The curfew in Ishhath Municipality of Rautahat District, imposed after violent clashes between two groups on the issue of immersing the idol of goddess Saraswati, has finally been lifted. It seems that peace has prevailed in the end. But has better sense prevailed, too? After all, it was none other than the goddess of knowledge who had been brought into controversy.

The controversy—and the clashes—should never have happened in the first place. Apparently, it all started with the locals of Ghirua Tole in the municipality’s Ward-7, who were headed towards a nearby lake to immerse the idol and were obstructed by a group of people for allegedly playing loud music. This was followed by an exchange of insults, punches and stones. Attempts by the local unit to settle the issue with a talk did not come to fruition, and a curfew had to be imposed.

What is alarming about the latest clashes and the curfew is that these are the symptoms of a larger malaise in Nepali society today. We are a society filled with fragile sentiments and monumental egos. We have learnt to claim our space but not leave any space to others. We have learnt to showcase our religious-cultural affiliations through huge public displays of music, colours, and performances. But we do not tolerate it if someone else does the same. What ensues is a culture of intolerance and a false sense of victimhood.

Most importantly, we have not learnt the terms of engagement in a secular society: We can celebrate and profess our religion in public only up to the point where we do not create inconvenience for others who share the same space with us. Let alone religion, we have not learnt the basic tenets of democracy, where respect for other people’s ideas, ideologies and lifestyles pays us back in equal proportions.

This is not to say that Nepal’s religious communities, or social groups in general, are fundamentally intolerant of others. It’s just that we have yet to exercise the praxis of secular, democratic ideals and ideologies in our public lives. This has largely to do with the state’s failure to inculcate in us citizens and social beings a public spirit of celebrating diversities and differences. We are a plural society inasmuch as we remain oblivious of, even indifferent to, our pluralities. But that is not the ideal definition of pluralism.

In the past year alone, we have seen many instances of divergences resulting from a failure to respect differences and pluralities—in Dharan, Nepalgunj, Janakpur and Malangawa. We have come to a stage where the administration has to impose curfews in advance, as was the case in Nepalgunj in October last year, in anticipation of communal clashes. We, the people, in being intolerant to our differences, are subjecting ourselves to the state’s oppressive apparatuses. This is contrary to the constitutional definition of Nepal as a democratic, secular republic. It is time for everyone to come together and celebrate the country’s cultural-religious vitality—not virulence.