RELI 448 Week 2 Discussion

RELI 448 Week 2 Discussion

Hinduism offers as one explanation for its many gods that humans need concrete representations of the formless absolute. Also, finite minds can perceive the infinite only in a limited way, according to taste and temperament, cultural background, and other factors. Religions such as Christianity or Judaism view God in carefully defined ways that restrict the names and personality that reflect the divine. Yet even here, the way that God is pictured varies. Reflect on the images you have had of the divine, and interview friends about images they have had. How have these pictures in your mind changed since you were a child? Is it possible they will continue to change as you age or as you study religion more deeply? How do you account for this process, and how would you attempt to measure the correctness of one image over another?

The Bhagavad Gita states: “Whatever man give me / In true devotion: / Fruit or water, / A leaf, a flower: / I will accept it. / That gift is love, / His heart’s dedication. / Whatever your action, / Food or worship; / What the gift / That you give to another; / Whatever you vow / To the work of the spirit: / Lay these also / As offerings before me.” What do these verses say about Hindu ethics? Do you see any parallels between these and Jesus’s sayings in the Gospels? Elaborate.