Deva is the ancient sanskrit word translated as 'god'. The word means 'radiant one', or 'shining one'.
So what we call the 'gods of India' are, in their own language, the 'radiant' or 'resplendent ones'.
So what we call the 'gods of India' are, in their own language, the 'radiant' or 'resplendent ones'.
| But is the 'Deva' actually supposed to be equivalent to what monotheists call 'God', or is it in some sense a symbol and a gateway to the infinite - a gateway to God? Although there has been an elitist Western tendency to think of 'polytheistic' cultures as 'primitive' compared to supposedly later monotheistic cultures, there is a curious phenomenon that we find in the teachings of the great Indian saints and spiritual masters as well as in the writings of some Sufi poets such as Rumi and Hafiz. Indian spiritual masters seem to find it very easy and natural to accommodate the world's various religious beliefs within an all-encompassing understanding of the nature of God. In fact many of the spiritual centers or 'ashrams' in India use several of the sacred symbols of the world's religions to depict the spiritual unity behind the diversity of traditions. In my first contact with the living masters of Kriya Yoga I found that they honoured Jesus together with the lineage of masters who transmitted the tradition over the ages. This surprised me greatly at the time, but later I found the same respect and even reverence for Jesus in the lineage of the master Sri Ramakrishna. |  Sri Ramakrishna, depicted with symbols of several of the world's faiths and spiritual traditions, to express the single source of inspiration behind the diversity, and to express his union with the Divine source from which all traditions have arisen. To Westerners this may seen like a bold claim... like claiming to be 'the Son of God'... but in the Yogic and Tantric traditions with their potent spiritual practices, it is common to find this non-duality expressed. Self-Realized, or 'God-Realized' masters are believed to have existed generation after generation since the primordial times of the ancient Rishis. |
 | Over the last 20 years it has become clear that the 'transcendent' and 'integrative' perspective gained by the practice of Yoga and Tantra through the experience of Samadhi itself, does naturally lead to an acceptance and even an honouring of all forms of the divine. All are seen as representations. All are reminders of the Supreme. When we realize that all forms of the Divine are 'representations', then all forms are valid, because they have no bearing on the nature of the Absolute, which is also beyond form, names and attributes. When the Absolute is understood as truly Infinite, containing all forms but not being limited to any single form, then why argue about which 'form' is the best representation of That? Thus in the Indian spiritual tradition there is the concept of the 'personal form' which is one's chosen, preferred, or cherished 'gateway' to the Absolute. This is known as the Ishtadevata. Shankaracharya, the great representative of the non-dual perspective (Advaita) in ancient times proposed that each seeker of the Divine could have their preferred form of approaching the Infinite, and that this did not in any way conflict with an understanding of the Supreme as being beyond all attributes. In fact in the text Bhaja Govindam he expressed the conviction that the use of devotion was essential for spiritual development and ultimate Liberation (Moksha). So we see that 'God' in India is somehow both formless (Brahman) and also can be invoked under the guise of countless forms and names for the sake of spiritual development through heart-opening selfless devotion.. At this point, if we're just studying at the theoretical level we are likely to get confused. However, if we are immersed in the experiential dimension of Yoga and Tantra then we may recognize a great level of sophistication - and at the same time extreme simplicity. There is expressed here by the spiritual masters a larger perspective that we are not accustomed to in Western philosophical and theological analysis, although it has become increasingly popularised by 'new-age' thinking which has much of its background rooted in the Theosophical literature of the late 19th century, which in turn was greatly influenced by the Hindu tradition. The question naturally arises... How does the Hindu background of Yoga and Tantra impact the 'non-Hindu' practitioner? The popular view is that Hinduism - the religious culture from which Yoga and Tantra have developed - is 'polytheistic', meaning that it has several gods rather than One. This may seem indisputable. But as we've seen above, we need to dig a little deeper. Most Hindus worship a single aspect of the Divine - their chosen form - the Ishtadevata. For them this aspect of the Divine - this 'god' - serves either literally as 'God', or as a representation of God - the Absolute. It could actually be said that the Absolute is actually not a deva as such, because it is even beyond this attribute of 'Divine Radiance'. The 'primordial emanations' that arise out of That infinite One are the devas. In Christian terminology these could be considered in some sense equivalent to 'Angels' who are also 'Resplendent' manifestations of Divine will. In this sense, even the so-called Hindu trinity (or Trimurti) - the emanations of the powers of 'Creation' (Brahma), 'Preservation' (Vishnu) and 'Dissolution' or 'Destruction' (Siva), can be seen as archetypal representations of cosmic principles. In many of the traditional Hindu scriptures (including the ancient Yoga texts), there is one designation (not a 'name' as such) that is frequently used to refer to the Absolute (what monotheists would call 'God'), and that is the word Brahman. Brahman has no attributes, unless we consider primordial and eternal 'Infinity', 'Absoluteness', and 'All-inclusiveness' to 'attributes'. Brahman is specifically spoken of 'beyond description of any kind'. So, when in Yoga or Tantra, Shiva or any 'deity' or more correctly deva, is being worshipped, we need to be clear whether we are speaking literally of a religious devotion to 'God' in that form, or whether we are speaking of the deva an object of meditation that is being used to bring about a desired result. It could be argued that if the desired result is to experience the attributeless Infinite Supreme Reality, then by no means is this a religious act in the usual sense. In other words, paradoxically, you don't need to be Hindu to 'worship' Hindu devas or 'deities'. When speaking of Shiva for example, we need to be clear if what is being referred to is the stories/ mythology around the figure of Shiva, as a didactic metaphor - like the Biblical parables - or whether what is being referred to is the pure state of unconditioned awareness that is beyond any cultural belief, or doctrine - Shiva as a representation of Brahman. In the second meaning, what is called 'Shiva' could equally be referred to as 'Buddha-nature', or 'Original, transcendental Self'. This is why Yoga and Tantra - which are often connected to stories of Shiva and his consort Devi (also known by many names in different forms such as Parvati, Sati, or simply 'Shakti') - can be understood either as religious and specifically Hindu, or can be understood as in some sense independent traditions that although being clearly rooted in Hinduism transcend all cultural barriers. It could also be argued that Hinduism itself is a unique spiritual culture that could be seen as flexible enough to transcend the usual parameters that are attributed to 'religions'. There are many versions of the myths, clearly adapted over time to serve the ideology of those who have chosen one or another deva, or ishtadevata. Therefore in Hindu culture, we see sometimes Shiva as the ultimate symbol of the all-powerful, or sometimes we see Vishnu, or another deva being represented as the Supreme. Was it correct for western translators to adopt the word 'gods' to describe the devas? Maybe not. Depending on the point of view, they can either be seen as the many gods of a polytheistic culture, or they can be seen as various symbols, facets or 'manifestations' of the One Absolute. So, what do you think? Do Westerners need to 'convert' to Hinduism in order to truly practice Yoga or Tantra? Are the countless Westerners who practice Yoga unwittingly converting to Hinduism? Can a Christian or a Muslim be a Yogi or a Tantrika? ... And if Jesus actually lived in India during many of the 'missing years' studying and teaching, as controversial texts found in Buddhist monasteries in the Himalayas claim... then what could this tell us about the trans-cultural nature of the Indian spiritual teachings? Leave your comments below :) Article by Peter Littlejohn Cook  |
