Communicative cues and peaceful practices: Synthesizing historical and contemporary approaches to interfaith relations in India

Journal of Language, Literature, Social, and Cultural Studies, Volume 3 Number 3 (Nov 2025), p. 273-282 e-ISSN: 2986-4461 DOI: https://doi.org/10.58881/jllscs.v2i2 https://ympn.co.id/index.php/JLLSCS Communicative cues and peaceful practices: Synthesizing historical and contemporary approaches to interfaith relations in India Gauri Gupta Neerja Modi School, INDIA Email: Abstract - Interfaith conflict resolution is a field of study concerned with practices that create harmony between different religious groups during tense atmospheres. This paper focuses on communication cues of such practices that have facilitated interfaith relations in India. It uses historical case analysis to relook at peacebuilding efforts through the edicts of Emperor Ashoka, customs of the Middle Ages like the Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb, contemporary mohalla (neighbourhood) committees and youth interfaith initiatives. Findings show that the communication practices used in peacebuilding interventions, such as, creating safe spaces for the discussion of theological dialogue through debates, among others, become important reminders of how respect for other religious communities is created through dialogic exchange between those of different faiths. Across the case studies, communicative sentiments such as extending a hand of friendship, establishing direct and open communication, and entering sacred spaces as respectful guests emerge as important cues that create trust and mutual respect. Such exchanges show how dialogue is also seen in gestures and recurrent practices, which make space for grassroots initiatives and pluralism that become larger communicative responses to religious violence. The discussion shows that a system that ties together common moral values, shared cultural customs, inclusive education and channels of communication that debunk rumours is combative to religious animosity and hate speech. Based on such observations, the paper provides a novel approach combining interfaith discussions, collaborative community service initiatives and local peace committees with technology, hence synthesizing lessons from historical and contemporary approaches. The recommendations made in this paper are pertinent for legislators, educators and social studies scholars looking to work towards interfaith harmony. Keywords: Communication peacebuilding. cues, social cohesion, pluralism, India, 1. Introduction India’s legacy of diverse culture is closely linked to the protection of communication between different religious groups and facilitating an established and cherished dialogue between various faiths such as Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism. If interaction and dialogue are lost, so will language and culture. The periodic tensions in the past led the leaders to enshrine secularism and equality in the Constitution, and now, more 273 This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) Journal of Language, Literature, Social, and Cultural Studies, Volume 3 Number 3 (Nov 2025), p. 273-282 e-ISSN: 2986-4461 DOI: https://doi.org/10.58881/jllscs.v2i2 https://ympn.co.id/index.php/JLLSCS importantly, these values not only have to be upheld but integrated in society, in communication and practices through active effort. Indian secularism is uniquely performed through equality and inclusive communication rather than strict separation (Chishti, 2004). India has faced countless major religious conflicts; the Partition of 1947, the anti-Sikh pogrom of 1984, the Babri Masjid demolition and riots in 1992, and the Gujarat riots of 2002, which showed that society can become severely ruptured without continuous effort towards social cohesion. Ground-level studies highlight how rural interfaith interactions form a foundation for broader communicative harmony (Gumperz, 1964). There needs to be active attempts to establish safe and productive communication between groups. Such conflicts, that are also connected to polity, result in loss of lives, displacement of communities, and deepening of mistrust. Religious communities that take active efforts to show they are welcoming to people from other faith contribute to overall peacebuilding. Communities need to make space for others and shouldn’t always be closed off. Indian tradition is replete with such sentiments, take for example, the concept of sarva dharma sambhava which means equal respect for all, then vasudhaiva kutumbakam which stands for the world as one family. These are communicative sentiments of peace; however, they have to be put into visible practice. Given the communal polarisation in recent years, this research was undertaken to gather insights from India’s own history and grassroots activism in order to create and propose a new strategy for interfaith conflict resolution. By examining historical instances of religious harmony and contemporary examples of collaborative and communicative practices, the study aimed to identify the factors that contributed to success in bridging interfaith divides. It also seeks to discuss a proposed strategy that is relevant to India’s socio-political context, from its villages to its cities, and from its past experience to present challenges. This paper aims to draw on communicative cues that have existed between different religious groups that have proven to enable peaceful interaction. The significance of this research is in the suggestions made for policy and community action. Effective conflict resolution clubbed with collaborative practices helps ascertain national integration and fraternity. The previous explorations of conflict resolution in different eras show that India can put forth better interventions that curb violence and build a stable foundation for the cohabitation of communities in diverse spaces. The following research question is thus framed: How do communication cues in historical and contemporary peacebuilding practices facilitate interfaith harmony in India? And how can India develop a new, effective strategy for interfaith conflict resolution that builds on modern grassroots activism and historical examples of harmony? The following sections detail the methods used to explore this question, present the research findings, analyse the patterns observed, and finally propose recommendations grounded in these insights. 2. Method This paper is a qualitative study that reviews important secondary sources that have discussed conflict resolution and peaceful initiatives. The data is then read through the perspective of a communication cue to extract dialogic practices and values that have proven to be helpful in social cohesion. In spaces where intergroup dialogue takes place, communication cues emerge as verbal and nonverbal signals exchanged between people who convey relational intent, which encode meanings of trust or hostility. Re (...truncated)