Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism): One God, many gods

[infamous]

The explanations just don't really add up, and it begs the question: what's *really* all that bad about having multiple gods? I mean, why is that so bad?

 

Cheers,

Buffy

For any being to qualify as God, he, or she, must have no superiors nor any equals. If he, or she, has, then they can not really be a God at all. God must represent the final authority, without peer, otherwise they are not God. If there were more than one God, which voice would you need to pay attention to. Suppose one God disagreed with the other God, which one would you serve. I have chosen the one I will listen to, you are free to chose one for yourself. But one you must choose, you cannot be faithful to more than one God at a time.

[insight]

one you must choose,[/b] you cannot be faithful to more than one God at a time.

i have no even a single god. God theory is not trustful.

[infamous]

i have no even a single god. God theory is not trustful.

No one is forcing you to believe, it is your right to believe whatever you choose to believe.

[Buffy]

For any being to qualify as God, he, or she, must have no superiors nor any equals. If he, or she, has, then they can not really be a God at all. God must represent the final authority, without peer, otherwise they are not God. If there were more than one God, which voice would you need to pay attention to. Suppose one God disagreed with the other God, which one would you serve. I have chosen the one I will listen to, you are free to chose one for yourself. But one you must choose, you cannot be faithful to more than one God at a time.

Some interesting assumptions about God flow out of this of course:

• God is a final authority who judges all.
  
• Gods are potentially wrathful, so if there was more than one, they wouldn't get along.
  
• Corollary: They can't agree on a division of labor and could not specialize.
  
• Corollary: Perceived inconsistency in the universe is *on purpose* rather than conflict between Gods.
  
• You need to pay attention to God, she expects you to follow orders.
  
• Faithfulness can only have a solitary target: You must choose between your parents, spouse, and children, in fact you can only be faithful to God, so forget about them (c.f. Abraham, Lot)
  

It actually seems to me that polytheism can be a more satisfying view of the world (as if we can choose! You'll burn in hell if you're wrong of course!), especially when you talk about things like bullet 4 above. In any case, this list should provoke some thinking about why other religions seem to have radically different assumptions, and whether or not they have any legitimacy. To me its also interesting to see that in this list are dictates which are useful *politically* in early societies where religious authority assists in justification of political authority (bullets 1 and 5 above)...think about the parallels between polytheism and democracy, and how in early societies, the notion that the people should rule became threatening, thus pushing religious thought toward monotheism to sustain absolute authority. That's pretty much what happened in Rome of course...

 

Cheers,

Buffy

[insight]

No one is forcing you to believe, it is your right to believe whatever you choose to believe.

 

yeah, i agree that everyone should have a religion. BTW, there are some religion without God.

[Buffy]

Even though many Christians are confused about this, the Bible does not teach that God is three 'person's', as in three distinct individuals, which would be polytheism.

 

Rather the Bible teaches there is only 'one' God who has 'three' forms, which is really monotheism.

Well, that's what the "experts" say to try to cover up the inconsistency ("the Bible inconsistent? Its the word-o-God! It just *can't* be inconsistent!), but go ahead and read it and you'll see references to Jesus as both "his Son", and "God" rather than a "prophet" (that's why he can perform miracles!). Its very easy to interpret this as polytheism sneaking out, when you have to remember that at the time, Judaism was the only monotheistic religion in the West! Having reasuring references to something more familiar like God of the Universe and God on Earth was at the time a good way to bring the pagans into the fold. Only later after the scriptures were fixed was there a need to start draping it with stuff like Catholocism's description of "the Trinity", to cover up the inconsistency. But its there!

 

Cheers,

Buffy

[Buffy]

Though he is the final authority, he would never be partial or unfair in his judgments.

Why's She wrathful then? She says so herself! (Ex 20-32, multiple)

He is not dictatorial but prefers that we use our brains to reason.

What's all those Commandments for then? Sure, I guess we get a choice as to whether to follow them, but She punishes us if we don't! What do you call that?

In a healthy relationship we will see God in our family.

This sure sounds like a stretch to me, and its why I like to refer to Abraham: the only way he could prove to God that God was number one was to offer to kill his own son. God was above his son. My kid has said that's the scariest story in the Bible and has asked me what I would do. Guess what *my* answer was!

Polytheism would be difficult because we naturally chose favourites, alternately loving each god, whereas if there's only one, there is no conflict. God never condemns anyone for honest questioning - it is a matter of 'do you really care enough to know him to ask him to explain himself to you'.

So what's wrong with having favorites? I always kinda liked Ringo, but it took all four of them to have The Beatles. Oh wait, She's wrathful: like another one more than Her and She gets jealous (Ex 20:5)!

 

Wait, all powerful benevolent Gods are jealous? Are subject to all sorts of human failings? Is there something wrong with this picture? If "God never condemns anyone for honest questioning," then isn't it okay to stick with a different favorite? Why is this a problem? Really, isn't "insisting that you're the only one" one of those traits we point to in humans that we say is *bad*? Do you really seek out those people as friends?

 

Note that, as just posted over in another thread, the Hindu notion of multiple gods is tied back to the universe being the totality of all of them (something which unfortunately does not translate well into English and Western theologies). There's a notion of "one God" as this thread started as, but it is the summation of all of them! This is a radically different notion than a single entity as we are familiar with in Judeo-Christian-Muslim theology.

 

I'm still not perceiving a downside to having multiple gods yet...

 

Cheers,

Buffy

[Buffy]

'Honest' questioning is always okay but why ask me, ask Him, but then Buffy, do you really want to know? God has a 'personality' which was personified in Jesus Christ.

I ask Santa, He's a *lot* easier to track down at the mall... :hihi:

If there are 'gods' then which one takes responsibility for what?

What? They can't divide the labor up themselves? Roman and Greek and Norse and Hindu Gods all seem to do this pretty well, what's the problem? If its mysterious, well heck, we all *know* she moves in mysterious ways! I'm jiggy wid' dat.

 

Cheers,

Buffy