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| Secularism in religious India | | |
Md Vazeeruddin
It might look odd someone talking of the need for secularism in so religious a country as India . Yet, it is true that secularism cannot be practiced anywhere other than in India because ours is the only country where, paradoxically, secularism is underpinned by religion. All that is needed is a sustained campaign by committed secularists to educate the masses, notwithstanding the fact that they are already secular in their daily life. Of course, it is true that politicians exploit the masses in the name of religion, but mere shouting of that fact from housetops is useless. Instead, bands of committed secularists should go round the country explaining to the masses that they have been secular in their day-to-day life since long before anyone thought of secularism. They should impress upon the people the fundamental unity underlying all religions and the oneness of the God they all worship, though they call Him by different names, and ask the audience to pay attention to man's inner world, "the kingdom of Heaven", rather than to external trappings of religion, such as temples and mosques. Professor Parrinder said: "The religions of the world today face a completely new situation. Never before have they been in such close contact as they are now. The one world, in which we live, with its close communications, makes nonsense of religious isolation and greater nonsense of religious antagonism."
The unity of man must transcend all physical and geographical boundaries and override all man-made barriers. Realisation of the unity of man will impart an element of spirituality to human thought and action. This truth is beautifully expressed in a memorable verse in the Upanishad. It can roughly be translated as follows: "Man may try, through his technical advances, to roll up the sky itself as if it were a piece of leather. But, with all that, he will never succeed in achieving peace and the end of his sorrow without realizing the luminous Divine within him." Some decades ago the UNESCO had emphasized the influence of spiritual values on political structure and techniques. The element of spirituality depends upon the correct understanding of the evolution of man in the environment of nature, in a wider sense, and the discovery of the true relationship of man with God or Super-consciousness. Religion is a personal and intimate relationship of man with his Maker. It is a part of one's being and an integral part of one's emotions and feelings.
The object of all religious quest is essentially the same, to know the Supreme Truth that pervades all creation. All religions seek to lead man to a common goal. They appear to differ from one another because they were originally preached at different times and in different environments. The promotion of understanding and appreciation of the essential unity of all religions will help people perceive and comprehend the fact that all of them utter the same truth, though in different idioms. While it is perhaps natural that each man should cherish a special feeling of reverence for his own religion, it is necessary that every Indian appreciate the true meaning and depth of other faiths. This is possible only through a dialogue with one who has personal experience of the particular religious faith that one may try to understand.
A religion seen from within is very different from what it looks like from outside. We must experience that feeling which has thrilled the followers of another faith, if we wish to understand it. For instance, the Hindu regards every religion as true if its adherents sincerely and honestly follow it. Sankara had a comprehensive appreciation of different expressions of One Truth even though he spoke of six orthodox systems of religion. Ibn-al-Arabi, the Arab philosopher, said: "My heart has become capable of every form. It is a pasture of gazelles and a convent for Christian monks, a temple of idols and the 'Kaaba' of pilgrims and the book of the Koran. I follow the religion of love whichever way His camels take. My religion and my faith are, therefore, the true religion."
Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, who had a simple but firm faith in the oneness of God, himself passed through spiritual experiences peculiar to different religions. The Vedantic dictum can be roughly translated as: "He is one without a second, but sages comprehend Him differently and call Him by different names." Vedantic philosophy illustrates the truth thus: "As different streams, having their sources in different places, all mingle their waters in the sea, so, O Lord, do the different tendencies take. Various though they appear, all lead to Thee." Maulana Rumi, the celebrated Sufi saint, said that 'the lamps are different but the light is the same'. Gandhi realized the universality of religion and invoked God by the various names by which different religions call Him.
Arnold Toynbee, the eminent historian, rightly observed: "The missions of the higher religions are not competitive. They are complementary. We can believe in our own religion without having to feel that it is the sole repository of truth." If only all these truths are repeatedly and relentlessly brought home to the common people, there will never be communal animosity. The role of intellectuals is the more difficult because it has to be subtle. At their own level they need to continue to din into the ears of the people that, as the outcome of centuries-old attempts to establish independent knowledge purged of supernatural presuppositions, secularism is a worldwide phenomenon. In the philosophical sphere, it emphasizes truths perceptible by human reason that can operate only in the realm of verifiable experience. It was such an inquiry that prepared the way for development of modern sciences. In the Western world it was first the Renaissance that tried to explain the manifold phenomena of the world of nature and of man, and dimmed the prestige of fideistic outworldliness.
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