Can Ramayana unite India?

The EPICs Ramayana and Mahabharata were written by the Sages, not to highlight individual capacities or greatness, but to highlight the importance of DHARMA.

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Now if a question arises - How does the Ramayana help in keeping a cultural union among various differences in the country? - the answer lies in upholding Dharma.

Dharma is the one face of the God.

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India is the land of repository of SPIRITUALITY. Pure spiritual aspects/practises are part of Hinduism. Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Saakteism, etc, are religions, being practised by people in the name of Hinduism. Atheism is also part of Hinduism.

So Hinduism is a way of life, but not a religion. The purpose of any religion is to show direction towards spirituality.

And, the spiritual concepts and practices make a human being realise, not understand, the God within oneself.

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a) Religion like Vaishnavism never unites people for longer period.

b) Further, the cultural/Sectoral differences among the various sects of Vaishnavism never allow Vaishnavas to come together. And, people following Saivism or Saakteism, etc, never go with Vaishnavas in spite of heated debates.

c) We have different cultures for different States. And, within one State itself, there will be some more differences within the same language speaking people.

d) All Southern States of India, have diversified languages, cultures and customs, though following same Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Saakteism, etc.

e) This leaves us with only one option to hang on, ie., Dharma.

f) Dharma is very subtle, yet very flexible. What is Dharma to one set of people, may not be true other people. Still it unites people. That is its GREATNESS.

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• We need a role model, who should be non-controversial, not lenient to any religion/sect, should possess a character, which should inspire people for generation after generation, for uniting the nation and disciplining ourselves in treading in right path.
• That role model should have tread in the path of righteousness - Dharma, and might have faced many difficulties in upholding Dharma
• That role model should be a house-holder, so that common people can draw inspiration from that role model.
• That role model should not be a sage, whose mental abilities are highly developed and whose daily activities, though adorable yet not within the reach of common people.

Sage Valmiki found Sri Rama as a Role Model and presented his story in the form of an EPIC.

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Sri Rama was God not because he was an incarnation of Vishnu. If somebody says so, don’t believe him. There is no incarnation concept in Sanaatana Dharma.

Sri Rama was venerated as God, because he was adherent of Dharma.

Dharma is the other face of the God.

And, thus Sri Rama was adored/acknowledged as the very embodiment of Dharma, even by his enemy Mareecha.

What did Mareecha, who was thrown full 100 Yojanas into the sea by the divine weapon of Sri Rama, say about him?

रामो विग्रहवान् धर्मः साधुः सत्य पराक्रमः |
 राजा सर्वस्य लोकस्य देवानाम् इव वासवः || ३-३७-१३

"Rama is the embodiment of righteousness, he is an equable person with truthfulness as his valour, and as with Indra to all gods he is the king of entire world.”

Source: Valmiki Ramayana