Religious Harmony in India Today, every thinking person feels an intense yearning for harmony and peace in every corner of the globe. Recent world events have created tremendous anxiety, fear, and unrest in the lives of all of us. Conflict has always continues to be the omnipresent factor contributing to our society. Disagreement between individuals and groups is social phenomenon. Pursuit of self-interest or of a group objectives are socially acceptable behaviors in all cultures. Conflicts arise when interests clash, rights are asserted, claims and counter claims are made. Thus, every society must address itself in resolving conflicts within the system of values it cherishes. Differences in values, customs, traditions, regions etc. frequently appears to be sources of tension, as individuals and groups grow up in different cultures and environment resulting into egocentric or ethnocentric feelings or attitudes in the society. Now a day’s, conflicts among the community are increasing, day by day. With the wide range of national and global development processes impacting our local cultures and societies, conflict has proved to be the ultimate stumbling block to grassroots democratic and economic development processes. Religious Harmony in India is a conception that shows that there is love, affection in between diversefaiths in India. In India, every citizen has a right to choose and practice any religion. There are examples of Muslims and Sikhs building temples. In India, different religious traditions live harmoniously, Oracles of religions call for devoutcoordination in India. According to Dalia Lama, India is a model for religious harmony. He mentions that in the last 2000-3000 years, different religious traditions, including Buddhism, Jainism, flourished here. Historical tradition The ancient Indian scripture Rigvedaendeavors plurality of religious thought with its mention “ekaMSadvipraaBahudhaavadanti” meaning wise people explain the same truth in different manners. Ashoka (304-232BCE) in his 12th edict stated: “The beloved of the gods, king Piyadasi, honors both ascetics and the householders of all religions, and he honors them with gifts and honors of various kinds., whoever praises his own religion, due to excessive devotion, and condemns others with the thought “ let me glorify my own religion,” only harms his own religion. Therefore connection between religions is respectable. One should listen to and respect the doctrines professed by others. The beloved of the gods, king piyadasi, desires that all should be well-learned in the moral doctrines of other religions.” Kharavela (193 BCE- after 170 BCE) was the third and the greatest emperor of the Mahameghavahana dynasty of kalinga (present day Odisha). The main course of information about Kharabela is his famous seventeen line rock-cut Hatigumpha inscription in a cave in the Udayagiri hills near Bhubaneshwar, Odisha. The inscription states that the emperor Kharavela had a liberal religious spirit. Kharavela describes himself as: (Translation) The worshiper of all religious orders, the restorer of shrines of all gods. Dharmasthala Temple Dharmasthala Temple is a great example of religious harmony in India, as the priests of the temple are Shivalli Brahmins, who are Vaishnava, and the administration is run by a Jain Bunt Family. Efforts The late 19th Century and the early 20th century Indian guru and YogiSai Baba of Shirdi preached religious harmony through his teaching. To practice and promote it he combined the celebration of the Hindu festival of Rama Navami with a Muslim Urs. LokmanyaTilak organized the programme like Ganesh Chaturthi and Shivjayanti to preach Religious Harmony among the people. In Ganesh Chaturthi,Muslims used to beat the dhol during the visarjan of the Ganesha idol. The Lalbaugcha Raja of Mumbai, an annually set up Ganesha idol, is also worshipped by Muslims. Political, Military and Business leaders Even though India is predominantly Hindu, its leaders have often included Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Jains, Zaroastrians etc. Presidents of India: Dr. ZakirHussian,MohammedHidayatullah, Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam were muslim and GianiZail Singh was a sikh. Army chief: Sam HormusjiFramjiJamshedjiManekshaw was a Zoroastrian. Sunith Francis Rodrigues was a Christian, JoginderJaswant Singh and Bikram Singh was sikh. India’s Richest: Indian’s richest billionaires include DilipShanghavi, a Jain, in the third position, AzimPremji, a Muslim, in the 4th position and, PallonjiMistri, a Zaroastrian, in the 5th position. Enhancing the effectiveness works of various community in promoting peace, respect for human rights and sustainable development in society, every individual can developed a learning process as learning cannot be separated from practice. Hence, as examples tried to show, integrationof peace and harmony inIndia. One should work towards transforming, and challenging the violent communities in rural areas, and perhaps beyond. Thus,in accord with the values ofaffection, amity and harmony, individuals should work towards promoting peace, respect for all religions, dignity and worth of people regardless of their status. To sum it all, every being should start working with peace policies, continue to care for other religions, become more assertive, feel more compassion, believe in themselves, develop the passion and endurance to struggle for a more humane and peaceful, developed world, and grip a chance to transform the society and change the world. .