It is true that it is believed that God is supposed to be an Omnipotent, Omniscient and personal being. In our philosophy there is one major God (Ishwara). He is assumed to be the creator and controller of all. Basically he can summon whichever power he wishes to and perform any task. Also there are Gods of different powers individually. They are reffered to as deities in the western cultures.
The concept I was trying to inculcate is still unclear with the above explanation. I was trying to explain that our scriptures talk about henotheism. This is a concept meaning devotion to a single primary god while accepting the existence or possible existence of other deities.
So while there is one single God (Ishwara), there are a lot of deities with unique powers and they in turn are responsible for the various acts of nature. For example, agni(fire), vayu(air), et cetra. We all believe that God is within us all. A person can become a Devotee and then a deity. As the book says, Ishwara lies within us all. So there is no need to become Ishwara. You already have Ishwara within you. In our concept it is more like you may use Ishwara to either do good deeds or do bad deeds and they will be repayed to your sons and daughters in time. There is a concept of Hell (Narak) and Heaven (Bhagwaan's place) as well.
So as we said the concept of omniscience is there. As God is always with us, since he exists in us and everything around us. The trees, birds, air, everything. And he knows all that is happening in the world. All that is planned to happen and all that has previously happened. It is even said that there is a person designated on the gates of death who keeps record of all the activities a living thing has performed, so that his/her/its place in heaven or hell can be determined at the time of death.
I hope this answers the first part of the question. The rest I'll answer in further posts.
The concept I was trying to inculcate is still unclear with the above explanation. I was trying to explain that our scriptures talk about henotheism. This is a concept meaning devotion to a single primary god while accepting the existence or possible existence of other deities.
So while there is one single God (Ishwara), there are a lot of deities with unique powers and they in turn are responsible for the various acts of nature. For example, agni(fire), vayu(air), et cetra. We all believe that God is within us all. A person can become a Devotee and then a deity. As the book says, Ishwara lies within us all. So there is no need to become Ishwara. You already have Ishwara within you. In our concept it is more like you may use Ishwara to either do good deeds or do bad deeds and they will be repayed to your sons and daughters in time. There is a concept of Hell (Narak) and Heaven (Bhagwaan's place) as well.
So as we said the concept of omniscience is there. As God is always with us, since he exists in us and everything around us. The trees, birds, air, everything. And he knows all that is happening in the world. All that is planned to happen and all that has previously happened. It is even said that there is a person designated on the gates of death who keeps record of all the activities a living thing has performed, so that his/her/its place in heaven or hell can be determined at the time of death.
I hope this answers the first part of the question. The rest I'll answer in further posts.
2 comments:
Let us take for granted that the existence of 'one major God' is proved. How can you prove the existence of 'deities'?
"In our concept it is more like you may use Ishwara to either do good deeds or do bad deeds and they will be repayed to your sons and daughters in time." Isn't God the absolute standard of all that is good? How can someone use god to do something that is bad? Are you saying that the Jihadi's are doing something bad with god in their side so ultimately their actions/deeds becomes good? Have you ever seen a toy playing and using the toy maker?
In Hinduism there is no concept of hell I think, you keep paying for you sins through reincarnation if I am not wrong.
I agree with dovesandwolves about the last part that Hinduism doesn't talk about Heaven and Hell. Of course, Vedas talk about 'Swarga'(Heaven) but more in a sense of the residing place for The Demi-Gods or Dieties as you mentioned it. Heaven and Hell comes into picture when we talk about the end of the world or apocalypse. Narak (Hell) isn’t even defined in any of the original vedas. Of course, over the times, the word Narak has been mentioned but more in the comparatively Medieval literature rather than in the ancient scriptures.
However, I would agree with Anubhav more about the philosophy of Ishwara (The Divine One) to be a part of all living beings. The Concept of Namaste suggests it. Namasté, Namaskar or Namaskaram. Taken literally, it means “I bow to you”. More figuratively, it means I bow to the Ishwara (The Divine One) which resides in you. God being the Creator, Controller, Destroyer and all the other forms is also the harbringer of Balance between the good and Evil. As one of the poets said “(Evil to Good): … agar main nahi hota toh nah bajti mandiro mein ghantiyan…” (I am the reason why people worship in Temples). This indicates that Good and Evil are relative and do not exist without each other. The only thing Absolute is The Divine One. What is good or bad? Actions are neither good nor evil – It is the intention behind them which is good or evil.
Well this could go on into a long discussion… so hoping the points put my thoughts in a Crux.
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