[world-vedic] The Historical Identity of God

[Guest guest]

Dear Bhakti, Ananda, Goswami,

 

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this article and am in agreement with what you have

shared. I do, however, have a few questions that I would like answers to. I am

certainly not as knowledgeable as you are by any stretch of the imagination, and

only have a bachelors in

humanities and a masters in education, and have taught in public schools in the

United States. One thing I know for certain in this country is that there is a

definite divide between western thought about religion and eastern thought. In

this country it is generally

assumed that all great thought, development of civilization, and belief in one

God began in Egypt and ended with Rome. Therefore in our textbooks there is

very little accurate information about the foundation of religious development

in the east, with the exception of a

quick wink and nod with a western slant. Every bit of historical relevance to

the development of religion is only in contrast to the Judeo-Christian bias.

Even though the immigration laws were changed in 1965 and more people from the

East were allowed to enter this

country, the correct religious authority is very slow to mainstream into

American culture. And it seems to me that when it is mainstreamed it is done to

fit into the existing culture with changes that society will tolerate and and

are plausible in contrast to the

traditional western world view. Some examples being meditation and yoga for

health, not religious purposes.

 

As teachers of ancient religions we are given textbooks that begin with

Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon man. Students are given short novels that tell about

the suspected beliefs of ancient man in the sun god or the moon god, etc. and

clans that traversed the tundra hunting

and gathering. Eventually students learn to know that ancient peoples watched

the water pattern of the ebb and flow of the Tigress and Euphrates rivers and

the Nile river from which mankind learned how to grow crops which eventually led

to the develop cities. Thus the

beginning of "civilization." Since the bias is in the development of

civilization beginning in Egypt and the progression to Greece and Rome with an

eventual belief in one God and Christianity, the development of civilization in

India and China are of rare significance and

teachers often "skip" these areas of study to get to the "heart" of civilization

which occurred in Greece and Rome as determined by historians. And then, if

teachers do teach the development of civilization in India, the major focus is

on the caste system which eventually

leads students to believe that democracy is surely a better system of government

because in America there is technically no labeled caste system. However, we

all know that there is indeed a "caste system" obscured with different labels.

Students are also led to read that

India is a very poor country and one that believes in Hinduism which in

conglomeration of multitudes of gods and languages and is labeled as an

under-developed country. There is very little reference to the actual religious

practices or inventions that have contributed to

India's contributions to the world.

 

So, one of my questions for you is how does the Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon

progression fit into the philosophy of Guadiya

Vaishnavism? Upon discussing the origin of Vedic literatures as the oldest

scriptures on the planet, I have difficulty answering a question with my peers

as to how, when and where the two merge.

 

My second question is also similar in nature. It is in the vein of inquiry to a

Christian who says that the God they believe in is the God in the Bible. You

mentioned that belief in all Gods, both in the east and the west are really

belief in the same God. If I were to

say that to a Christian they would go into some lengthy argument to the

opposition of that statement. They would debate how the Christ that claimed to

be the son of God, who died for man's sins, and whose father is "God" could not

possibly be the same God, Krishna. I

have come to think that many Christians will not even entertain the idea that

Christ is not God, but proclaimed to be the son of God. How do you reconcile in

discussion with Christians that sincerely believe that Jesus Christ, the Holy

Spirit, and God the father are indeed

one and the same God and yet, actually is the same God that mankind has

worshiped since the beginning of prehistory? If as you say that all

worshipers of God are really believing and showing devotion to the same God,

why is it so necessary to change the belief of

Christians? I must confess that I stumble over that idea personally very much.

Even though I understand that God may have infinite names and qualities, and has

a personality, this should be enough knowledge for me to share, but in

discussion with Christian friends they

look at me as though I have committed heresy. I must also state that since I

have begun to seriously study Guadiya Vaishnava philosophy, that my world has

been most enriched. I am not trying to find fault with the concepts, I am

simply most anxious to be able to discuss

what I am learning with quality answers.

 

Thank you for considering my questions.

 

Sincerely,

Jean Nielson

 

Bhakti, Ananda, Goswami wrote:

 

> The Historical

> Identity of God

>

> As an interdisciplinary theologian and historian of religion, I

> assert that it is impossible to separate God's historical identity

> from His theological identity. In over 30 years of study and

> reflection, I have realized that a non-racist, non-sectarian

> assessment of global religious history and particularity confirms

> that there is historically only One True Supreme Personality of

> Godhead.

