Celebrating all faiths is the norm in India | Economic Times

Growing up as the daughter of a diplomat, I had got used to seeing official cards (usually bought from Unicef) sent out by the hundreds around December inscribed with the carefully non-denominational French words 'Meilleurs Voeux' - Season's Greetings. The ones for and from friends, though, were not diplomatically circumspect; they all said 'Merry Christmas' and included the familiar Yuletide motifs of trees, snowscapes and Santa Claus.But now diplomatese has spread, especially in the West. One lot, particularly in the US, insists on the rather unwieldy portmanteau term Chrismakkah or Chrismahanukwanzakah to include major religious observances in America in December. Another lot prefers to go in the opposite direction and focus on the secular aspect of the time and talk only of the 'holiday season' and wish each other 'Happy Holidays' as if it is the end of an academic term.Earlier this week, one of my longstanding favourite Indian lifestyle brands found itself in the midst of controversy because it decided to call its latest collection a very non-denominational 'Jashn-e-Riwaaz' or 'festival of tradition' although the finery is targeted at a slew of decidedly religious celebrations from Ganesh Chaturthi, Navaratri and Durga Puja to Dussehra, Kojagari Lakshmi Puja, Diwali and Chhat. Had this been the US, the move would have been hailed.Instead, it drew such a hail of criticism in India - even for its choice of language - that the company eventually jettisoned the term and claimed its Diwali campaign will have another catchline. The fact that the Persian word 'jashn' is said to be derived from the pre-Islamic Avestan term 'yasna' or act of worship and can therefore also be linked to the Sanskrit word yagna, will be deemed cold comfort by those on both sides of this kerfuffle.Had the brand decided to use the equally non-denominational words 'Parampara ka Tyohar' a few guns may have been silenced, underlining the fact that language cannot be disregarded. After all, calling Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi - the birthday of Prophet Mohammed that also falls during this 'festival' period - Devdoot Jayanti or Mohammed Janmotsav would also irk some sections. Even Janmashtami being dubbed Krishmas could have the same effect in some quarters!This company is not the first entity to apparently attempt to secularise an essentially religious concept. In Bengal, there was a longstanding campaign by the Left Front government to secularise the region's biggest religious festival Durga Puja by rebranding it as Sharadotsav or Autumn Festival, pushing the line that it is basically a time for fun and feasting, bypassing its deeply devotional basis. Like Chrismahanukwanzakah, Sharadotsav has its fans.Of course not many protestors of all stripes may remember that Diwali or Deepavali itself is a non-religious omnibus term meaning row of oil lamps. These are the common denominators for a series of Hindu celebrations at that time, from Kali Puja on the night of Amavasya or New Moon to Lakshmi Puja, celebrating the return of Ram, Sita and Lakshman to Ayodhya after defeating Ravana, Krishna's defeat of the demon Narakasura, and Balipratipada.While some may know Diwali has religious significance for Sikhs, Buddhists and Jains too, it may be news to some that lighting diyas and candles on the windowsills, parapets, eaves and balconies of homes are also done elsewhere in the world, notably in Lyons in France. They are lit every year in honour of the Virgin Mary on December 8 (the night of the Immaculate Conception) to thank her for saving the townspeople from the plague in the 17th century.Due to the pre-eminence of some streams of thought in academia and public life right from colonial times, some people think religious connotations are inherently divisive and therefore should be avoided in all contexts, even as they paradoxically assert that all faiths essentially preach the same truths. India has shown the fallacy of that assertion by wholeheartedly celebrating important days of all faiths for centuries without feeling the need to secularise them.Why any company would think that Diwali needs to be secularised is moot. In the past few decades there has been a concerted effort to turn holy days into shopping occasions; but that does not mean the next stage is to paper over their religious significance. India, of course, speaks its mind in the nick of time. So the reduction of the period between Ganesh Chaturthi and Chhat to a 'Meilleurs Voeux' or 'Happy Holidays' season in India is highly unlikely.