Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (Sanskrit: वसुधैव कुटुम्बकम. from “vasudha”, the earth; “iva”, is ; and “kutumbakam”, family) is a Sanskrit phrase that means that the whole world is one single family. So here the Vedic sages are saying that the entire world is truly just one family. The world is like a small, tightly knit, nuclear family.
More on Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam
- The words come from the mantra in Maha Upanishad which belongs to the Samaveda tradition.
- From Jawaharlal Nehru to Narendra Modi, India’s leaders have often evoked the phrase vasudhaiva kutumbakam (the world is one family), to elucidate the country’s global outlook.
Examples of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam in Indian culture
- The diversity in India is unique. It is the land of many languages and people profess all the major religions of the world. India is a land of diversity in race, region, caste, language, landform, flora and fauna and so on. It continues to thrive as a democracy.
- Bangalore is a city where people from all over the country reside. At every nook and corner, there is a person who migrated in search of a better job, city life or for personal reasons. With such wide ranging cultures under one roof, one would expect little skirmishes. However, people try to get to know each other and make an effort to be part of another’s cultural celebrations.
- In 1989, Rajiv Gandhi cited vasudhaiva kutumbakam to challenge the concept of first, second and third worlds and revive the idea of ‘One World’.
- In 2007, Manmohan Singh deployed the term to defend India’s approach to climate change and global warming while accepting its global responsibility at the Heiligendamm G8 summit.
