Well it's polytheistic for some, monotheistic for others, even atheistic for some. Sort of depends on who you ask, I suppose.
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how many gods?
- Thread starter syo
- Start date
Well it's polytheistic for some, monotheistic for others, even atheistic for some. Sort of depends on who you ask, I suppose.
How bout I just stick to Brahman for now and learn the other names only if it comes up in the afterlife? Sure, it might be a tad awkward, but maybe I could sneak off with Bacchus, or Dionysus and leave the rest of them to it.
So true. Never trust any single person as representative of Hinduism. Lots of Hindus are unable to explain Brahman at all.
Editedto add: Hindu philosophy - Wikipedia
"it's complicated" is an understatement.
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The Kilted Heathen
Crow FreyjasmaðR
An idea that doesn't' really mesh with polytheism.
To the OP, I have an encyclopedia with over 10,000 deities, and it doesn't get anywhere close to listing them all.
Why is your idea more accepted than his?
Just curious where you draw your expertise from?
The Kilted Heathen
Crow FreyjasmaðR
"One god, many names/faces" doesn't work with polytheism because we have gods interacting with one another, marrying one another, and birthing one another. It's not a scenario of "Tuesday God is Tyr, Wednesday their Krishna". That's a polytheism that's so soft the only proper name I can think for it would be liquid polytheism.
Buddha Dharma
Dharma Practitioner
How many gods? There could be hundreds of thousands. No reason to think the Cosmos isn't full of them, as earth is with all it's forms of life. I believe all the ones in world mythologies exist.
Buddha Dharma
Dharma Practitioner
As I understand it, some of the views in Hinduism about the gods 'springing from Brahman' could qualify as polytheistic. Do the Devas necessarily have to be synonymous with Brahman in total? In Advaita perhaps. How about Bhedabheda or Dvaita though?
In Bhedabheda Vedanta (the one I'm currently studying), the Devas could as easily be different and not different than Brahman like we are- by having a Jivatman.
I see no `gods`, but a lot of` idols`, and make-up.......
not too forget the colors !!!
I also see the Spirit that is dwelling amongst them.
Where is that Nirvana ? Wrong religion ?
They're all the same possibly, except no idols or gods !
Just Life and Stuff and the Cosmos,
and our Spirits, invincible as they are.
not too forget the colors !!!
I also see the Spirit that is dwelling amongst them.
Where is that Nirvana ? Wrong religion ?
They're all the same possibly, except no idols or gods !
Just Life and Stuff and the Cosmos,
and our Spirits, invincible as they are.
BilliardsBall
Veteran Member
I'd like to add that knowing the number of gods as a polytheist is not important (or at least I'm not aware of any tradition that regards it as important). What's important is recognizing that there are many valid subjects of worship, and that these subjects of worship are not the same or interchangeable with one another.
syo
Well-Known Member
that's what I think too.
syo
Well-Known Member
yes, all polytheistic gods are real.
ajay0
Well-Known Member
That is what the Vedas say, and there are stories in the upanishads which emphasis this common substratum of Brahman within each deva.
Bhedabheda is on the rungs in the ladder from dvaita to advaita. The dualistic aspects are emphasized for those who are not able to appreciate the nondualistic aspect of Advaita in the beginning itself.
To state that everything is one to a beginner would appear bizarre and confusing to him. Imho, these vedantic philosophies were created to ensure that those who were in the dualistic stages of consciousness had philosophies they could subscribe to . Such philosophies had also devotion to Saguna Brahman ( personal God) as their themes, whereas the same is absent in Advaita Vedanta which focusses on Nirguna Brahman (impersonal God)
outlawState
Deism is dead
I would suppose theoretically an infinite number, because gods reproduce with goddesses and they can do that for the rest of eternity, producing ever more offspring. What I find strange about the pagan religions is why they don't allow for ongoing reproduction. Everything seems fixed at a point in time, but logically it should not be so.
Subduction Zone
Veteran Member
Perhaps because of what you pointed out. Gods are eternal in most beliefs, not just now, but before humanities time too. There logically should be an infinite number of gods now if they can reproduce at will and humanity does not deal with that concept too well.
syo
Well-Known Member
not exactly ''imaginary''. gods are the prototypes, and us mortals are the copies. a rock is a copy. the god-rock is the prototype. without the god-rock, a rock couldn't exist.
syo
Well-Known Member
in us. gods and mortals have one thing in common; our souls. souls are immortal and connect everything.
