This is for those who are well acquainted with the tenets of the Orthotext. It concerns a concept of the basic Hindu religion and how “our” God leads them, even as He leads us. As one of a confirmed religious group, we are always sure that our beliefs are the right one. Others are on the outside, or are they? We want to be “Top Dog” and it flatters our ego to think that we have what everyone else does not have. Still, somewhere inside, we want to believe in a Perfect God and it is hard to accept the fact that he would only save a select few.
This is true of the larger Christian Denominations as well as the fanatical small off-shoots of Christianity. This is also true of the entire Christian church as a whole. Although we begrudgingly allow that a few other denominations of Christians might be saved too, we consider the followers of Christ to be superior as a whole in their chosen beliefs. The fact that a great part of the world consists of Muslims and Hindus with their radically different religions makes us all the smugger in our isolation.
Maybe the Muslims, we say, might have some chance, after all Mohammad claims our Abraham as an ancestor; but what about the Hindu? How could “our” God be with them, they worship idols, don’t they? Maybe we had better take a closer look at them in the light of the Orthotext, which tells us God is in all people and He will find them in His own way. He is a just and loving God, and would have all men to be saved. Let us consider some of the main Hindu beliefs.
Hinduism believes in God’s Omnipresence and speaks of his presence in every human being. When a man fully realizes this presence in himself, he becomes a God-Realized soul. This we know as the Super C and we strive to be one with this God presence in ourselves. Hinduism is all about that man’s trip to arrive there, just as our trip to complete awareness of the Super C within our own self is our goal.
Their God is one all-pervasive Supreme Being who is Creator and Sustainer of reality. Our God is the Creator and as such, he holds the power of the Preservation of his world. Sometimes this computer-like process is referred to as a Third Power, along with the Constructive acting power of God and the Destructive powers of Satan.
The Hindu believes in Karma, which is the law of “Cause and Effect.” By this, each individual creates his own destiny by thoughts, words, and deeds. This works well with us, as it is a knowledgeable way to live one’s life to work our way back to God.
Hindu Temples are places where the devotee can go to worship the many sides of God as they are illustrated in the life forms made to represent His attributes. Many qualities and each side of the God Head have a representation in tangible form. This was most important to the early people at the inception of Hinduism. This was the start of the oldest known religion in existence. There was no language or means of recorded communication among men and the way to remember the qualities of God and His will for mankind was through the eye. The ear and spoken word did well, but the “Word” was lost in communication and the memory of man often was faulty or non-existent.
The qualities of God were exemplified with sculpted figures and other replicas given special meanings and worked into a plan whereby the masses could decipher the path God wanted them to take as well as know what kind of a God He was and what His will was for them. Also they could find out from the stories and background associated with these figures, the path they were to take to reach the God inside of themselves. They were taught how to love and worship God by use of these symbols as stand-ins for the invisible God they could not touch. With child-like love they could touch and thereby worship the image of their love by the nurture and care that they understood. Tradition developed in this love-touch relationship and sacraments were devised to progress this religion toward a long future without loosing any of the knowledge so important to this people’s salvation.
Symbolic acts also are included in this religion to further understanding. For instance, the position of the two hands in a prayer like gesture with the fingers pointing to the third eye in the center to the forehead. The hands symbolize self meeting self. The right hand represents the higher nature (Super C) meeting the left hand or worldly nature (Sub-C); surrendering one’s complete self to God for forgiveness, direction and blessing according to what God wills.
A very important God (goddess) is Durga, the consort of Siva. She is the destroyer part of God, the power of God that fights Satan (Mahisha) to overcome him and the evil he brings to mankind. In her representations she is shown carrying many different weapons in her multiple arms that are capable of destroying Satan’s many demons in various forms. She has a serene look on her face; she knows that with God, Satan can always be defeated by using the right weapon.
When a rendering of Hindu Gods have additional arms, they always have practical meanings such as Sri Venkateswara. In him, the Supreme Being Vishnu is functioning as preserver, protector and sustainer of the Universe. He has four arms which represent the four directions and four quarters of the Universe. The absolute supremacy of God is represented in all places at all times. The items he holds in his hands represent all things of which God is ruler, such as fire, water, earth, air, and space. He is the cosmic mind.
Many Hindu renderings of God have multiple lessons in them from this visual “Word”, but before we stop let us find the equivalent to what Christians call the “Holy Spirit”. Sri Parvati, the female consort of Siva represents the dynamic energy of God. She moves in blessing and comforting the individual. She is the primordial energy of God in constant motion. This is a controlled form of the power used by God in Creation.
We close with the purest offering to God. It is the coconut. The three eyes circled around one end represent the trinity of the Supreme Being: creation, preservation, and regeneration. The coconut’s hard ugly shell represents man’s earthly conscious physical body. The white meat under it represents the psychological subconscious that directs man, and the sweet, clear water in the center signifies the spiritual composition of man.