Aum. See also God Conceptions of God can vary widely despite the use of the same term for them all Bahá'ís believe in a single, imperishable God, the creator of all things including all the creatures and forces in the universe Since the time of the Buddha the refutation of the existence of a creator has been seen as a key point in distinguishing Buddhist from non-Buddhist views SSC RF "Troitsk Institute of Innovative and Termonuclear Research" or TRINITY for shprt Троицкий Институт инновационных и термоядерных In Islam, God is believed to be the only real supreme being all-powerful and all knowing Creator Sustainer Ordainer and Judge of the universe Islam puts a heavy emphasis The conception of God in Judaism is Monotheistic. The God of Israel was known by two principal names in the Bible In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Godhead are the objects of worship and devotion within the faith The fundamental belief of Sikhism is that God exists not merely as an idea or concept but as a Real Entity indescribable yet knowable and perceivable to anyone who is prepared to dedicate Aum (also Om) ॐ is a mystical or sacred Syllable in the Hindu, Jain and Buddhist religions Found first in the Vedic scriptures of Hinduism, Aum has been seen as the first manifestation of the unmanifest Brahman (the single Divine Ground of Hinduism) that resulted in the phenomenal universe

Ishvara

Main article: Ishvara

The Sanskrit word for God, that is used most commonly, is Ishvara (IAST: īśvara IPA: / iːʃvərə /, originally a title comparable to "Lord" or "Excellency" < from the roots īśa, lit. Brahman ( bráhman-, Nominative bráhma sa ब्रह्म is a concept of Hinduism. Ishvara ( Sanskrit: Īśvara sa ईश्वर Malay: Iswara, Thai: Phra Isuan) is a philosophical concept in Hinduism Sanskrit (sa संस्कृता वाक् saṃskṛtā vāk, for short sa संस्कृतम् saṃskṛtam) is a historical God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. , powerful/supreme/lord/owner, + vara, lit. , choicest/most excellent). Hindus believe that Ishvara is only One. This must not be confused with the numerous deities of the Hindus known as devas, which are said to number up to 330 million. Deva (देव in Devanagari script pronounced as /'d̪evə/ is the Sanskrit word for "god Deity " Deva may be translated into English as "God", "deity", "demi-god", "angel" or any celestial being or thing of high excellence, and hence is venerable. An angel is a Spiritual Supernatural being found in many Religions Although the nature of angels and the tasks given to them vary from tradition to tradition The word is, in fact, cognate to Latin deus "God".

In the two largest branches of Hinduism, Shaivism and Vaishnavism, it is believed that Ishvara, Bhagavan and Brahman are identical, and God is in turn anthropomorphically identified with Shiva or Vishnu. Shaivism, also spelled "Saivism" names the oldest of the four sects of Hinduism. Vaishnavism is a tradition of Hinduism, distinguished from other schools by its worship of Vishnu or its associated avatars principally as Rama and Shiva:(pronunciation; Sanskrit: शिव Śiva, lit "Auspicious one" One of the Trimurtis Shiva is the supreme God in the Shaiva For other meanings see Vishnu (disambiguation. Vishnu ( IAST viṣṇu Devanagari विष्णु (honorific God, whether in the form of Shiva or Vishnu has six attributes. However, the actual number of auspicious qualities of God, are countless, with the following six qualities being the most important. The ancient Brahmanical traditions in both demoninations perceive Ishvara as the Lord, Creator, Almighty, the Power that we worship and pray to.

The followers of Shaktism like to conceive the divine power of the Ishvara as a female goddess, the divine mother called Devi or Lalitha. Shaktism ( Sanskrit: Śāktaṃ sa शाक्तं lit "doctrine of power" or "doctrine of the Goddess") is a denomination of Devi ( Devanagari: देवी) is the Sanskrit word for Goddess, used mostly in Hinduism. Tripura Sundari, also called Shodashi, Lalita (lit "She Who Plays" and Rajarajeshvari, is one of the group of ten goddesses of Hindu Belief A famous hymn, Lalitha Sahasranama, describes the 1000 names of Devi, worshipped as God the Divine Mother. Lalita Sahasranama is a sacred Hindu text for the worshippers of the Goddess Lalita Devi, i

Bhagavan

The Sanskrit word Bhagavan is primarily used in Hindu scriptures in relation to the incarnations of God. Thus Krishna is often referred to as Bhagavan Krishna and other incarnations are often referred to with the praenomen Bhagavan. Bhagavan is also used significantly when referring to God's love and grace for and to Man, specifically in the Bhagavad Gita where Krishna is referred to as Bhagavan especially when revealing the path to the attainment of moksha to Arjuna. Bhagavan can therefore be seen as God in his personal relationship with each created soul rather than as Lord and Creator or the eternal cosmic spirit.

