Originally Posted by
ScottMalaysia
----and I began thinking, is the God mentioned in the Bible (specifically the Old Testament) actually Indra?
----- In the Book of Isaiah it is further stated "I am the LORD: that is my name: ---" (Isaiah 42:8).
Let's compare this to the Srimad-Bhagavatam. Sri Suta Goswami says "When Indra understood that his sacrifice had been put aside, he became furious with Nanda Mahārāja and the other cowherd men, who were accepting Kṛṣṇa as their Lord. Angry Indra sent forth the clouds of universal destruction, known as Sāḿvartaka." (Srimad-Bhagavatam 10:25:1-2).
We know that the God of the Bible is jealous, -----".
In the Bible, God is referred to in places as the "LORD of Hosts" (YHWH tz'vaot) See 1 Samuel 4:4, . The Hebrew word tzava can mean "soldier" or "fight", so the term "LORD of Hosts" refers to God as the leader of a heavenly army.
According to Hinduism, Indra is the Vedic god of war. ----
------
In Christianity, heaven is considered the highest realm, and God Himself is present in Heaven. In Hinduism, there is a heaven, although it is not the highest realm. But who is called the King of Heaven in Hinduism? That's right, Lord Indra!
I know that most (if not all) Hindus believe that we are all praying to the same God, but in the Bible, God strikes people dead (Leviticus 10:2), opens up the earth to swallow people alive (Numbers 16:31-33), orders the total slaughter of certain nations, e.g. the Canaanites and Amorites (Deuteronomy 20:16-17), allows the Israelites to keep women from enemy cities as plunder (Deuteronomy 20:14), allows slavery (Leviticus 25:44-46), kills a man for simply steadying the Ark of the Covenant (2 Samuel 6:6-7). Does this sound like the Hindu concept of God?
Yes, Lord Krishna killed the demons, -----.
I know that God is also described as a "consuming fire" (Deuteronomy 4:24, Hebrews 12:29) but apart from that, I can't find any similarities between the Christian God and Agni.
What do you all think about this? Could the Bible actually be describing Indra?
Namaste,
I do not think that it is OK to interpret scripture like this -- especially without studying in full. In Veda also, God is worshipped as Manyu - wrath, before His love can be known. In Rig Veda also, sages pray for mercy to Rudra for the mistake of worshipping other deities.
Arguing is improper, but it will be sufficient to remind that indeed it is God who will destroy cattles when He is angry. He may cut out lives. He may destroy altogether. In fact, Rudra-Indra is known as destroyer of Heroes. Why God is angry?
There are many verses that can be shown. I paste the following only:
Isaiah 58
4[The facts are that] you fast only for strife and debate and to smite with the fist of wickedness. Fasting as you do today will not cause your voice to be heard on high.----
6[Rather] is not this the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every [enslaving] yoke?
7Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house--when you see the naked, that you cover him, and that you hide not yourself from [the needs of] your own flesh and blood?
8
Then shall your light break forth like the morning, and your healing (your restoration and the power of a new life) shall spring forth speedily; your righteousness (your rightness, your justice, and your right relationship with God) shall go before you [conducting you to peace and prosperity], and the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.(
C)
9Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and He will say, Here I am. -----
10And if you pour out that with which you sustain your own life for the hungry and satisfy the need of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in darkness, and your obscurity and gloom become like the noonday. 11And the Lord shall guide you continually and satisfy you in drought and in dry places and make strong your bones. And you shall be like a watered garden and like a spring of water whose waters fail not.
Isaiah 59
-- 2But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.
3For your hands are defiled with blood and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue mutters wickedness.
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The point is that to the hard of Heart, He is Harder. To the soft, He is the Softer. Shri Krishna also says that the demonic He throws again and again to Hell.
By the way, before comparing Indra to cruelty, one must also read that Indra is the Shiva Friend of the Humble.
"I am the LORD: that is my name ----" hides the truth. What is the name? Is it 'Lord' or is it "I am"? "I am" is before all as Lord and "I am" is in everyone. If Shri Krishna defeated an external Indra, it was to demonstrate that it was the Self that was invincible.
Om Namah Shivaya
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