Good day

Originally Posted by PeteC-UK

Hi Folks..

Naddread; Well - by the definition surely - a god MUST be "all powerful" or else the are not atcually a GOD at all..Do you see - you describe these dieties then,they have a mortal lifespan - live and die - not an eternal formless being,but tied intimately TO their form - hence,to my understanding,they are actually NOT gods - but DEMIGODS - having a source and a CREATOR that is responsible for their existance..

Depends whose definition. I prefer to use the etymological definition of a word because it comes closer to the original essence of the word. In which case "god" is something which you are able to invoke. They need not be "all powerful", simply powerful will do.

The flip side for why you wouldn't regard them as gods is the very reason I would. Gods were never all powerful hence why there is so many of them.

Originally Posted by PeteC-UK

Indeed,as you mention that particular religion - twisted half truth though that it is - still it does attempt to get to the core of the matter,because YES indeed,there is only ONE "god" - one SOURCE - and from this true god then,came all the various forms and creatures - demigods included..Indeed,I point out elsewhere many times,that THAT particular god of that religion mentioned,is likewise NOT the SOURCE,but yet another creature,a demigod..

Of course it's not the SOURCE. It's a Caananite war god who adopted the Jews as his chosen people, who the Christians then, obviously feeling left out, created some loop holes through the use of the Sun god Christ to make themselves part of the family.

Monotheism is a lie. There was always considered to be many gods. The Jews practised Henotheism. They devoted themselves to one god yet understanding there were many. Christians don't seem to realize this. But anyway...

Originally Posted by PeteC-UK

And so I place it in the quotes like that because to me,they are not,can never be,ALL powerful,just as you say they live and DIE - hence they should NOT be called gods - or indeed,even worshiped as such,to my mnd..If they are not the SOURCE of creation itself,then they cannot BE omnipotant,and that simply is not a god,but alesser being similar to You or I..

We obviously have different definitions and perspectives on the matter which is obviously fine. Myself, I see little point in worshipping the SOURCE as you call it. For me, the closest we come to it in this life is through a knowledge and understanding of Yggdrasil, the World's Tree, which itself is nurtured by the waters of the Well of Hvergelmir (beyond which is the SOURCE you speak of). And so I revere the Great Tree and strive to do my part in keeping it whole. I revere and invoke the gods because their goals are the same as mine and they have been given power of certain elements in nature. It makes little sense to me to call on an unknowable SOURCE to, say, watch over my children when I have Frigg who presides over such things and my ancestors, who are my family, to call upon. I certainly don't thank the SOURCE when someone does me a favour, I thank the person who did me the favour.

~ Naddread ~

[Adrienne]

oh oh, I missed Sleepin day ! seriously..... that was the first thought that came to my mind when I read the words. I see not all are in agreement as these things go ........

[PeteC-UK]

Hi Folks..

Naddred; Yes,I think its mostly a semantic issue here,for actually we do see thngs very similarly..I tend to try to see things from the biggest picture - even in such things as a "word definition",fully appreciating the metapyscal aspect in that the word we use actually DEFINES the concept we convey..Hence,for most of us,the word "god",does actualy invoke an immediate defined understanding of an "ALL powerful creator",for that is what most people would assume imediately,the DEFINITION that the word itself will invoke and crystalise in the mind as "known" reality..

But just like you say,I understood right away there are MANY MANY such "beings" from EVERY culture that ever existed..And see,each of these pantheons,have a different account - only slightly different when we dig deep,though at the surface they may seem wholly different - but they cant ALL be correct,because well,the earth and us mortals was only created ONE time,ONE way,so each of these various cultural interpretations MUST be a reflection of a greater truth yet - a source for them all..

Some things we do see a little differently..The whole "christian thing"..?..To be honest - I fully belive that DEMIGOD,the one of the bible,did in fact CREATE the earth,mortals,this paradigm - contained withn a much larger creation of course - this existance occuriing as just one "dimension",one "universe" for lack of better words,amongst many such creations..For insatnce,the 9 worlds of Norse legend,is amply accomodated for in christs account,for he actually said,there are some 360 such created paradigms - but of course,you wont find THAT in their bible at all..

