What is meant by the term religion? Is it defined under Indian Constitution?

The term ‘religion’ has not been defined in the Constitution, and it is a term which is not susceptible of any precise definition. The Supreme Court has however given this term an expansive content. The Supreme Court has observed in Commissioner, HRE, Madras v. Sri Lakshmindra: “Religion is certainly matter of faith with individuals or communities and it is not necessarily theistic.” In P.M.A. Metropolitan v. Moran Mar Marthoma, the Supreme Court has observed: “‘Religion is the belief which binds spiritual nature of men to super-natural being’. It includes worship, belief, faith, devotion, etc. and extends rituals. Religious right is the right of a person believing in a particular faith to practice it, preach it and profess it.”


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