Dharmic Short Stories
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| Dear Children: As I mentioned in last month’s issue, here is the beginning of a series of simplified articles about the Hindu Pantheon of Gods and Goddesses. The very title of this subject is confusing and somewhat embarrassing as it implies that Hindus believe in more than one God. Is this true? My grandmother used to say that there can be as many spiritual paths as there are spiritual aspirants. Extending this further, we can accept as its corollary that there can be as many gods as there is devotees. As long as the central fact, viz., that these gods are the doorways leading to the one Godhead, is not forgotten, polytheism, pantheism, henotheism or 'any-theism' is acceptable. The bewildering variety of the Hindu gods should be viewed from this angle. When I was young it was difficult for me to imagine or ask, are there many Gods (and Goddesses as well) in reality? If so, whom should I pray to? Who is going to guide me through this process of selecting the one God from among the many (!!!) that I should offer my prayers to? And what happens if other Gods get annoyed with me because I do not pray to them? Will they punish me? Do I need to do anything to please the Gods I do not regularly pray to? Or should I pray to all of them, just in case? An unbiased, if not reverent, study of the Hindu gods and goddesses can convince anyone of the rich symbology they represent. Contemplating on them symbolical significance will help us to be raised to more profound levels of spiritual experience. In this article a humble attempt has been made to unravel the symbolism of Devi and her various aspects. We earnestly hope that it will provide the young children with a basic knowledge of these deities and rouse their curiosity to know about the other deities of the Hindu pantheon also. Readers who may be interested in a more comprehensive study of the deities of the Hindu pantheon are advised to go through the book, Hindu Gods and Goddess, published by the Sri Ramakrishna Math, Madras. I had all these scary questions on my mind as a child and as a teenager just like many of you out there. I was very confused and even ashamed at times to reveal my identity. As I grew up, life and its demands consumed me and I neither had the time nor the inclination to find answers to any of the above. I just followed what I was told mostly by my grandmother (it was easier that way) and let years roll on. Suddenly, without much warning, these questions came swinging back to me from the most unexpected quarters namely various students from neighborhood schools and colleges who started visiting our temple at Mississauga Ram Mandir and learn about Hinduism. I was shocked and felt guilty that I did not take the time to find any answers. That was my beginning. I started working hard to find some answers over the years and I wish to share with you the answers to some of these questions, the way I find them convincing. We are followers of “Sanatana Dharma” which in Sanskrit means an “Eternal righteous way of life”. This way of life is based on the universal laws and values revealed by the Vedas. Earlier I had written a detailed article on Sanatana Dharma, which was published in this magazine as well by leading magazines and newspapers in Canada. So our religion is also known as Vedic religion. The Vedas have categorically proclaimed that: "Ekam Sath Vipraah Bahudhaa vadanti” Our ancestors are so learned that they anticipated the difficulty in comprehending and understanding the above statement by the human mind and designed an ingenious way to make it easy. This “One Truth” is capable of appearing in different forms with different names as needed, to appeal to the different levels of understanding of the devotees. So the concept that we pray to many Gods is not true. It is a misunderstanding and misinterpretation of our unique approach to worshipping that “One Truth”. The many images (moorty) in a Hindu temple do not represent many Gods. They represent the many attributes or aspects or functions performed by the ‘One Truth”. A moorty represents an ideal. This concept of assigning a name and a form to an attribute of the same One Truth, makes relating to divinity tangible and easier for the human mind to suit its divergent needs. So our religion is very much a Monotheistic one with a pluralistic projection which means we believe in “One Truth” which appeals to the devotees in any form that they are able to understand and connect with. |
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*Kanayalal Raina is a Brampton based writer who contributes regularly to various Canadian publications. He is working as Executive Director at Canada Hindu Heritage Centre in Canada. An automobile Engineer and MBA (Mktg) by profession he is providing consultancy on Project Management, Financing and Marketing. |
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