I had a YouTube viewer ask me to share some thoughts and advice on how they can work through the belief that the gods will punish those that show them disrespect or when protecting their followers. This particular viewer was attempting to establish what their personal beliefs were in relation to the gods and found that they had contradicting beliefs; the gods are all loving / the gods are wrathful and wanted to find some way to reconcile these beliefs because both felt true. They went on to question how an individual would disrespect a god and how that god might respond.
I think it is important for each of us to contemplate what we
I think it is important for each of us to contemplate what we
believe about deity, how we perceive deity because it is this core belief that will determine how we interact with deity and how we can respond to the questions that this particular viewer presents. An individual who views deity as a Universal Energy Source may not consider adjectives such as loving or wrathful and would not even perceive the concept of disrespect or protection in relation to their understanding of deity as a Universal Energy Source since energy has no emotional responses or personal responses to humanity or any other life forms. Energy is impersonal and does not interact with humanity intimately.
It will be different for those who experience deity as manifested personalities; adopting distinct and individualistic godforms and may describe them with adjectives that describe their energetic frequencies such as; Jesus is loving, Kali is wrathful, QuanYin is nurturing, or Thor is protective, but there are those who will disagree and believe that although deity is experienced through godforms they are so far removed from the human experience that they would not interact with us in personal ways and thusly would not be described as loving, wrathful, nurturing, or protective, but may be perceived in a more objective way.
So I would advise this viewer to consider how they perceive the energy of deity, if it is as godforms, which it seems from their initial question is how they understand deity then we move to the more specific ways in which deity interacts (if at all) with the material world. How were the gods created? Did humanity create the gods or did the gods create humanity? What is the role of the gods within the Universe? Do the gods have a purpose or agenda and if so, what is it? How much influence do the gods have on humanity, on all life on earth, and the earth itself?
Once those questions are answered then the viewer might consider their initial beliefs concerning respect (or lack thereof), punishment, and protection. Most often times our beliefs are formed by our personal life experiences, both enjoyable and unpleasant. If we are brutally honest with ourselves we are able to identify why we believe as we do concerning not only the nature of the gods (deity), but also ourselves in relation to them. Why would the gods require / desire the respect of human beings? Why would they have a need / want to punish humanity or protect them? The answers to these questions would depend on the nature of the gods’ role within the Universe and the lives of human beings.
As we forge our own spiritual path each of our beliefs build upon another to create the structure in which we use to relate to the spiritual part of ourselves, others, and the Universe.
It will be different for those who experience deity as manifested personalities; adopting distinct and individualistic godforms and may describe them with adjectives that describe their energetic frequencies such as; Jesus is loving, Kali is wrathful, QuanYin is nurturing, or Thor is protective, but there are those who will disagree and believe that although deity is experienced through godforms they are so far removed from the human experience that they would not interact with us in personal ways and thusly would not be described as loving, wrathful, nurturing, or protective, but may be perceived in a more objective way.
So I would advise this viewer to consider how they perceive the energy of deity, if it is as godforms, which it seems from their initial question is how they understand deity then we move to the more specific ways in which deity interacts (if at all) with the material world. How were the gods created? Did humanity create the gods or did the gods create humanity? What is the role of the gods within the Universe? Do the gods have a purpose or agenda and if so, what is it? How much influence do the gods have on humanity, on all life on earth, and the earth itself?
Once those questions are answered then the viewer might consider their initial beliefs concerning respect (or lack thereof), punishment, and protection. Most often times our beliefs are formed by our personal life experiences, both enjoyable and unpleasant. If we are brutally honest with ourselves we are able to identify why we believe as we do concerning not only the nature of the gods (deity), but also ourselves in relation to them. Why would the gods require / desire the respect of human beings? Why would they have a need / want to punish humanity or protect them? The answers to these questions would depend on the nature of the gods’ role within the Universe and the lives of human beings.
As we forge our own spiritual path each of our beliefs build upon another to create the structure in which we use to relate to the spiritual part of ourselves, others, and the Universe.
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