skopskald

1-To me, though I have my own preference for

God's Name, RV 1.164.46 is, of course, relevant. Yet names are just that; names, do

they name Names, do they name Aspects, do they name Attributes, does it matter, or do

we use names so that we have a point of pride

to say, 'I'm right, I know more, better than

you!' and seek to convert, demean or even

destroy our fellows, for the Name they use

for, or to call on God.

2- who, what is 2m2?

3-Does Naming God, Naming Aspects, Naming

Attributes limit Our understanding or

perceptions of God? Just as I feel God

must laugh or smile at our presumptiousness

in our attempts to know the Unknowable.

I have a number of translations of this hymn,

O'Flaherty- verse 7:

Whence this creation has arisen-perhaps it

formed itself, or perhaps it did not-the one

who looks down on it, in the highest heaven,

only he knows-or perhaps he does not know.

Pannikar-v.7:

That out of which creation has arisen,

Whether it held firm or it did not,

He who surveys it in the highest heaven,

He surely knows or maybe He does not!

from an article, 'Mapping Indian Philosophy,'

Whence this creation arose,

Whether he established it or not,

He who gazes down on it from heaven's height,

He alone knows-or perhaps he doesn't.

This, I think, is Aurobindo's:

Whence this creation has come into being;

whether it was made or not;

hein the highest heaven is its surveyor.

Surely he knows,

or perhaps he knows not.

Another trans. on vedah.com;

That from which this creation came into being,

whether it had held it together or it had not,

He who surveys it in the highest region, He, truly, knows it or maybe He does not know!

My own take goes something like this;

Creation happened,

Whether it worked out the way the Creator

wanted it

(He only set it going and then he only

watches, implying, I believe: free will)

Only he knows,

Or maybe he doesn't.

Putting this another way;

God was bored,

created the universe, decided not to interfere

and now is entertained by the stories.

I would like to suggest again, this time as

a new topic, the creation story in the rg

veda 10.129. This group seems to have members

who have quite interesting viewpoints and would appreciate their input.

INOL,

Skopskals