Why does hinduism have so many gods ?

[DavidMcCann]

The idea that all gods are manifestations of one is very much a minority view in Hinduism: the sort of thing you're more likely to get from English-speaking intellectuals on web-sites than from the man or woman in the street, or so I've been told by many Indians. The idea comes from the philosopher Shankara, who was strongly opposed by later thinkers like Ramanuja and Madva. But philosophy is not religion: if some-one asked you how to learn about Christianity, you wouldn't suggest they read Thomas Aquinas or Søren Kierkegaard!

As a polytheist myself, my instinctive response to the question is "why not?" The cosmos is a big, complex place: multiple galaxies, millions of stars, millions of people. So why should anyone be surprised to find a lot of gods? I've never counted Hindu gods, but Hellenism has about three dozen -- if you don't count purely local ones that no-one remembers anymore, heroes, river gods, mountain gods, nymphs, etc, etc.

[Vinayaka]

An accurate appraisal, imho, David. I was going to ask, "Why not?" as well. However, this minority view IS the one that's made its way to the west, and is commonly accepted as 'fact'. Vivekenanda, whether we agree with him or nor, has had an impact. I still think he was speaking to a particular audience.

It's always beneficial, I think to point out how vast we are.

[blueberry26]

True!Why not indeed.. I personally do believe in the existence of gods- higher beings/ evolved souls/angels in different dimensions. The universe is Huge. But i also do believe in the omnipresent divinity around us. I don't think the beliefs need to be mutually exclusive and both beliefs can coexist.

Consciousness is one. The concept of the omnipresent brahman is well known in Hinduism, and so is the concept of atman. The aim of yoga, is to perceive the concept of Oneness. 'Yog' means to connect with the divine, and is achieved through meditation and the experience of oneness, transcending the 'self'. So I still feel that Hinduism was based on the concept of oneness. Ancient texts such as the upanishads do emphasize on the formless god, and so do many poems of Kabir and the like.
But that being said, as time progressed, and especially accelerated by the Bhakti movement, Saguna bhakti and the ritualised worship of the various gods became more 'popular' so to speak. So I agree that you do have a point in that it may not necessarily be a mainstream view, but it is gaining popularity especially with more people doing yoga and meditating, and both views are valid and can coexist in Hinduism.

[Vinayaka]

The difference here is between monism and monotheism, which are distinct concepts. Still, not all Hindus are monistic either.

[kris]

Originally Posted by ExperiencingTheJourney

Why does hinduism have so many gods ?

Always wondered about that.
Apologies if this question has been asked before.

How do you define god?

[OPVerma]

Originally Posted by Vinayaka

Depending on perspective of various schools, we do and we don't. Hinduism contains pure monotheism, pure polytheism, atheism, and several other isms within it's spectrum.

As to the 'why' part, I don't think anyone can say for sure. Historically, that's just how it developed. Certainly the 33 million figure one hears tossed around is a myth. In reality the temples of India today are probably dedicated to roughly 20, or so, with many of them being variations of the same one.

It is 330 million (33 Crore) not 33 million as you have posted.

During warmth of Miocene ( 20 million BC), Europe had a thriving population perhaps up to 330 million mark, and Europeans were called as Devas ( though actual devas headed by Indra are only 12) meaning superhuman. Gods are called as Bhagavan who are quite less in number.

Untill recently, we have records from Sumerian Temples, where these European were treated as living gods who were provided with food and wives as offerings and had a population that required cences.

[ajay00]

Originally Posted by ExperiencingTheJourney

Always wondered about that.
Apologies if this question has been asked before.

Great indeed are the devas( gods ) who have sprung out of Brahman.
-- Atharva Veda


All the 330 million gods are but the various manifestations of the one divinity that is Brahman.

All these 330 millions gods symbolise some charecterestic of nature.

For example agni symbolizes fire, while varuna symbolizes water while surya symbolizes the sun.

Note that Om symbolizes Brahman, while every mantra to a god starts with om as well....

Om Shamno Mitrah Sham Varunah ( for Varuna )

Om Mahaajvalaaya Vidmahe
Agnidevaaya Dhiimahi
Tanno Agnih Prachodayaat ( for Agnideva )

Om Suryah Namah ( For Surya )


Thus one sees Om or Brahman as the common denominator in all the mantras devoted to the gods, which emphasize the fact that all the gods have their origin in Brahman.


These gods represent different aspects of the same Brahman, and is worshipped thus for propitiating that particular aspect or merely out of devotion to that particular aspect.

Some worship just Om or Brahman as well. There is freedom of choice in worshipping God in any form one wants to.

[DoctorStrange]

thanks folks.appreciate your thoughts.

[wolfgaze]

Originally Posted by Vinayaka

Depending on perspective of various schools, we do and we don't. Hinduism contains pure monotheism, pure polytheism, atheism, and several other isms within it's spectrum.

As to the 'why' part, I don't think anyone can say for sure. Historically, that's just how it developed. Certainly the 33 million figure one hears tossed around is a myth. In reality the temples of India today are probably dedicated to roughly 20, or so, with many of them being variations of the same one.

Which school of Hinduism contains an atheistic perspective?

Thanks.

[Vinayaka]

Originally Posted by wolfgaze

Which school of Hinduism contains an atheistic perspective?

Thanks.

Astika schools.

I'm no scholar, so if you google it you'll get far better answers than I can give. Some Hindus I know say they're atheist, but mainly they're atheist to the Abrahamic God of form, distinct from Brahman. In this case, advaita Vedanta is atheistic. So in many cases it becomes a definition of God as much as true atheism.

Then there is the term 'Hindu' itself, which can mean a cultural Hindu only, not defined as religious. They can be 'non-practicing' etc.

So yeah, basically its a complicated issue, and gets debated by scholars, which I'm not. Best wishes in discovering something.