Secularism, Separation of State and Religion

I have always wondered what "secularism", "separation of state and religion" means. Personally, I believe "secularism" means the state has no business in anybody's beliefs (note I did not use the word religion on purpose) and the state treats everyone the same way irrespective of their beliefs.

However, in India the official government approach is every one should get a special deal and if you are not the majority you need to get special privileges. Of course, that does not work well when there is not enough to go around. And, I am not sure if it a great way to promote unity - by promoting differences and offering different deals.

Then, there is the US which pretty much everyone says does a great job of "secularism" and "separation of state and religion." But, does having an offical holiday for Christmas or using public money to deck up the streets and buildings for Christmas go against the separation of state and religion? I remember asking a Jewish colleague whether Hannukah is a holiday. The response was immediate - "No. This is a Christian nation." Yes, the majority of the folks are Christians. And, no wonder that every now and then (and, esp. during election time) there is a need for the leaders to prove their Christian credentials.

I would love to see the state offer a set number of holidays in a year which people can take whenever they want and no state money spent on decorating buildings and streets for the holidays.

You can take Indian out of India but ...

BBC NEWS | UK | UK Indian women 'aborting girls'

You cannot take India out of an Indian. Here is a not so great example of it. I was amazed at the lengths these people went (literally) to abort female foetus. But, why should I be surprised? Folks who have left the shores long back "for better opportunities" cling on to their beliefs and outlook for as long as they can. And, it results in Hindutva supporters in US and UK funding to "save Hinduism", muslims abroad funding similar causes back home, jews in brooklyn funding right wing settlers in Israel.