India is a vast country and has a long history. Its society has evolved through the ages and has also been affected by foreign influences giving it extreme diversity and made unity amidst diversity a characteristic of Indian society. However, to understand the process, we need to understand the meaning of diversity, unity, and pluralism as well as their relevance to the Indian society. Indian society is an exemplification of multicultural, multi-ethnic, and multi-ideological constructs, which co-exist, at once striving to strike harmony and also to retain its individuality. Based on the generous concept of “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”, Indian society possesses a great cultural heritage. During the course of its evolution, it has accommodated and integrated many communities and their ways of life from time to time.
The most often noticed feature of Indian society is “Unity in Diversity”. This phrase celebrates how India has been stronger by welcoming various cultural, social, and ethnic elements. We note that Unity in Diversity is not something unique to India only. This concept is a popular motto in most nations and it has also provided the backbone to several political and social movements around the world. Its core idea is “unity without uniformity” and “diversity without fragmentation”.
What is society?
As per sociologists, a society can be defined as a group of people who have interactions within a common territory, and share a similar culture. we will now break down the keywords- Social Group is the coming together of two or more people who interact and further identify with one another.
Interaction- The members of any society must come in contact with each other. If one group of individuals within a country will have no regular contact with another group, those groups cannot be considered part of the same society.
Culture:
People belonging to the same society will share aspects of their culture, such as language and beliefs. Culture is the values, language, beliefs, behavior, and material objects that make up their way of life. It is a defining element of any society.
About Indian society:
What makes Indian society so unique from any other in the world is its feature of ‘unity In Diversity.’ Unity in diversity is best showcased in how the citizens of India identify themselves as Indians in the midst of such significant differences. Accommodation without assimilation(आत्मसात्करण) is a key feature of our society. Over the years, India has welcomed and interacted with various elements of society without making any of these elements lose its authenticity and roots. Every individual in India enjoys the freedom to practice his or her chosen way of life.
The Merging Of Tradition With Modernism:
Globalization might have bought with it a surge of modern values and practices, but traditionalism is still prevalent and preserved in India. The traditions of Indian society have also made its way to the outside world through the same gates of globalization.
Let us see a few examples:
> Dance and music: Indian dance/music forms are equally popular as its western counterparts. Indo-western fusion has been a popular theme in performing arts.
> Gyms might have become an important part of the Indian lifestyle, but yoga has also attained celebrity status.
> Nuclear families have become common, but children still live with and take care of parents in their old age.
> International cuisines and food habits are equally popular as local ones.
Co-existence of traditionalism and modernity:
Traditionalism is upholding or maintenance of core values. Whereas modernity refers to questioning the tradition and moving towards rational thinking, social, scientific, and technological progress.
A balance between spiritualism and materialism:
Spiritualism’s main focus is to promote an individual’s experience with God. Whereas materialism is a tendency to consider material possessions and physical comfort as more important than spiritual values.
A balance between Individualism and collectivism:
Individualism is a moral, political, or social outlook that stresses human independence, self-reliance, and liberty. Whereas collectivism is the practice of giving a group priority over each individual in it. There exists a fine balance between them in Indian society.
The Indian Society Is Syncretic And Dynamic
As mentioned earlier, our society promotes accommodation as well as assimilation. Over the years, multiple tribes have lost their core indigenous culture due to assimilation into the major population of Indian society. Such contacts with different cultures also gave birth to newer practices. Society is dynamic as it is changing every day.
Assimilation examples:
> The number of PVTG (particularly vulnerable tribal groups) is increasing
> Many ethnic tribes like the naga are struggling to protect their culture from the outside world
Syncretism examples:
> Urdu comes from both Arabic and Hindi
> The Rashtrapati Bhavan is an architectural splendor created from the fusion of European, Rajput and Mughal design.
> The Sufi movement and the bhakti movement were complementary to each other.
Unity In Diversity:
Indian society has challenged the mistrust of many political thinkers post-independence that were doubtful regarding India’s incorporation as one nation amidst vast differences and big numbers of ethnic groups, languages, culture, and diversity. The core values in the constitution, the reorganization by the state on the basis of language as well as the efforts of the government to protect the interests of minorities has helped in keeping up this unity. Examples-
> Inter-state migration
> Mutual celebration of religious festivals despite religious differences
> Cosmopolitan culture in metros
Patriarchy:
Patriarchy is a family system within which the supreme decision-making power rests with the male head/members of the family. Women are treated as second-class citizens in a patriarchal society. This system is degrading to women; it stops the social and emotional development of the fairer sex of the society. Gender discrimination is a universal deterrent for women.