Brahman

Main article: Brahman

The Vedantic school of Hindu philosophy also has a notion of a Supreme Cosmic Spirit called Brahman, pronounced as / brəh mən /. Brahman ( bráhman-, Nominative bráhma sa ब्रह्म is a concept of Hinduism. Vedanta ( Devanagari: sa वेदान्त Vedānta) is a spiritual tradition explained in the Upanishads that is concerned with the Self-realisation Brahman is (at best) described as that infinite, omnipresent, omnipotent, incorporeal, transcendent and immanent reality that is the divine ground of all existence in this universe. Brahman is actually indescribable. It is at best, "Sat" + "Chit" + "Ananda", ie, Infinite Truth, Infinite Consciousness and Infinite Bliss. Brahman may be called as God, or better, as Godhead or the Supreme Cosmic Spirit.

In dualist Hinduism, adopted by the majority Vaishnavite brahmanical tradition, Brahman is the impersonal aspect of God, sustaining and universal in scope and nature. Brahman is in all of us, according to dvaitas. Brahman is the term used by dualists to describe that aspect of God that makes our soul entwined with the divine, with God being the source but not the substance of both our souls and our interaction with God. Brahman in dualist traditions is identical with Ishvara and Bhagavan, the distinction being one of aspect rather than of nature.

Another major branch of Hinduism, Advaita Vedanta, served as the fertile grounds from which one of the first monistic philosophies of God was developed. According to Advaitins, Brahman is the only Ultimate Reality in this world, and everything else is an illusion. They believe that Māyā is that complex illusionary power of Brahman which causes the Brahman to be seen as the distinct material world. Maya ( Sanskrit sa माया māyā) in Indian religions, has multiple meanings When a human being tries to know the attributeless Brahman with his mind, under the influence of Maya, Brahman becomes God (Ishvara as described as above). God is Brahman with Maya. He is Saguna Brahman or Brahman with positive attributes. Saguna Brahman (lit "The Absolute with qualities") came from the Sanskrit saguṇa (sa सगुण "with qualities" He is one and unique. He is omniscient, omnipresent, incorporeal, independent, creator of the world, its ruler and also destroyer. He is eternal and unchangeable. He rules the world with his Maya. However, while God is the Lord of Maya and she (ie, Maya) is always under His control, living beings (jīva, in the sense of humans) are the servants of Maya (in the form of ignorance). In Hinduism and Jainism, a jiva (जीव jīva alternate spelling jiwa) is a living being or more specifically the immortal essence of a living being This ignorance is the cause of the unhappiness and sin in the mortal world. While God is Infinite Bliss, humans are miserable. God (Ishvara) always knows the unity of the Brahman substance, and the Mayic nature of the world. There is no place for a concept of central evil like Satan or devil in Hinduism, unlike Abrahamic religions. Advaitins explain the misery because of ignorance. God or Ishvara can also be visualized and worshipped in anthropomorphic form like Vishnu, Krishna or Shiva. The Advaita Vedanta philosophy continues with the view that once one becomes aware of the unity of being of Godhead, he will then be able to see beyond the illusions of division and separation from Godhead, and recognize his or her own inherent unity with the Brahman. See Advaita Vedanta. Advaita Vedanta ( IAST Advaita Vedānta; Sanskrit अद्वैत वेदान्त əd̪vait̪ə veːd̪ɑːnt̪ə is a sub-school of the

Characteristics of God

The number six is invariably given, but the individual attributes listed vary. One set of attributes (and their common interpretations) are:

• • Jñāna (Omniscience), defined as the power to know about all beings simultaneously;
  • Aishvarya (Sovereignty, derived from the word Ishvara), which consists in unchallenged rule over all;
  • Shakti (Energy), or power, which is the capacity to make the impossible possible;
  • Bala (Strength), which is the capacity to support everything by will and without any fatigue;
  • Vīrya (Vigor), or valour which indicates the power to retain immateriality as the supreme being in spite of being the material cause of mutable creations; and
  • Tejas (Splendor), which expresses his self-sufficiency and the capacity to overpower everything by his spiritual effulgence; (cited from Bhakti Schools of Vedanta, by Swami Tapasyānanda. Sovereignty is the exclusive Right to control a Government, a country, a people or oneself )

A second set of six characteristics are

• • Jñāna (Omniscience),
  • Vairagya (Detachment),
  • Yashas (Fame),
  • Aishvarya (Sovereignty, derived from the word Ishvara),
  • Srī (Glory) and
  • Dharma (Righteousness). Detachment is a state in which a person overcomes his or her attachment to desire for things people or concepts of the world and thus attains a heightened perspective Righteousness in this article refers to the important theological concept in Christianity, Islam, and Judaism.
• Other important qualities attributed to God are Gambhīrya (grandeur), Audārya (generosity), and Kārunya (compassion).

