Guiding Light: Sanatana Dharma - Inclusive Or Exclusive?

You can be a believer and be a Hindu. You can be an atheist and be a Hindu. You can believe in non-duality, Advaita and be a Hindu. You can follow Dvaita duality and be a Hindu. You can be a yogi and be a Hindu. You can be a poet and be a Hindu. You can be an Indian and be a Hindu. You can be a foreigner and be a Hindu.

So if you look at it in many ways, this is the most inclusive religion you'll ever find. No one needs to tell us about what inclusivity is. Not only that, you can be living a life of rituals and be a Hindu, you can give up all rituals and be an ascetic and be a Hindu.

This only shows how broad and inclusive we are.

Of course, there have been times when we have had to defend this Dharma, the Sanatana Dharma, Hinduism, from attacks by other cultures and civilisations, either physically, morally or intellectually. That has sometimes been presented as being aggressive and not tolerant enough.

This is not true. Standing up for yourself is not a sign of intolerance. It is a sign of being assertive, of respect for your own spiritual traditions, and of the value you give to your culture and heritage, and that has to be respected.

So there will be times throughout history when one had to rely on the sword to protect himself, right from the time of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Maharana Pratap, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and hundreds of heroes like that who protected this tradition so that the pristine teachings of the Upanishads and The Gita remain available for the future generations, as they were in the past.

So if anyone is making some effort to revive Hinduism, that is not something to be condemned, because we are reviving a glorious tradition that is all inclusive, that is something to be respected and cherished. Eventually, it is only these attitudes of being a Hindu that will lead to coexistence and peace.

The writer is the founder of Aarsha Vidya Foundation. You can write to him at aarshavidyaf@gmail.com

Published on: Friday, March 07, 2025, 07:27 AM IST