The Society Is Largely Agrarian And Rural:
For more than half of the population of India, agriculture remains the sole source of livelihood. An estimated 70% of our population lives in rural territories. Agrarian festivals celebrate the harvest of the crops and are celebrated in the form of Holi, Lohri, Pongal, Onam, Sankranti, etc.
Many rural art forms like Madhubani (Bihar), fabric weaves like Khadi, and handicrafts of bamboo are just as popular in the urban areas.
Class And Caste Divide:
The modern caste system is the result of the age-old varna system. Economic reforms have led to flourishing urban areas. Here people are categorized based on class (such as income) rather than their social identity. The emerging class system though closely resembles the caste hierarchy. It has also provided downtrodden sections an opportunity for upward social mobility. Co-existence through inter-caste marriages and endogamy are examples of this. The divide is evident in the economic structures(poverty, education, income, asset ownership, trades, and professions, etc). It holds collective values above individual achievements.
There Is Tolerance And Mutual Respect:
The Indian society has survived in the face of diversity, thanks to its accommodative values of tolerance and mutual respect that have existed from the early times. The multitude of invaders who made India their home lead to the mixing and co-existence of many different cultures. In the ancient period, Indus valley civilization was a secular society and traded peacefully with societies like Mesopotamia, importing their culture too. Buddhism and Jainism promoted these values through ancient texts. “Sarva-dharma-sam-bhava” represents such secular values. The co-existence of various philosophies including atheistic, religious, and materialistic, symbolizes the society that must have existed in those times. During the medieval period, the repeated invasions and trade led to the fusion of multiple cultures.
The mixing of Nagara and Dravid styles into Vesara style, Arabic and Hindi into Urdu, Bhakti and Sufi movements (Teachings of Kabir, Guru Nanak, Khwaja Chishti, etc.), Dīn-i Ilāhī of Akbar are good examples of mutual respect.
Literature:
Different regions of India contributed to the promotion of literature and higher learning to the composite culture of India. For example, Vedas were developed in North-West {Sapta-Sindhu region}, Yajurveda and Brahmana in Kuru-Panchal region; Rajatarangini in Kashmir; Upanishads in Magadha; Gita Govinda in Bengal, Charyapadas in Odisha, West Bengal and Assam; Mahakavyas and dramas of Kalidasa in Ujjaini; Bhavbhut’s works in Vidarbha; Dasakumarcharita of Dandin in Deccan; Sangam Literature in South and so on. Similarly, Taxila, Nalanda, Varanasi, Vallabhi, Vanvasi, Amaravati, Nagarjunkonda, Kanchi, Madurai, and Odantapuri are shining examples of seats of higher learning in India.
Religious Pluralism:
India is a secular country comprising various religions of the world, which are further subdivided into several sects and cults. Religion in India is characterized by a diversity of religious beliefs and practices. The Indian subcontinent is the birthplace of four world religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism.
Further, variants of Hinduism such as Vaishnavism, Shaivism, etc is practiced. Even in Islam, multiple variants such as Shia, Sunni tenets are followed. Thus, there is a plurality of multiple religions and each religion has individual salient tenets and associated festivals and customs.
Kinship, Marriage, and Family:
=> Kinship:
Kinship system refers to a set of persons recognized as relatives either by virtue of a blood relationship or by virtue of a marriage relationship. These relationships are the result of social interaction and are recognized by society. It is supremely important in primitive societies and extends its influence on almost all their activities – social, economic, political, religious, etc.
=> Marriage:
Marriage is an important social institution. It is a relationship, which is socially approved and sanctioned by custom and law. It is also a set of cultural mechanisms that ensure the continuation of the family. It is more or less a universal social institution in India.