Forms of Worship

In Hinduism there are two principal methods of worship:

1. To worship God through meditation on a deity (murti). In Hinduism, a murti ( Devanagari: मूर्ति typically refers to an image a deity in which the Divine Spirit is expressed ( murta)
2. To worship God without deity worship. (eg. non-anthropomorphic symbols such as linga, saligrama, Ayyavazhi, or through meditation)

The early Upanishads presented the conception of the Divine Teacher, guru on earth. Sila, (also spelt as Shila or Sheela) refers to a Vaishnava ( Hindu) Murti in the form of a spherical usually black-coloured stone The Upanishads ( Devanagari: उपनिषद् IAST: upaniṣad also spelled "Upanisad" are Hindu scriptures that constitute the core teachings Indeed, there is an understanding in some Hindu sects that if the devotee were presented with the guru and God, first he should pay respects to the guru since the guru had been instrumental in leading him to God. Hence many gurus have the epithet of Bhagwan, a term often confused with God. Bhagavan, also written Bhagwan or Bhagawan, from the Sanskrit nt -stem bhaga-vant- (nominative/vocative sa भगवान्

Hari Bhakti Vilasa mantra ( 4. 344)

Prathamam tu gurum pujya tatas caiva mamarcanam

Kuran siddhim avapnoti hy anyatha nisphalam bhavet

One does not directly worship one's God. One must begin by the worship of the Guru. Only by pleasing the Guru and gaining his mercy, can one offer anything to God. Thus, before worshiping God, one must always worship the Guru.

Chanted prayers, or mantras, are central to Hindu worship. A mantra ( Devanāgarī मन्त्र (or mantram is a religious or mystical syllable or poem typically from the Sanskrit language Many mantras are from the sacred Vedas, and in Sanskrit. "Veda" redirects here For other uses see Veda (disambiguation. Among the most chanted mantras in Hinduism are the Vishnu sahasranama (a prayer to Vishnu that dates from the time of the Mahabharata and describes him as the Universal Brahman), Shri Rudram (a Vedic hymn to Rudra, an earlier aspect of Shiva that also describes Him as Brahman) and the Gayatri mantra, (another Vedic hymn that initially was meant as a prayer to the Sun, an aspect of Brahman but has other interpretations. The Vishnu sahasranāma (literally "the thousand names of Vishnu " is a list of 1000 names for Vishnu, one of the main forms of God For other meanings see Vishnu (disambiguation. Vishnu ( IAST viṣṇu Devanagari विष्णु (honorific The Shri Rudram Chamakam ( Sanskrit श्रि रुद्रम् चमकम् is a Vedic Stotra dedicated to Rudra (an early epithet Rudra ( Sanskrit: रुद्रः is a Rigvedic god of the storm the wind and the hunt Gayatri (गायत्री gāyatrī is the feminine form of gāyatra, a Sanskrit word for a song or a hymn It is now interpreted as a prayer to the impersonal absolute Brahman).

Sanatana Dharma

Main article: Sanatana Dharma

It is important to add that in Hinduism (Sanatana Dharama) God is considered the Supreme Being, and many views of God range from pantheism to dualism to monism and monotheism. Hinduism is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Monism is the metaphysical and Theological view that all is one that all reality is subsumed under the most fundamental category of being or existence His appearance, in its entirety, cannot be comprehended by the common man. His appearance with form is only a manifestation of certain characteristics. The various forms of God or deities which apparently give Smarta Hinduism a character of polytheism, are regarded as mundane manifestations of One Brahman or Ishvara, only to facilitate his devotional worship. Smartism (or Smarta Sampradaya, Smarta Tradition, as termed in Sanskrit) is a denomination of the Hindu

Ayyavazhi prefers almost a similar theory to Advaita Vedanta. However, Kashmir Shaivism, one notable Saivite branch disagrees and focuses on panentheism. See also Shaivism Among the various Hindu philosophies, Kaśmir Śaivism is a school of Śaivism categorized by various scholars as Monistic Shaivism, also spelled "Saivism" names the oldest of the four sects of Hinduism. Furthermore, it rejects the Maya (illusion) theory by stating that if God is real, then His creation must be real and not illusory. Maya ( Sanskrit sa माया māyā) in Indian religions, has multiple meanings

See also

• God
• Names of God
• Conceptions of God
• Existence of God
• Guru