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**primaveraloler** · 04-23-2012, 07:51 PM

Dr Radhakrishnan was one of the foremost scholars of his time (an indicator of which is the Bhadra Mahapurusha Yoga in his horoscope) but his writings miss the impact of later achaeological discoveries/other revelations.

My view in this regard is - Vedic religion is the elaboration of what Bhagavan Krishna neatly explained
"devan bhavayatanena tey deva bhavayantu vah parasparam bhavayantah sreyah param avapsyatha"

Whereas in Temples we see the elaboration of another Gita verse
"patram pushpam phalam toyam yo mey bhaktya prayacchati tad aham bhakty upahritam ashnami prayatatmanah"

Obviously the difference lies in
the first one focussed on "selfless karmayoga - that of helping the Gods prosper and thereby enabling the Gods to aid us when in need"
the second one focussed on "Bhakti yoga" - in fact the word Bhakti emphasized, repeated in the verse

Additionally, in Vedic civilization fire and the Sun were considered to be the means of reaching out to the Devas
while in latter-day civilization images made of stone/various metals were considered

Our Temples are repositories of our rich Culture, where Philosophy, Art, Music and Dance florished. All the civilizations in the world gave importance to their place of worship. In our Country our Kings spent major part of the wealth they captured in wars to build Temples, as a mark of atonement of the loss of lives.

Vedic Religion does not suggest idol worship. "The Vedic ritual of the propitiation of the natural elements is known as Yajna in which the gods were offered ghee, honey, purodasa (a sacrificial offering made of ground rice) soma- (wine)-and meat of animals. That is why it was called balikriya (oblation- offering) or pashukarma." All our religious practices are conducted around Homa or Havan. This is what Maharishi Dhayanda Saraswathi of Arya Samaj declared by calling "back to Vedas".

How ever, Dr.S.Radhakrishnan says that idol worship was already there when Vedic Aryans entered Bharatavarsha and Temple worship was accepted by Aryan religion and synthesized into rituals of what we see today. "He believed that the Hindu images of God do not tell us what God is in himself but only what he is to us. What the life is to us and what we essentially hold as true about life." Festivals in Hindu Temples gave an occasion to come together and gave a sense of unity that strengthened them as a community.

Regards,
Brahmanyan,
Bangalore.

04-23-2012, 07:51 PM	#10
primaveraloler Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 568 Senior Member	Dr Radhakrishnan was one of the foremost scholars of his time (an indicator of which is the Bhadra Mahapurusha Yoga in his horoscope) but his writings miss the impact of later achaeological discoveries/other revelations. My view in this regard is - Vedic religion is the elaboration of what Bhagavan Krishna neatly explained "devan bhavayatanena tey deva bhavayantu vah parasparam bhavayantah sreyah param avapsyatha" Whereas in Temples we see the elaboration of another Gita verse "patram pushpam phalam toyam yo mey bhaktya prayacchati tad aham bhakty upahritam ashnami prayatatmanah" Obviously the difference lies in the first one focussed on "selfless karmayoga - that of helping the Gods prosper and thereby enabling the Gods to aid us when in need" the second one focussed on "Bhakti yoga" - in fact the word Bhakti emphasized, repeated in the verse Additionally, in Vedic civilization fire and the Sun were considered to be the means of reaching out to the Devas while in latter-day civilization images made of stone/various metals were considered Our Temples are repositories of our rich Culture, where Philosophy, Art, Music and Dance florished. All the civilizations in the world gave importance to their place of worship. In our Country our Kings spent major part of the wealth they captured in wars to build Temples, as a mark of atonement of the loss of lives. Vedic Religion does not suggest idol worship. "The Vedic ritual of the propitiation of the natural elements is known as Yajna in which the gods were offered ghee, honey, purodasa (a sacrificial offering made of ground rice) soma- (wine)-and meat of animals. That is why it was called balikriya (oblation- offering) or pashukarma." All our religious practices are conducted around Homa or Havan. This is what Maharishi Dhayanda Saraswathi of Arya Samaj declared by calling "back to Vedas". How ever, Dr.S.Radhakrishnan says that idol worship was already there when Vedic Aryans entered Bharatavarsha and Temple worship was accepted by Aryan religion and synthesized into rituals of what we see today. "He believed that the Hindu images of God do not tell us what God is in himself but only what he is to us. What the life is to us and what we essentially hold as true about life." Festivals in Hindu Temples gave an occasion to come together and gave a sense of unity that strengthened them as a community. Regards, Brahmanyan, Bangalore.
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