Religious Harmony Among Multi-Religious society in Perak, Malaysia: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

Religious harmony between different religious adherents is important in determining social peace and harmony in a plural country like Malaysia. The failure to ensure religious harmony can disrupt political and national stability. Hence, all parties, including policy makers, religious leaders and society should work together to strengthen inter-religious relations. The purpose of this study is to measure the level of religious harmony in Perak. It used a survey questionnaire as an instrument for data collection in which data from a total of 44 respondents were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0 software. The findings generally revealed that all dimensions of religious harmony were at a moderately high level. Surprisingly, the findings also showed that ‘Understanding’, ‘Cooperation’ and ‘Stable Conflict’ were recorded as the highest mean score for the Hindu group, while ‘Peacefulness’, Acceptance’, ‘Understanding’, and ‘Right and Justice’ were recorded as the lowest mean score for the Buddhist group. The study offers a valid measurement to determine the level of religious harmony that will advise the government to take appropriate measures to mitigate religious conflict and promote mutual understanding within multi-religious society.