What do Vaishnavas think of this verse?

[Baobabtree]

Namaste all.

 

There's something that I've wondered about for awhile. Whilest reading through the Rigveda I've come across this famous verse

They call him Indra, Mitra, Varuṇa, Agni, and he is heavenly nobly-winged Garutmān.

To what is One, sages give many a title they call it Agni, Yama, Mātariśvan.

(This is Rigveda 1:164:46).

 

To me this verse seems to indicate that Indra, Garuda, Agni etc. are all but facets of the supreme God. Here's the thing though, according to most Vaishnavas Indra Agni, Garuda and a fair bit of the other Vedic devas, are but mortal souls who have been elevated to the status of a demi-god by the supreme God Krishna, which would contradict this interpretation. Is there a standard Vaishnava interpretation of this verse?

[JayaMahaDevi]

People who must be in sects, and seperate themselves with humanity always find fault in others whether it be a man, a woman, a god or Goddess if it does not fit the qualifications and standards of their sect.

 

However people who transcend all that get the divine blessing as seeing all things as emanations of the supreme. And every path as valid.

 

Not saying this is just Vaishnavas who do this, other sects do it as well. In fact there are not many people who are not guilty of trying to find fault in other paths, peoples, tribes, creeds, classes, castes, sects. Etc.

 

But you know, if it was not meant to be in existence in the universe, it wouldn't be. Even the Asuras, who are said to be "demons" (but are just actually power seeking deities) have their place. They too are emanations of the divine! If you can see even a "demon" or whatever you want to call it as an emanation of the divine then you KNOW that God is taking you places.

[madanbhakta]

 

Namaste all.

 

There's something that I've wondered about for awhile. Whilest reading through the Rigveda I've come across this famous verse (This is Rigveda 1:164:46).

 

To me this verse seems to indicate that Indra, Garuda, Agni etc. are all but facets of the supreme God. Here's the thing though, according to most Vaishnavas Indra Agni, Garuda and a fair bit of the other Vedic devas, are but mortal souls who have been elevated to the status of a demi-god by the supreme God Krishna, which would contradict this interpretation. Is there a standard Vaishnava interpretation of this verse?

Well, in my limited understanding, not only are the demigods accordingly to the status of angels, they are also emanations, or manifestations of Krishna's shakti in material creation (bahiranga shakti). It says in the Gita that the one who worships the demigods actually worship Krishna, but in a wrong way, and that He is the receiver of all prayers and worship, the Reservoir of All Pleasures.

 

Thus, Shiva, Brahma, Ganesha, Varuna, Indra, etc. are created emanations of Krishna's (or Vishnu's) bahiranga shakti (and Parvati, Saraswati, Durga, Kali, etc. are emanations of Radharani's [or Lakshmi's] shakti). But we are called by the Gita to worship Lord Krishna, or God, and not His emanation. Even our souls are emanations of Krishna's shakti. So if one were to look at it from the demigods-as--former-mortals vantage point, then one can also say that why worship a servant of God, when we are called to directly worship God? Why look at the finger pointing at the moon, when one can look at the moon itself?

 

Personally, and I do not know if this is Vaishnava, I see the demigods as also differing facets of Godhead, but Krishna clearly states in the Gita that worship of Him is Supreme. Thus, while there are many conceptions of God, and the sages call Him by many names, the Krishna conception of God is the Highest, as shown in Srimad-Bhagavatam and Bhagavad Gita via a plain reading.

 

If there is any guru-shastra or Scriptures on this, that would be helpful! ^___^

 

 

madanbhakta.