In our earlier lecture we noticed that one could be a good Hindu without having any belief in any god or goddess! We referred to “Samkhya”, an “atheistic philosophy” as part of the Hindu Philosophical system!
Nevertheless an average Hindu is a firm believer in God or in several gods and goddesses!
Hindu conception of God then we noted earlier moves from atheism to polytheism, to monotheism including a monism, which I described in the last class as “a singular substance behind the multiplicity in form”.
Polytheism
1. Hindus speak of 330 million gods, divinities known as devas!
2. Vedic religion – the most ancient form of Hinduism (1500-500 BCE) – is very polytheistic and some of the deities that we encounter in the Vedas – four in number: Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda, and Atharva Veda – are:
Nevertheless an average Hindu is a firm believer in God or in several gods and goddesses!
Hindu conception of God then we noted earlier moves from atheism to polytheism, to monotheism including a monism, which I described in the last class as “a singular substance behind the multiplicity in form”.
Polytheism
1. Hindus speak of 330 million gods, divinities known as devas!
2. Vedic religion – the most ancient form of Hinduism (1500-500 BCE) – is very polytheistic and some of the deities that we encounter in the Vedas – four in number: Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda, and Atharva Veda – are:
a. Varuna – the Lord of order,
b. Mitra – the god of nights, together with Varuna they both maintain social and cosmic order,
c. Agni – the fire god,
d. Indra – warrior deity, connected with thunderstorm and is the leader of gods and in mythology Indra has killed the snake, the symbol of the snake,
e. And so on!
3. Most Vedic gods have no hold on the post-Vedic Hindus.
4. In the post-Vedic Hindu religion we still see polytheism with the mentioning of other gods and goddess including the following:
3. Most Vedic gods have no hold on the post-Vedic Hindus.
4. In the post-Vedic Hindu religion we still see polytheism with the mentioning of other gods and goddess including the following:
a. Brahma is the creator of the cosmos. The four castes (varunas) originate from Brahma – from the mouth (brahmins), the shoulders (kshtriyas), the thighs (vishias), and the feet (shudras).
b. Vishnu is the preserver and protector of the creation, the cosmos – You may see different avatars, (loosely translated as incarnations) of Vishnu at: http://www.sanatansociety.org/hindu_gods_and_goddesses/vishnu.htm
c. Siva (or Shiva) is the destroyer. He is the third in the Hindu Trinity consisting of Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva. But for Saivites – one of the major denominations – generally consisting of Hindus living in the southern part of India – Siva is the Ultimate Reality!
d. Ganapati, or Ganesha, half elephant and half human god is the remover of obstacles. Hindus go to Ganesha before they begin any new project so that the project is completed without any hindrances. He has four hands, elephant's head and a big belly. His vehicle is a tiny mouse. In his hands he carries a rope (to carry devotees to the truth), an axe (to cut devotees' attachments), and a sweets to encourage and reward devotees for spiritual activity). His fourth hand's palm is always extended to bless people. His elephant head is the symbol of wisdom and strength. Mouse, his vehicle, represents swift movement and a sense of the presence of mind.
e. Kartikeya – warrior god. Popular god among the Tamils.
f. Hanuman – Monkey god!
g. Parvati – consort of Siva. Durga is also sometimes included as Siva’s consort along with Parvati.
h. Durga – please read Fisher, p. 86 and view picture on p. 87.
i. Kali – please read Fisher, p. 86.
j. Saraswati – goddess of knowledge and art. Saraswati puja’s is an important event in schools and universities in Tamil Eelam.
k. Lakshmi – consort of Brahma. Read Fisher, p. 90f. Goddess of wealth and beauty. Aspiring for wealth is a very legitimate religious/spiritual goal for Hindus along with three other – Artha, Kama, Dharma and Moksha.
l. And so on!
Monotheism
1. Both in the Vedic period as well as in the post-Vedic period Hindus speak of Hinduism as a “Monotheistic Faith”. Towards this they quote the Vedas that proclaim: ekam sadviprā bahudhā vadanti – that the truth, referring to God, is one, though the sages call by many names! And that one “ultimate reality” is known as Brahman.
2. The many gods of Hinduism, then, are the various manifestations, the multitude of human imaginations of this “invisible, indivisible, and ineffable” – absolute, attribute less reality, hence known as Nirguna Brhahman – one reality that is transcendent.
3. But that one Reality is also known as the one who creates and re-creates the visible world – the cosmos! At this point that one reality manifests with “attributes” and the Hindu devotees speak of Brahman then as Saguna Brahman – still one reality but immanent.
4. Upanishads, another collection of sacred literature (1000-500 BCE), is predominantly monotheistic in orientation!
A Hindu Seeing and Describing God
1. Professor Tiwari says that there “is an inherent faith in even the most illiterate of Hindus that, at bottom there is only one God and the various gods an goddesses are just his various forms or manifestations”.
Monotheism
1. Both in the Vedic period as well as in the post-Vedic period Hindus speak of Hinduism as a “Monotheistic Faith”. Towards this they quote the Vedas that proclaim: ekam sadviprā bahudhā vadanti – that the truth, referring to God, is one, though the sages call by many names! And that one “ultimate reality” is known as Brahman.
2. The many gods of Hinduism, then, are the various manifestations, the multitude of human imaginations of this “invisible, indivisible, and ineffable” – absolute, attribute less reality, hence known as Nirguna Brhahman – one reality that is transcendent.
3. But that one Reality is also known as the one who creates and re-creates the visible world – the cosmos! At this point that one reality manifests with “attributes” and the Hindu devotees speak of Brahman then as Saguna Brahman – still one reality but immanent.
4. Upanishads, another collection of sacred literature (1000-500 BCE), is predominantly monotheistic in orientation!
A Hindu Seeing and Describing God
1. Professor Tiwari says that there “is an inherent faith in even the most illiterate of Hindus that, at bottom there is only one God and the various gods an goddesses are just his various forms or manifestations”.
2. “The average Hindu”, Professor Tiwari says further, “in his own unsophisticated manner believes that God has no definite shape and form”.
3. Then how do we explain the multitude of forms of the “Formless Ultimate Reality”? You need to take into account the following:
3. Then how do we explain the multitude of forms of the “Formless Ultimate Reality”? You need to take into account the following:
a. Hindu images of divine function symbolically to point beyond themselves to the “Ultimate and Infinite Reality”.
b. In some special sense the images are understood to manifest, or embody, the divine reality they represent!
c. When a craftsman has completed the task on an image, the reality is transferred into the object through “rituals”! But that is a “temporary” arrangement, often till the festival of a particular “deity”. When the festival is over the image is destroyed either by drowning in water or by consuming it in fire, reminding the devotees that image is not god!
d. During times of worship the “image” may be treated as if the image is the “living form”!
Questions to Explore:
1. Give a detail account of Siva (or Shiva), the supreme deity of the Saivites.
2. Discuss the Hindu conception of God.
3. How do Hindus resolve the contradiction within their concept of the deity?
4. Describe and discuss the importance of four goddesses of the Hindu pantheon.
Questions to Explore:
1. Give a detail account of Siva (or Shiva), the supreme deity of the Saivites.
2. Discuss the Hindu conception of God.
3. How do Hindus resolve the contradiction within their concept of the deity?
4. Describe and discuss the importance of four goddesses of the Hindu pantheon.
