Religion in India

In a single blog post there is no way I can do justice to the topic of religion in India. India is very rich in religious tradition, and without a doubt is a defining part of Indian culture. Both the United States and India are effectively pluralistic with respect religion, though they are dominated by very different religions. Instead of churches and steeples dotting the landscape, little Hindu shrines are omnipresent. Almost completely absent are any signs of Christianity, and despite being the second largest religion in India, we rarely saw an Islamic mosque (and I only heard the muezzin's adhan once in a predominantly Muslim slum).

Hinduism is the most dominant religion in India, but we've found that it largely tends to be a religion of culture, rather than a religion of ideology. In other words, while other religions are often bent into a philosophical worldview, Hinduism does not seem to be perceived in the same way. I don't pretend to understand the nuances of Hinduism, so I'm not going to even try, but it is interesting to see the effects of the religion on India. When the nation of India was formed, it was largely on religions boundaries. As I've noted previously, Pakistan was formed as the Muslim part of British India and India was the Hindu part (with areas like Kashmir being the notable exceptions). Unlike Pakistan, which became an Islamic state, India was officially a secular state from the beginning (the Indian Constitution guarantees religious freedom).

Hinduism originated in India (or rather, it originated in ancient India, since it is essentially the world's oldest religious tradition), but it certainly wasn't the only religion that originated in India. Sikhism, Jainish, and Buddhism all have their roots in India as well. Hinduism is by far the most dominant of the four, but their is little conflict between them, perhaps due to the fact that unlike Islam or Christianity, none of these four religions are proselytizing.

Islam is the country's second largest religion, making India by some counts the world's largest Muslim country. Yet Islam in India is different from the Middle East. Muslim women still dress with the hijab and sometime even more coverings, but by and large, Indian Islam is not of the extremist brand that plagues many Arab countries. Indian Muslims do not seem to have latched onto the extremist terrorist groups that America is in an ideological war with. Perhaps this is a result of a tolerant majority population as well as a relatively stable government and economy. Muslims in India are not driven to hatred of the West, because the West comes to India bearing gifts of call centers and fiber optic cables.

One of the things I personally miss the most about America is the presence of Christianity. There are no churches to be seen here (save for trips to Goa), and I miss going to church. Only about 2% of the population is Christian (making it the third largest religions group in India), and many of those Christians are concentrated in certain areas (e.g., in Goa) where European missionaries had a greater impact. India is also unique in its treatment of Jews. India was one of the first countries to recognize Israeli independence, and was also a haven for those fleeing the Holocaust. As a result, while there isn't a large Jewish population in India, there is a significant enough of one to merit mention. I find it a bit ironic that India maintains such a close relationship with Judaism and Israel when the swastika features prominently on everything from the front of trucks to the doorframes of people's homes. In fairness, the swastika existed in India long before Hitler adopted it and made it forever associated with genocide.

Like most pluralistic countries, India has had its share of religious troubles. For example, the Mumbai riots in 1992 (featured at the beginning of Slumdog Millionaire) aren't exactly a bright spot on India's history. Hinduism is still evolving to adapt to a 21st century world with its concept of the caste system (also made illegal by the Indian Constitution). Yet the dalits (untouchables) are still often left out to dry in this system, and many have converted to Buddhism or Christianity as a way out of their suffering. Mother Teresa was famous for her work in Calcutta (now Kolkata) working with the poor living there and for her work on behalf of the Christian Dalits.

No state is perfect in its treatment of religion. India is a very religious country--very few people are professed atheists or agnostics (none that we interviewed for our study at the hospital), which perhaps reflects the idea that religion reflects your personal identity rather than your concept of how the world works. As I've written previously, your profession helps define your identity as well. It will be interesting to see how India adapts to the Western mindset of a more philosophical form of religion and a more diverse set of moral values. I wonder how Hinduism will change in the future and whether other religions will start to rise in Indian society as the world gets smaller.