Guest guest Posted April 28, 2001 Report Share Posted April 28, 2001 At times, the concept cannot be formulated about the highest abstraction or generalization of a truth or reality. This is true with regards to the highest abstraction of Transcendental Reality. Not only the words fail but also the mind fails to grasp and express the abstraction. With it language, imagination, thought, and ideas also fail. Then such a concept is " downsized " to lower symbols of God, with or without form or attributes. The symbol of God itself now becomes the concept of highest abstraction and generalization! Various sections of humanity, race, clan, associations, nations, and people try to use symbol of their choice to actualize the concept of God; Jesus for some, Buddha for others, Om for a few, and so on. And in the same stream, if aboriginal in India, Australia, and Africa continue to see God in trees and mountains, the dead and the ghosts, we should have no hesitation in accepting such symbolism! History of art and literature, science and religion is the history of bridging this gap between the concept and symbols to its closest possible approximation. Thus great individuals, books, literature, music, work of art, etc. are recognized as or become the best possible symbols of the concept. In science they take the form of successive enrichment in scientific laws and theorems, while in religion they progress from lower knowledge to higher knowledge -apara vidya to para vidya. The journey continues from lower form of worship to higher form, from grosser to subtle, from forms with attributes to formless without attributes! * c s shah http://www.neovedanta.org ---- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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