And the Christ himself,I fully believe IS a direct emanation,straight from the source,a sponsoring MIND that causes all else..Its just that the religion that grew around the event - an actual real world event - but the religon simply corrupted it for nefarious ends..They are close to the truth,but still NOT the source,even though the main character of the religion IS from the source,they failed totaly to understand,or to grasp the implications,and when they did,they acted instead to protect their own mortal power and status first and foremost..

I find it truly fascinating that all these widely different cultures,should all come up with the same basic layout of heircahy of both material creation and the Divine Beings that shaped and formed it..World trees,rivers of life,good deities bad deities,destiny of man - all reflected in a very similar fashion despite absolutely different circumstances and cultures..The source of them al must exist as I say - and when I came to understand that other religion,to see past its flaws and outright deceptions,i soon realised,the man who was Christ,did actually tell us some profound universal wisdom - somethnig that does indeed,go direct to the source of all creation,and a way to encounter it directly..

When you say above,the CLOSEST we can come is by learnig and knowledge,I have to disagree,because my own direct experience showme other wise..There is a drect way to commune with ALL these gods - for in a way,it is US,who create them DEFINE them,(just as with the word definiton above)..Metaphysics underpins everything in existance,and in essence,its all about MIND..Seems perfectly feasable then,if we can expand our awareness to commune with the lesser gods,then why cant we push further to approach the source itself..?..Seems logical that it should be accessable to us,for we are a PART Of it always..The thing I find most puzzling about pretty much all religons,is the way they insist that these gods,dieites,Divinity itself,is somehow seperate from us,when obviously,that cannot be true at all - if we didnt contain a "divine spark" by whatver definiton we give it,then we simply wouldnt exist,for we remain ALWAYS part of the ALL..I think thats a major stumblng block for all religions - the issue of seperation,being taught that we are lesser always,when actually that isnt so...

As an example of what I mean,I would offer the case of a lady you may have heard of - Anita Moorjani - she actually USED to have TERMINAL cancer,went into a coma,actually died,had what they cal an NDE - came back from that experience,FULLY HEALED - once riddled with cancer,but now within weeks of her experience,NOT A TRACE..She says she was shown how her mind literally creates reality - she did indeed,approach this "source" even though she was still a mortal being - and with this knowldge,literally by force of her mind,she rearranged her molecular function,to becme healthy again - mind and energy of creation IS the source,no seperation,and we are always fully immersed within it..

See then in our own rights already - WE are such demigods - WE create the reaity we experience,which is why I say,these deities are our brothers,rather than our superiors..Would you see then,that the agents that intercede on our behalf,the gods,deities angels we commune with - yes of course deserve our gratitude,and indeed we should treat them with utmost respect if they deserve it,for they are our kindred - and they are AGENTS of the greater being always..To thank THEM is indeed to likewise thank the source itself,that caused them to Be..As my mate says,and I fully concur - I and the Father are ONE - there is no seperation,even though it is always apparant that we are individual,and we always SEEM seperate,it is all an illusion,a perspective of Self..

Beautiful post Pete.

Originally Posted by PeteC-UK

When you say above, the CLOSEST we can come is by learning and knowledge, I have to disagree, because my own direct experience show me other wise.. There is a direct way to commune with ALL these gods - for in a way, it is US, who create them DEFINE them,(just as with the word definiton above)..Metaphysics underpins everything in existance, and in essence, its all about MIND.. Seems perfectly feasable then, if we can expand our awareness to commune with the lesser gods,then why cant we push further to approach the source itself..?..Seems logical that it should be accessable to us, for we are a PART Of it always.. The thing I find most puzzling about pretty much all religons, is the way they insist that these gods, dieites, Divinity itself, is somehow seperate from us, when obviously, that cannot be true at all - if we didnt contain a "divine spark" by whatver issue of seperation, being taught that we are lesser always, when actually definiton we give it,then we simply wouldnt exist, for we remain ALWAYS part of the ALL..I think thats a major stumblng block for all religions - the that isnt so...

By knowledge I mean direct experience so again we are not so far of the same wave length. If your direct experience has shown you that it is possible to communicate directly with the SOURCE then I will certainly not argue the point. I've never had such an experience. It's a thought of mine that when we go into deep sleep we are submerged in the aforementioned Well of Hvergelmir, but to the "average" person (myself included) there is no recollection of this experience each night.

The highlighted makes sense and is very much how I view things more or less.

While I don't agree with everything you wrote (particularly of the Christ god) I can respect what you've said here. Like I said beautiful post.

~Naddread~