Tariq Sohrab Ghazipuri

In the entrance hall of the Indian Parliament, “Vasudhaiva Kutumbkamb” meaning “The World is one Family” is engraved. Our country India has been a thriving land of various cultures for a long time and in this diversity, we find integral glimpses of peace and harmony on account of this very farsighted vision Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. The government of Narendra Modi has given a new meaning to the global forum of the G-20 during its year of Presidency by picking up Vasudhaiva Kutumbkamb as its tagline.

We, the people of India, do not only share this view with others but we also spread its essence far and wide with practicality. I am throwing light on the origins of this idea and how under the canopy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakamb human beings on the earth are assimilated.

When the creator of all the galaxies and the universe, almighty God convened a meeting in paradise with angels, He said that He was going to create a creature namely a human on the earth from this iconic image of Adam. We, all humans are the offspring of the first man on the earth. Today we, humans, are found everywhere in the world but we should not forget that we are from one father and mother, so we are not and can never be different from one another.

The last Holy Scripture of Islam, the Qur’an, also says that Allah has created all humans from one parent and the best is he who maintains peace and harmony on the earth. This ideology has been epitomized in various languages on its sensual grounds.

The literal meaning of the phrase “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” is Vasudhaiva, The Earth is one, and Kutumbakam means Family.

As our Brahmin intellectuals say based on their research the original verse “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” appears in Chapter 6 of Maha Upanishad VI.71-73, is of course a considerable point.

In Indian cultures, it has its unique significance and is considered as the most important moral value.

India has been a paradise of various cultures and all such cultures help make a beautiful human environment on global horizons. The first man on the earth ‘Adam’ was born on the soil of India. It is also the land of Noha. Here you will find thousands of people who embrace the holy Qur’an with recitations, at the same pace. In India, so many saints chant the holy verses of harmony and love, for instance:

“Haman hai eshq mastana Haman duniya se yari kya?

jo bichre hain piyare se bhatakte dem bedam phirte”

“For us Love is superior, we are one family and we are not concerned with deceiving policies of the world. And those who are mean-minded keeping themselves far from righteous persons, are valueless and they roam hither and thither,” So, why not a country like India be the Vishwaguru to guide 8 plus billion people living on this planet?

Celebrating brotherhood and diversity: A Muslim woman tying rakhi on the wrist of a Hindu man

When all humans on the earth have originated from one parent, how can they be isolated? We, the peoples of the Holy Scriptures, realize that if a person living in a remote area in any corner of the world is in pain, the same pain should be felt by us. If fair justice is not done with a rightful person, we should try our best to make advocacy in his favour for fair justice. In the mirror of reality, it of course is the meaning of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. The mean-minded people produce troubles for righteous persons. Let’s see the context in which Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam is written about:

One is a relative the other stranger,

Say the small-minded

The entire world is a family

Live the magnanimous

Be detached

Be magnanimous

Lift up your mind, Enjoy

The Fruit of Brahmanic Freedom

--Maha Upanishad 6.71-75.

On the auspicious occasion of Hajjatul Vida’ (the last pilgrimage to Ka’aba). Mohammad Ibn Abdullah, the Messenger of God, says, “Respect all beings, spread the essence of humanity; there should be no supremacy unto you, all of you meant rich and poor, white and black are equal. We Indians also embrace the same instruction. Our diversity lies in our unity.

One of our famous philosophers Dr. N. Radha Krishnan, former director of the Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti, believes that Gandhi, a vision of holistic development and respect for all forms of life; nonviolent conflict resolution embedded in the acceptance of nonviolence both as a creed and strategy; spread the fragrance of Indian concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.

India’s unity is based on Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. Our present government needs to expand its circle on a mass scale, and at the same pace, I request our democratic government to check those antisocial elements that violate the rules of our peaceful constitutions.

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I pray to almighty God to glorify the name of our secular country, India, with the vision of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakamb (The World is One Family). If we regard ourselves as “We are the World with eyes of Justice”, the world will certainly be ours, and then the long-felt dream “One Family – One Future” will come true not only in the shape of arguments but in practical grounds as well.