Sarv Panth Samadar, literary means, equal respect to all religious sects. The concept is rightly tuned because the study of all the major religious philosophies has revealed that the ultimate aim of all the religions is to improve the physical and spiritual life of man. Various principles laid down by the preceptors and founders of various religions aim to reach that ultimate authority (God). Many principles are same in most of the religious philosophies. Values like service of humanity, helping others, Ahimsa, love, etc. are found in all the religions. All the sects emphasise the need of virtues for good character building. In our country, people of all major religions and cults reside. We should have an attitude of mutual respect towards all. This is the underlying theme of Sarv Panth Samadar. Panth is a way to achieve God.
All the sects and cult are near truth. The best remedy lies in creating the human religion by taking out good tenets from the other religions, sects and cults. By doing so the feeling of Sarv Dharma Samadar will emerge. Mahatma Gandhi had equal respect for all the religions and sects. He studied scriptures like Gita, Quran, etc. and made the good ideas in them, a part of his life. Today we need to understand the idea of Sarv Panth Samadar and give it a practical shape. We should live under the banner of Vasudeva Kutumbkam’ so as to realise the teachings of the Vedas, Gita, Quran and Bible. Emperor Ashoka had emphasised the feeling of Sarv Panth Samadar in his stone engravings in the words, “A man, who, while in love with his own religion, Criticises the religion of the other, in fact, damages his own religion. In our Constitution too, there is emphasis on the feeling of Sarv Dharma Samadar.
