RELI 1000 Lecture 7 Current Lecture• Lord Krishna– Lord Krishna is considered the eighth avatar, or incarnation, of the Hindu God Vishnu.– Krishna is believed to have defeated numerous dragons and monsters.• Kali – Hindu Goddess – Kali the Goddess of Destruction, & Dissolution.– She is known for destroying ignorance, & helps those who strive for knowledge of God. – Her name means “The Black One” & Calcutta is named in her honor.• Dualism– The sacred often manifests as dualism - two co-equal often co-eternal powers. • A) Dualism as harmony • Chinese – Yin and yang – the world, universe is a balance of two complementary forces.• Yin: female, shadowy, moist, soft Yang: males, light,dry, hard – Nature and humans operate through the interplay of these forces e.g:• Light & darkness, heat & cold, male & female. – The interaction produces harmony. • Yin and yang Symbol – B. Dualism as Cosmic Struggle:• Sacred power is depicted as good vs evil or light vs. darkness. • Good & light always triumphs in the struggle. E.g:• Egyptian religion: • Re- the sun god – represents life and truth• Apophia – the serpent of darkness• Zoroastrianism - founded by prophet Zoroaster ( Zarathustra) born around the 7th BCE.(1000BCE).(Iranian ancient religion)• Ahura Mazda (OhrMazd) - the wise lord of light. • Angra Mainyu – the bad spirit, satanic daeva, is constantly in the struggle with Ahura Mazda. – The world is divided between good & evil powers, moral, right & wrong, beginning at creation & end – Ultimately, Ahura will triumph over Angra Mainyi (evil)• Radical Dualism• Gnosticism:• A religious / philosophy movement in the Greco-Roman World that believed in Gnosis – secret knowledge.• Believed that a Demurge, a being who is inferior to God created the world. • The human soul is a spark of the divine from heaven, imprisoned in a mortal, material body.These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.• The soul can be saved from its horrible state through acquiring (gnosis) knowledge. • Gnosis will free it so it can return to heaven. • Christian Gnostics reject the Genesis account of creation arguing that God had nothing to do with this bad world.• Church condemned them as heretics & excommunicated. • Manichean Dualism• Founded by Mani, a Mesopotamian teacher.• Viewed the world as ruled by two opposing powers:• Light – associated with the soul• Darkness – associated with matter One day, the darkness attacked the light causing the two to mix. Pure souls got defiled in the process. Souls can be freed from this darkness, its material prison.• Zoroastrian /Manicheanism Influence• Zoroastrianism, Manicheanism and gnosis influenced Western religions - Judaism, Christianity and Islam. • E.g Philo, a renowned Jewish Philosopher, once said: • “ God created the world by means of two divine powers – one the creator of good, the other the creator of evil.” – Heresy?• Scrolls from the Dead Sea Caves at Qumran describe two spirits that were created by God • 1. The prince of Darkness • 2. The prince of Light • Together they rule the world. • Christianity• St. Paul & St. John’s teachings indicate Gnostic & Manichean influence.• St. Augustine (354- 430 CE) a renowned Christian Church father was influenced by Manicheanism.• A converted to Manicheanism for 9 years before converting to Christianity. • His teachings have shaped Catholic teachings today. • Pantheism & Monism• Pantheism: • A belief that all existing things are in some sense divine.• Monism:• A believe that there is only one divine being or reality • All things are simply modes or appearances of the one being / reality.• Hinduism is a good example here • Brahman – is in everything • Atman – Human soul is part of Brahman. • Monotheism• Belief in the existence of one God, the creator who lives in the sky/ heaven. • This belief is associated with emerging faiths of ancient Israel.• Note: some indigenous religions claim to be monotheistic because of a belief in a high God – creator of the universe • Judeo-Christian/ Muslim God• The Judeo- Christian God is said to have emerged from protests to polytheism. • He is described as a personal God, everlasting, eternal, creator, wise benevolent and onewho intervenes in human affairs.• He is a jealous God who demands exclusive worship. Judaism:• God appears to Moses on Mount Sinai to renew and seal, make the covenant given to Abraham with Israelites - The exodus event from Egypt covenant with Israelites. (Ex. 3:4-14, 20:3,5, 24:14.Christianity:• God incarnates in the form of a human being – Jesus. Islam• God appears to Prophet Muhammad through angel Gabriel. • Other Examples…• Egyptian Monotheism:• Pharaoh Amenhotep IV, (1375 BCE) worshipped the sun God – Aton.• Aton was later elevated to a high throne, as other gods were suppressed. • Amenhotep IV set up a new priesthood.• He changed his name to Ikhnaton- “profitable to Aton”• He declared Aton as “the Only God whose powers no other god possessed”• Aton’s attributes were – the Creator, sustainer and ruler of the world. • At Amenhotep’s death, Egypt reverted to polytheism.• (Sigmund Freud argues that Moses was influenced by belief in Aton)• Controversial attributes of God • This God is transcendent:• God’s ways are not our ways – mysterious, not fully knowable” • God is infinite; he created the world as an act of love. Omniscience – God is all knowing Omnipotent – God is all-powerful, able to do all things. • Panentheism– God is “inherently immanent within the entire natural world.”– God exists and interpenetrates every part of nature, and timelessly extends beyond as well. – Note: Panentheism is different from pantheism, which states that God is synonymous with the material universe. i.e• God is analogous with the individual• God experiences change as the world changes• God does not fully know or cannot alone determine the future.• Religion and the Origin of Social Order – How did the world come into being? – Cosmogony – an account of the emergence of creation of world order.– Every religion explains how the world came to