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Dharma is not a belief system or dogma. It is also not a religion - Dharma is not based on religion, but a religion or social system can be based on Dhrama. E.g. All Bharatiya based traditions such as Hindu, Buddha, Jain, and Sikh is based on dharma as its foundation. That is why we don't see infighting between Hindu, Buddha, Jain, and Sikh faiths because Dharma is placed above faith and the dharmic principles are respected, unlike Abrahamic religions.
The word Dharma is of Sanskrit origin which is used natively in all Indian languages from Hindi to Tamil in the south.
Dharma is a “non-partisan” in nature and it traces its roots to Bharat (Sanatana Dharma) like we have the concept of “secularism” that traces its origin from Judeo-Christian religious encounter or roots.
In all western countries, Secularism means “separation of the Church and State” and “non-discrimination towards individual faiths”. It DOES NOT mean “equal respect for all religions”.
In India Secularism has been extended to mean “equal respect for all religions” based on Dharma as its guiding principle. However this notion of “equal respect for all religions” is only practiced and upheld by the Dharma based tradition and non-adherence of “equal respect for all religions” by Christians and Muslims and this is what causing religious intolerance and instability in present day India.
Religious tolerance does not mean “equal respect for all religions”. “equal respect for all religions” means you accept the legitimacy of other religions apart from yours — this is what Dharma stands for.
While ‘secular’ is interpreted as the opposite of ‘religion’ and ‘communal’, Dharma is neither secular in the sense of being anti-religious nor communal in the sense of favoring a particular sect simply because Dharma is not co-terminus with religion thus, in a Dharmic society an atheist cannot sideline a theist and vise versa - their co-existence must be recognized by each other; that is the core of secularism.
Since Dharma was never identified with a specific doctrine, the State was never doctrinaire. However, the State was always dharmic (non-secular and non-communal), because Dharma is all-encompassing and embraces all without discrimination and distinction.
Secularism does not address or solve the problem of religious exclusivity, separatism and religious intolerance that is evident today.
Religions like Christianity and Islam which indulge in religious exclusivity, divides humanity into believers and non-believers therefore there is an unremitting urge and propagation to convert the non-believers to their respective believe system. On the other hand, Dharma does not divide humanity into believers and non-believers. Thus all traditions that inherit Dharma do not naturally seek conversion. There is no concept of “religious conversion” in the worldview of Dharma.
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