A cultural phenomenon characterised by the inter-mingling or mixing of different religions or traditions:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Syncretism
Option (2) Syncretism — Correct. India has a long tradition of religious pluralism, ranging from peaceful co-existence to actual inter-mixing or syncretism. This syncretic heritage is seen in the devotional songs and poetry of the Bhakti and Sufi movements; the poems of Kabir, synthesising Hindu and Muslim devotion, are its lasting symbol.
Option (3) Assimilation — Incorrect. Assimilation is a policy aimed at persuading, encouraging or forcing all citizens to adopt a uniform set of cultural values and norms, usually those of the dominant social group. One culture absorbs the others; nothing is mixed on equal terms.
Option (4) Acculturation — Incorrect. Acculturation is the change that comes over a group’s culture when it takes on traits of another culture through long contact, as migrants adopt the dress or language of their new home. It describes one group adjusting to another, not the blending of religions into a shared tradition.
NCERT (2025-26): “Communalism … But we should not forget that we also have a long tradition of religious pluralism, ranging from peaceful co-existence to actual inter-mixing or syncretism. This syncretic heritage is clearly evident in the devotional songs and poetry of the Bhakti and Sufi movements (Box 6.9).…” |