Secular state ?

It never ceases to amaze me if India is a secular state, why does our government entertain incessant debates on religious and communal issues in the parliament ? Why our media painstakingly rakes up petty issues concerning these matters and blows them out of proportion by repeated telecasts fanning minor discontent into raging tempers. Gaining political mileage and increasing TRP seem to take priority over maintaining peace in the country. Unfortunately, this system feeds on the mob mentality of a largely uneducated section of society which doesn’t even understand the origin and implications of such issues.

In a secular state one would expect that religion should be treated as a personal matter for every individual as per his/ her preference and choice and others should respect it. Then as a representative of secular tradition why does the govt. allow it to come to streets, public places and political podiums to appease a minority with selfish motives and vested interests ?

If one looks at the history of our nation, religious intolerance and communalism has never been an inherent part of our great civilization. India has been a cradle to a multitude of ethnic communities, cultures and traditions which flourished in peaceful coexistence for thousands of years. This is not to say that violence was nonexistent here. Warriors did fight for power and control over material assets but rarely over matters pertaining to religion and ethnicity. Then how and when did this unhealthy religious and communal factionalism become a part of our everyday life in a country where freedom to practice any religion and complete autonomy to follow any lifestyle has been the foremost right of every individual. The answer seems to lie in the fact that this aggression originated from a sentiment of safeguarding our age old traditions, culture and way of life which came to be threatened by offensive foreign inroads into our country motivated by greed and lust for power.

Before the invasions of this nature, India had always played a graceful host to all kinds of people from across its borders, who came here for trade and commerce, tourism or education amidst complete peace and harmony. India would not have attained the golden period of its civilization had it been torn with present day squabbles and strife. On the contrary it was an open minded society in which every citizen did and practiced what he felt was right for his spiritual evolution. Even non believers in God were accepted as ‘ Nastiks’ within the fold of society and never shunned or burnt at stake for being nonbeleivers. Rarely ever can anyone point out a case of forcible conversions in our culture. The main concern of rulers was to see to the welfare of the subjects rather than playing the game of divide and rule as initiated by our foreign rulers.

One thing is clear and stands to reason that when it comes to a bond between a devotee and his God there is no need of any intermediary like a religion or an institution or people like pandits, mullahs or priests .All these thrive on the fear , lack of self confidence and ignorance of people who may not be doing the right thing as per the dictates of their conscience and feel that someone could intercede on their behalf to bring them closer to God. It needs to be understood that no God created any religion, temple , mosque or church and all the rituals that go with these. All these are the creation of man and just cater to vested interests and personal agendas of selected few at the cost of a major chunk of misguided population bereft of basic human values which add up to being spiritual in the real sense. There is no prescription which says ,you have to follow this man made rigmarole to be a good religious person. God created this beautiful world and all the living beings and if we want to be His real devotees we just need to take care of His creation. Look after the earth, it’s environment, it’s rivers, it’s animals and live in peaceful harmony with our fellow humans without hurting and exploiting the less fortunate people and thus live up to our ancient ideal of ‘ Vasudev Kutumbkum’ i. e the whole world is my family. Killing people, destroying national property and fighting over meaningless things never brought anyone close to God.

I am surprised that a secular state issues forms asking a person’ s religion than just the nationality. Why can’t we all just become proud Indians when it comes to being the citizens of this country and practice our religions for our spiritual growth inside the privacy of our homes. Why don’t we adopt righteous action ,listen to our conscience and create such a sacred bond with our God that when we come out together as a nation ,there is nothing but unselfish love, goodwill and warmth in every heart for everyone. The day we understand and attain this we will become secular in the real sene of the term and will be ready to usher India into it’s second golden age.