Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow:-
Words have their limitations and those who write, or those who read, also have their limitations or their own frameworks to understand words. Many words start their journey with some meaning, but over the centuries they gather different nuances or acquire a totally different meaning. When the writer uses a specific word with some specific meaning in mind, it is not necessary that the reader will have exactly the same meaning in mind while reading. Thus, the communication, and the intent of the writer gets hampered. The problem increases manifold when we talk about essentially Indian concepts in English.
Several Sanskrit words like Dharma, Yajna, Srishti, Jeevan Darshan, Ishvara, and Aatman are untranslatable in English, as of course, there are words in English like 'religion', 'secularism', 'exclusivism', 'theology', 'ideology', etc. which are untranslatable in Indian languages. These are not just words. They denote the characteristic thought process of that culture, which the people belonging to that culture can understand in that one word, but others outside that culture would need long explanation and yet may not grasp its meaning. Generally, people try to understand the word in the context of their cultural experience.
Thus, 'religion' is understood as Dharma by many Indians, whereas it is not Dharma. Dharma is understood as 'religion' by West-oriented thinkers, Indians and non-Indians. Similarly, Secularism is understood as equal treatment of all religions in India, whereas that is not its meaning in Europe. The usage of terms and their inherent meanings is a big topic in itself.
According to the given passage, Secularism is :-
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → the term which has different meanings in the European and the Indian contexts.
The passage says that Secularism is understood as equal treatment of all religions in India, whereas that is not its meaning in Europe. The same word means different things in the two places.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: a term which originated in India. — Incorrect. Contradicted: Secularism is named among the English words that are untranslatable in Indian languages, so it did not originate in India.
Option 2: something that conveys the same thought and context across the globe. — Incorrect. Contradicted: the passage says its meaning in India differs from its meaning in Europe.
Option 4: All Europeans are 'secular'. — Incorrect. Wrong focus: this is not a definition of the term, and the passage says nothing about whether Europeans are secular.