The orthodoxy accepts the concept of god in many forms. Sages of truth declare the Atman is Brahman. That is the soul, which is in the form of consciousness is ultimate truth or Brahman. That is the ultimate truth is God. And the ultimate truth itself is worthy of godhood.
Sage Sri Sankara:~ VC~"this entire universe which through ignorance appears as of diverse forms, is nothing else, but Brahman which is absolutely free from all the limitations of human thought.
"It is this Supreme Oneness which alone is real, since there is
nothing else but the Self. Verily, there remains no other independent entity in
the state of realization of the highest Truth."
Brahman is considered the all-pervading consciousness which is the
basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material. (brahmano hi pratisthaham,
Bhagavad Gita 14.27)
That is why
Swami Vivekananda:~
The masses in
India cry to sixty million gods, and still die like dogs. Where are these gods?
Knowing this, stand up and fight! Not one step back that is the idea. ... Fight it out, whatever comes. Let the stars move from the sphere! Let the whole world stand against us! Death means only a change of garment. What of it? Thus fight! You gain nothing by becoming cowards. ... Taking a step backward, you do not avoid any misfortune. You have cried to all the gods in the world. Has misery ceased? The masses in India cry to sixty million gods, and still die like dogs. Where are these gods? ... The gods come to help you when you have succeeded. So what is the use? Die game. ... This bending the knee to superstitions, this selling yourself to your own mind does not befit you, my soul. You are infinite, deathless, birthless. Because you are infinite spirit, it does not befit you to be a slave. ... Arise! Awake! Stand up and fight! Die if you must. There is none to help you. You are the entire world. Who can help you? - Swami Vivekananda
Brihadaranyaka Upanishad:~ The Self is indeed Brahman, but through
ignorance people identify it with intellect, mind, senses, passions, and the
elements of earth, water, air, space, and fire. This is why the Self is said to
consist of this and that, and appears to be everything.
Yajurveda says: - if one worships conceptual God:~
Translation 1.
They enter darkness,
those who worship natural things (for example air, water, sun, moon, animals,
fire, stone, etc.).
They sink deeper
in darkness those who worship sambhuti. (Sambhuti means created things, for
example table, chair, idol etc.) -(Yajurveda 40:9)
Translation 2.
"Deep into
shade of blinding gloom fall asambhuti's worshippers. They sink to darkness
deeper yet who on sambhuti are intent.("Yajurveda Samhita by Ralph T. H. Giffith pg 538)
Translation 3.
"They are
enveloped in darkness, in other words, are steeped in ignorance and sunk in the
greatest depths of misery who worship the uncreated, eternal prakrti -- the
material cause of the world -- in place of the All-pervading God, But those who
worship visible things born of the prakrti, such as the earth, trees, bodies
(human and the like) in place of God are enveloped in still greater darkness,
in other words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and
sorrow, and suffer terribly for a long time." (Yajur Veda 40:9.)
So, Yajur Veda indicates that:-
They sink deeper
in darkness those who worship sambhuti. (Sambhuti means created things, for
example table, chair, idol etc _(Yajurved 40:9)
Those who worship
visible things born of the prakrti, such as the earth, trees, bodies (human and
the like) in place of God are enveloped in still greater darkness, in other
words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow,
and suffer terribly for a long time." (Yajur Veda 40:9.)
When the religion of the Veda knows no idols then why so many gods and goddesses with different form and name are being propagated as Vedic gods. Why these conceptual gods are introduced when the Vedic concept of God is free from form and attributes.
When the religion of the Veda knows no idols then why so many gods and goddesses with different form and name are being propagated as Vedic gods. Why these conceptual gods are introduced when the Vedic concept of God is free from form and attributes.
Who introduced the concept of God with attributes and attributeless gods, when Yajur Veda says: ~ those who worship visible things, born of the prakrti, such as the earth, trees, bodies (human and the like), in place of God are enveloped in still greater darkness. Therefore, all these add-ons prove that the form and attribute based concepts are introduced by some sages of the past with a new belief system and code of conducts in the name of Vedas.
It clearly indicates that: -If the human goal is to acquire
Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana then why one has to indulge in
rituals and glorifying the conceptual gods and goddesses to go into deeper
darkness. Instead spend that time
moving forward towards Self-knowledge, which is one’s prime goal.
Since it is eternal and infinite, it comprises the only truth.
The goal of Vedic religion, through the various yogas, is to realize that the
consciousness (Atman) is actually nothing but Brahman.
The Vedic pantheon of
gods is said, in the Vedas and Upanishads, to be only higher manifestations of
Brahman. For this reason,- "ekam sat" (all is one), and all is
Brahman.
Thus, the goal is to realize the Atman (consciousness). If the Atman (consciousness) is nothing but
Brahman and by realizing Atman (consciousness) as Brahman (ultimate truth) is
truth realization or Self-Realization, then there is no need to follow the
religion, study the scriptures or glorifying the Gods and the Gurus and follow
the path of doubts and confusion by losing oneself in the labyrinths of
philosophy, when there is an easier path.
By mentally tracing the source of the mind from where it rises and subsides
one becomes aware of the fallacy of the mind, which rises as waking or dream
and subsides as deep sleep. The mind
raises form consciousness and subsides as consciousness.
