This is by David Frawley …
If you have ever wondered, if Hindus worship one God or many Gods, why do Hindus worship images and icons, why does the God in Hindu dharma have multiple names and multiple forms of God, then this is the where, we hope, you will find answers. Dr. David Frawley has answered many of these commonly asked questions quite succinctly. For example,
Why Do Hindus Worship Many Gods?
Human beings through history have formulated many different names and forms for the Divine or Eternal. Just as we have many names and forms for other things, whether it is foods, or types of art, so too, in religion a similar great diversity has been created.
The Western world has prided itself in monotheism, the idea that there is only One God as the highest truth. Western religions have said that only the names and forms which refer to this One God are valid but those which appear to worship another God, or a multiplicity of divinities, must be false. They have restricted the names and forms they use in religious worship, and insist that only one set is true and correct and others are wrong or unholy.
As a universal formulation Hinduism accepts all formulations of Truth. According to the universal view there is only One Reality, but it cannot be limit ed to a particular name or form. Though Truth is One it is also Universal, not an exclusive formulation. It is an inclusive, not an exclusive Oneness - a spiritual reality of Being - Consciousness - Bliss, which could be called God but which transcends all names. The different Gods and Goddesses of Hinduism represent various functions of this One Supreme Divinity, and are not separate Gods.
Having many names for something is not necessarily a sign of ignorance of its real nature. On the contrary, it may indicate an intimate knowledge of it. For example, Eskimos have forty-eight different names for snow in their language because they know snow intimately in its different variations, not because they are ignorant of the fact that all snow is only one. The many different deities of Hinduism reflect such an intimate realization of the Divine on various levels.
Or, Why Does Hinduism Portray God as a Woman?
Hinduism contains many feminine forms of the Divine like Kali, Durga, Lakshmi and Sarasvati. These represent different feminine qualities and functions of the Divine which contains both male and female energies. For example, Kali portrays the destructive energy, Lakshmi the nourishing, and Sarasvati the creative, while Durga is the Divine Mother in her protective role. Hinduism also has many dual male-female forms like Radha-Krishna, Sita-Rama, Uma-Mahesh, and Lakshmi -Narayan in which the female form is usually addressed first. The different masculine forms of the Divine in Hinduism have their feminine counterparts.
As Sanatana Dharma or a universal tradition Hinduism recognizes that the Divine contains both masculine and feminine attributes. Without giving proper honor to the feminine qualities a religion must be incomplete and one-sided, which must result in its teachings having negative consequences. Without recognizing the feminine aspect of Divinity one cannot claim to know God. To recognize the feminine is necessary to restore wholeness, completeness and universality.
Hindu Gods
“God” and the universe
For Hindus, the entire universe is part of the Divine- everything is part of “God”. And so “God”, for Hindus, is present in everything.
“God” and the “Soul”
Hindus believe that each soul is an individual, and yet is also a part of the Divine; is part of “God”.
“God” and gods
Hindus acknowledge and worship various gods, but these are all aspects of the one supreme “God”.
The gods Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma are different forms and names of the one God. Vishnu in particular has appeared on earth in various forms. Among these, Krishna and Rama are especially loved and worshipped.
Most Westerners think that Hinduism is polytheistic-which means worshipping many gods, but in fact Hindus actually believe in only one supreme God, called “Brahman”.
Brahman is a supreme spirit that permeates everything.
BUT: Brahman is not a being in the sense that Christians think of God as a being - Brahman is entirely impersonal, and entirely impossible to describe.
Everything in the universe is part of Brahman, (including each one of us), but Brahman is more than the sum of everything in the universe.
So what about all those Hindu gods you see in the temples? Read on…
One God and many Gods
There is only one ultimate reality, Brahman. But that ultimate reality shows itself in many forms, and some of those forms are called Gods.
The gods Brahma, Vishnu and Siva, for example, are different aspects of Brahman:
Brahma reflects God’s divine work of creating the universe ·
Vishnu reflects God’s work in keeping the universe in existence
Siva reflects God’s work in destroying it.
Vishnu has appeared on earth in the past at times of crisis, in 9 different forms (a 10th form is yet to appear).
