Iconoclast vs un-perceptualist

Submitted by =sp= (Italy), Feb 22, 2010 at 19:34

The Prophet Mohammed, peace be upon him, cleansed the House of Allah by removing 360 statues. Idolatry is called the worship of an idol that prevents to focus on God. Hinduism permits the celebration of the manifestations of the divine through statues and Lingams - as Shiva's ones - but this is not idolatry because every single hindu should know that every action and prayer done in front of a statue helps to get connected with God. Lingams are tools to communicate to the divine, obviously they aren't the divine itself. As a Panteist I see analogies between Allah, which cannot be represented, and the multitude of Hindu Deities that represent the many manifestations of the divine. My favourite is Shiva, both as the humble sadhu and as the powerful Nataraja.

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