There are too many problems with God. Let’s look at them quickly:
There are too many Gods!
Some religions like Hinduism have too many gods. Some Hindus are embarrassed by it, so they like to state that the different gods are merely manifestations of Brahma, Vishnu, or Shiva. This is the inescapable Holy Trinity of Hinduism. But the fact remains that Hinduism has too many gods and to consider all of them omnipotent taxes even the most devout and religious Hindu devotee.
There is only one God!
The idea of a single God became necessary when too many gods led to disunity among human communities. Such unifying ideas were explored even among ancient Hindus, because people worshiping Vishnu and those worshipping Shiva considered each other as different religious groups. This is not hard to imagine. I live in Shillong where the different denominations of Christianity are – for all practical purposes – apparent as different religions.
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam have the same origins, yet their differences are omnipresent in our world. Their monotheism ranges from “a single god” to “worship of a single god.” The meaning is simple: some monotheists acknowledge the existence of many gods but worship only one, because their god is a “jealous god” forbidding his devotees from worshiping any other god. The shifting of beliefs from many gods to one and back to many has happened over thousands of years and will continue to happen. This only highlights the fact that eventually the idea of one god becomes boring!
Maybe there’s a God!
These are the agnostics: the card-carrying members of vague religious beliefs. Personally, these are people who have not thought much about god, or don’t care enough to explore either way, or are simply – as yet – undecided. I have no clue where they stand on the idea of god. I guess each has – or does not have – an idea of god.
There are too many Definitions
Steven Weinberg won the Nobel Prize in 1979 for his work in Quantum Physics. He is an atheist who stated the following in his book ‘Dreams of a Final theory’: “Some people have views of God that are so broad and flexible that they will find God wherever they look for him… like any other word, the word ‘God’ can be given any meaning we like. If you like to say that ‘God is energy’ then you will find him a lump of coal.”
Since there is no objective exploration of the existence of god, HIS omnipresence is an attribute of arising from the different views of different people. No wonder god is everywhere you look!
And then there is no God!
Atheists are boring people who lead rather insipid lives. There is neither heaven nor hell for them, and they go about their lives without enjoying the beauties and wonders of the universe. Of course, I’m kidding! But atheists do ignore the consciousness that gives rise to ideas of god, and the different manifestations of ‘god’s manifestation.’
Tantra, places God at level 4 in the hierarchy of consciousness. In my next blog entitled, “Beyond God,” I will elaborate on this level from a psychological perspective.
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