The historical roots that lead up to the space for the presence of Hindutva’s own left wing within the Hindutva universe which makes it difficult to … - Aravindan Neelakandan

What we witness in Indian civilization is that it never allows religious conflicts to become fully blown religious wars against any religious sect. The basic underlying dictum that has emerged from this understanding is enshrined in the Vedic statement that the one Truth is perceived in various ways.

This is what makes Dara Shukoh important. Had he converted to Hindu Dharma he would have chosen the easier path. But he actually created within Islam a space for the Muslims to understand Hinduism and enrich and deepen their own spirituality through that understanding. In this he made the nondual unity of the Upanishads, which he strove to discover and did discover in diverse traditions, the basis. Thus, one can say Dara Shukoh represents an important civilizational peak for India. And in him there is a model for approaching Theo-diversity for Abrahamic religions—particularly Christianity and Islam.

Hindutva is often studied similar to other extreme right-wing ideologies. However, the thesis presented in this book is built on the strong foundation that Hindutva is not an ideology but a process—a historical-civilizational process.