>

> If we go back far enough, or deeply enough, into the world's great

> salvific devotional traditions, we will find that the entire human

> race shares a primal common religious heritage in the salvific and

> civilizing self-revelation of the same deity. If we delve deeply into

> the particularities of bhakti (devotional) traditions without

> prejudice, we quickly discover that the supreme deity of ancient

> monotheistic Africans, Semites, Indo-Europeans, Asians and even

> Amerindians is historically the same transcendent, incarnating and

> immanent Personality of Godhead.

>

> By a careful comparative interdisciplinary study (linguistic,

> iconographic etc.) of scriptures and traditions, and such

> particularities as God's name and form, specific religious lineages,

> theophoric personal names, temple art and architecture, temple

> foundation deposits, personal or state religious seals and amulets,

> coins, place names and maps, rites, sacramental social order, and

> moral theology, we can conclusively arrive at the historical identity

> of God. Even atheists must agree that the worship of God has real

> world history. If the scientific evidence shows that a religion's

> deity is historically the God of two or more peoples, then that deity

> must ultimately be the same God theologically. The historical

> evidence confirms that the Vedic and Biblical deity is the same

> Supreme Personality of Godhead.

>

> This may be a shocking proposition to those who have a poor fund of

> knowledge or prejudice against either the Vedic or Biblical

> traditions. Tragically, humanity has now become religiously

> accustomed to thinking in terms of eastern religions versus western

> religions. Centuries of evil, blasphemously done in the name of God,

> have reinforced today's prejudice, fear and hatred on all sides of

> the great East-versus-West religious divide. But, according to the

> actual historical evidence, this is an artificially constructed

> divide in the collective historical self-perception of humanity.

> Racism has played a major role in the creation of this present

> bifurcated world-view in which the Monotheistic Judeo-Christian and

> Islamic traditions have always existed in historical isolation from,

> and opposition to the polytheistic and pantheistic eastern

> traditions.

>

> The ancient evidence does not show any original isolation from or

> opposition between the West's "One True God" and the "Gods" of the

> East. Rather, the evidence shows a profound, global unity of

> civilizing religion and culture in the prehistoric period and the

> dawn of high civilization in each region. There is only one religion

> that accompanies this original civilizing of humanity.

>

> Today's great religions of the West and East are all descended from

> that one primal tradition. Our great religions have all originated in

> the worship of the same triune deity. To today's Krishna Vaishnavas,

> that deity is Hari (Krishna), Vasudeva (Vishnu) and Paramatma. To the

> ancient Jews, He was Eli, Toba-Yahu and Adon-Yahu. In ancient Africa,

> He was Heri, Wasu-Theos and Aten. Greek speaking Europeans worshiped

> Him during the Minoan Era as Heli-Us and Ontos / Autos / Atomos. So,

> we see from the earliest evidence, that these three major racial and

> linguistic divisions of the one human family (Indo-European, Semitic

> and African) originally shared a single, primal civilizing revelatory

> religious tradition. We are ultimately one family with faith in the

> same God.

> My independent discoveries (in the 1960s), regarding the linguistic

> connections between the names of Hari in the major language groups,

> have now been contexted by the development of the entire field of

> linguistic superfamilies. Specifically, research reconstructing the

> Nostratic Macro Family of Languages 100% supports my own discoveries

> regarding the primal names of God. Recent genetic and linguistic

> superfamily research has converged in the creation of a new global

> picture of humanity's united past. My own research has identified the

> deity of that remote time of unity that Hindus often refer to as the

> age of the "Global Vedic Culture" described in their scriptures.

 

> Our shared heritage of faith from that time of unity should be

> uniting us. However, presently we are being mal-educated in a

> divisive, racist world-view. To end our sad alienation, it is

> essential to address this mal-education and to confront the related

> historical offences, racial and religious pride and prejudice which

> is artificially dividing us.

> Gaudiya Vaishnavas have a divine mandate to revive the

> original "Krishna consciousness" of all humanity. This means

> defeating the racist and corrupt religious lies that have divided us,

> and replacing hostile sectarianism with the unifying truth that can

> reunite us in our shared God's divine love.

>

> Interested readers may correspond with

> Bhakti Ananda Goswami

> bhakti.eohn

>

> This is an information resource and discussion group for people interested in

the World's Ancient Vedic Culture, with a focus on its historical, archeological

and scientific aspects. Also topics about India, Hinduism, God, and other

aspects of World Culture are welcome.

>

>

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