Attention to Plural Perspectives: A Gandhian Way for Religious Freedom and Interfaith Harmony

Gandhi once wrote in a letter to a friend, “Philosophy to be worth anything has got to be applied in one’s own life.” In his life and works, he adopted various philosophical principles and creatively interpreted them to transform his personal life and affect socio--political change. Although Gandhi was not a philosopher in the Western academic sense, he drew from philosophical, ethical, and religious concepts for Sarvodaya (uplift of all). Gandhi made ahiṃsā central his life and work. He drew on the philosophy of anekāntavāda creatively in order to respect plural perspectives and religious freedom.  This presentation will focus on the various resonances of this concept in Gandhi’s emphasis on diversity of perspectives, an individual right to practicing any religion, as well as positive interfaith relations. I argue that embracing plurality (many-sidedness) can offer a way forward to ensure harmony, individual fulfillment, and Sarvodaya (uplift of all).