> Live-in relationships: They are on a steady growth rate in India especially among the youth in metropolitan cities. The institution also has legal recognition as a three-judge bench of SC in 2010 observed that a man and a woman living together without marriage cannot be construed as an offense and held that living together is a Right to Life and Liberty (Article 21). SC has also acknowledged that children born out of such relations are legitimate and have property rights of their parents under Section 16 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.
=> Family in Indian Society:
The family is the basic unit of society. It is the first and the most immediate social environment to which a child is exposed. It is in the family a child learns language, the behavioral patterns, and social norms in his childhood.
It exists in tribal, rural, and urban communities and among the followers of all religions and cultures. It provides the most enduring relationship in one form or another.
> Current status:
Over the years, various sociologists have affirmed in their studies that the rise of nuclear families- consisting of a couple and their unmarried children- is consistent with rapid urbanization.
According to the 2001 census, out of 19.31 crore households, 9.98 crores or 51.7% were nuclear households.
In the 2011 census, the share grew to 52.1% — 12.97 crores nuclear out of 24.88 crore households.
Joint families, meanwhile, fell substantially from 19.1% (3.69 crores) to 16.1% (4 crores) across India. In rural areas, the dip was sharper – from 20.1% to 16.8% – than in urban India where it fell from 16.5% to 14.6%. Thus, the declining share of urban nuclear families is attributed to increased migration as well as lack of housing.
Diversity in India:
India is a plural society both in letter and spirit. It is rightly characterized by its unity and diversity. A grand synthesis of cultures, religions, and languages of the people belonging to different castes and communities has upheld its unity and cohesiveness despite multiple foreign invasions.
National unity and integrity have been maintained even through sharp economic and social inequalities that have obstructed the emergence of egalitarian social relations. The term ‘diversity’ emphasizes differences rather than inequalities. It means collective differences, that is, differences which mark off one group of people from another. These differences may be of any sort: biological, religious, linguistic, etc.
Unity means integration. It is a social psychological condition. It connotes a sense of one-ness, a sense of we-ness. It stands for the bonds, which hold the members of a society together. Unity in diversity essentially means “unity without uniformity” and “diversity without fragmentation”.
=> Various forms of diversity in India:
> Religious diversity
> Linguistic diversity
> Racial diversity
> Caste diversity
> Cultural diversity
> Geographical diversity: dry deserts, evergreen forests, lofty mountains, perennial and non-perennial river systems, long coasts, and fertile plains.
=> Factors that threaten India’s unity:
> Regionalism
> Divisive politics
> Geographical isolation.
> Inter-religious conflicts
> Inter-state conflicts
> Influence of external factors
> Development imbalance: Uneven pattern of socio-economic development, inadequate economic policies, and consequent economic disparities can lead to the backwardness of a region. For instance, due to the economic backwardness of the North East region, several instances of separatist demands and secessionist tendencies have sprung up in the region.
> Ethnic differentiation and nativism: Ethnic differentiation has often led to clashes between different ethnic groups especially due to factors such as job competition, limited resources, the threat to identity, etc. E.g. frequent clashes between Bodos and Bengali speaking Muslims in Assam.
The problem is not of diversity per se, but the handling of diversity in Indian society. The problems of regionalism, communalism, ethnic conflicts, etc. have arisen because the fruits of development haven’t been distributed equally or the cultures of some groups haven’t been accorded due recognition.
Efforts have been made from time to time by sensitive and sensible leaders of both the communities to synthesize Hindu and Muslim traditions so as to bring the two major communities closer to each other. Akbar, for example, founded a new religion, Din-e-Ilahi, combining the best of both religions. Some bhakti saints like Kabir, Eknath, and Guru Nanak, as well as some Sufi saints, made important contributions in forging unity among communities. At the time of independence struggle, Mahatama Gandhi laid extreme emphasis on Hindu-Muslim unity which was instrumental in India becoming a secular state and moving on the path of progress.
Indian society is dynamic in nature. The present Indian society is the culmination of a long drawn process involving both assimilation and accommodation. While many tribes have over the years lost their indigenous culture as a result of assimilation into Hindu society, many new practices have emerged from the contact of different cultures. It is also dynamic since it is ever-changing. The recent example of it is the changes in the social values after globalization. However, there has been a rise in intolerance, fundamentalism, right-wing extremism, etc in recent times. India needs to go back and revive its cultural values to restore coexistence, love, and harmony in society.
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