Re: Answers to Sri Mani + Agni and Vishnu in Rig vEdas.

From the Bhakti List Archives

• November 1, 2002


Srimathe Ramanujaya Namaha

Dear Ms. Sarnathan,

I enjoyed your post and would like to see replies from other members of
this list. I have researched art history in detail and especially of
various Indian deities, both vedic and non-vedic alike. The pasts of these
deities is as colorful as the references to them in the vedas, and they by
no means match their present form (and status) attributed to them in
today's devotions. On the note of the role of other deities and their
status with regards to Sri Vishnu, Hindu scriptures are notably
henotheistic (def: Belief in one god without denying the existance of
others). For example the Bhagavat Purana which extols Vishnu can be quoted
to cite the Role of Vishnu as the Supreme deity. However, the Devi
Bhagavatham can be cited to show the supremacy of Parashakthi as the
Absolute deity. Neither scripture denies other deities and may well
mention them, however, a lot of time groups take one scripture and hold it
as the "perfect" one (unfortunately this occurs in other religions too,
the Bible being another well-known example).

I would be interested to find out if the Sri Ramanuja cited other texts
that were dedicated to other vedic deities that show the supremacy of Sri
Vishnu. The idea that a small group of people are right and somehow
everyone else is wrong seems a bit dated. The well known saying "You can't
fool everyone all the time" holds true...

adiyen,

Krishnan




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