonging to different religious and cultural background.

In spite of the differences in their religion and faiths, they need to live in harmony with
people of other faiths.

Gandhiji gave the messages of peace and Concordia to the modern world

Conclusion :

The modern globalized world is full of multidimensional and multidisciplinary conflicts

ranging from interpersonal to international conflicts.

The quest for peace is an eternal pursuit for human existence and fulfillment.

Gandhi expounded the philosophy of Sarva Dharma-Sambhava, which is based upon

respect, tolerance, for other religions and non-violent technique for conflict resolution.

The world today is driven with serious political, social, economic and ecological crises.
Large parts of the developing world continue to be abysmally poor.

Gandhi's philosophical approach based fundamentally on truth, non-violence, and the

Socratic moral idea of self-examination offers much hope.

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