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Affinity for Polytheism?

soulsurvivor

Active Member
Premium Member
I just recently learnt that Hinduism is very broad. I have had Hindu friends but we never spoke about the religion at all. I have come across a creation myth which made it seem that everything was made out of Brahman. (Are Brahma and Brahman the same?)
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No Brahma and brahman are not the same. Brahma is the Creator God - one of the three main Hindu Gods (the Hindu Trinity), while brahman is an impersonal entity which is the root of all existence - ie all beings inanimate as well as animate (including the Gods) come from the all encompassing brahman.

Here is a good site that describes and analyzes Hindu Gods: Hindu Gods and Goddesses
 

Samael_Khan

Goosebender
No Brahma and brahman are not the same. Brahma is the Creator God - one of the three main Hindu Gods (the Hindu Trinity), while brahman is an impersonal entity which is the root of all existence - ie all beings inanimate as well as animate (including the Gods) come from the all encompassing brahman.

Here is a good site that describes and analyzes Hindu Gods: Hindu Gods and Goddesses

Thanks for the link.
 

sayak83

Veteran Member
Staff member
Premium Member
When it comes to religion, my main area of expertise is in Biblical based religions. I left the Jehovah's Witnesses about two years ago (I think. Can't remember) who are very devoted to their god and study the bible quite extensively. Having studied the Bible, I was most drawn to the prophetic books which are like creative puzzles, using imagery, metaphor and symbolism to convey a point. I still enjoy reading them.

After I left I started reading an in depth book about Ancient Egyptian beliefs and am now reading a book on Hindu myth. I am finding that I am way more fascinated by learning about those beliefs than I am by the Judaism and Christianity, which I don't find colourful enough. Even more so with Islam. They seem hollow whereas polytheism seems rich. I think that this is because they are so dogmatic about what is truth, whereas with polytheism, as far as I know, does not care so much about which god is true or not, but rather uses mythology to convey underlying truths about the world in a creative way, using the same tactic as the Biblical prophetic books, which also reveal underlying truths creatively.

So what I am pondering is, why do I feel such an affinity to polytheism vs monotheism? Is it maybe because I am a creative person, an artist, avid reader and graphic designer, so I like creative descriptions and cryptic puzzles that I must figure out? Or is there some other reason why?

Do any of you guys feel the same way or am I the only one who has this conundrum?
Stories in classical polytheisms or current Dharmic or Daoist texts are certainly better and more engaging and more richer. But as a Hindu I may be biased. ;)
 

Samael_Khan

Goosebender
Stories in classical polytheisms or current Dharmic or Daoist texts are certainly better and more engaging and more richer. But as a Hindu I may be biased. ;)

Ha! I think it is because they are symbolic as opposed to the Bible which is very real-world-ish, So it gets a little dry. I remember when I was a JW, I used to think that the Bible was the most interesting book in the world. I still think it is one of them, but there are degrees of awesomeness.
 

sayak83

Veteran Member
Staff member
Premium Member
Ha! I think it is because they are symbolic as opposed to the Bible which is very real-world-ish, So it gets a little dry. I remember when I was a JW, I used to think that the Bible was the most interesting book in the world. I still think it is one of them, but there are degrees of awesomeness.
My favorite book is Mahabharata which is a great mixture of religion, philosophy, mythology, politics and heroic ballad.
I think Dante's inferno and Milton's paradise lost are attempts to bring within Christianity these aspects that are rare in the Bible.
 

Samael_Khan

Goosebender
My favorite book is Mahabharata which is a great mixture of religion, philosophy, mythology, politics and heroic ballad.
I think Dante's inferno and Milton's paradise lost are attempts to bring within Christianity these aspects that are rare in the Bible.

I have both Inferno and Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained in my personal library. Inferno is so political that a person gets lost if they (like me) do not know the politics in Dante's era. Paradise is political, as it is influenced by the English Civil War, but really also fleshes out Milton's theology and makes one reflect on the role of Satan in the Bible.
 
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