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What is secularism? How to become secular? || Acharya Prashant (2018)
Acharya Prashant
4.6K views
7 years ago
Religion
Secularism
Communalism
Equanimity
Detachment
Non-violence
Tolerance
Conditioning
Description

Acharya Prashant explains that there is no actual divide between the religious and the secular, as true religion is about eliminating all divisions. He argues that secularism is self-defeating because the qualities it seeks to achieve—such as an unbiased mind, justice, and equanimity—are exactly what true religion delivers. While secularism aims for a person to act rightly irrespective of their conditioning or creed, it is religion that teaches the necessary detachment, respect for divergent opinions, and non-violence. Therefore, only a truly religious person can be secular in real terms. He posits that secularism is a shallow concept compared to religion; while secularism merely asks for the tolerance of differences, true religion celebrates them. Secularism is described as a short-term treatment relevant only in poor-quality environments filled with bigots. In a truly religious environment, secularism is unnecessary and would even represent a deterioration. He concludes that while moving from communalism to secularism is an improvement, one must ultimately transcend secularism to enter the far more joyful state of true religiosity.