Re: Swiftness of Indra

Not so rare. Look at how the Greeks totally
transformed the Roman and Etruscan pantheons.
Look at how Christianity incorporated foreign gods
through demotion. Santa Claus in many of his
attributes is a demoted Thor. St. Martin the soldier a
demoted Mars.
Easter is the name of a pagan goddess.
The Book of Esther is a wholesale incorporation of the
cult of Marduk and Ishtar.
Christianity, as practiced in much of the US South,
with its emphasis upon hatred and exclusion of the
Other, glee and self-satisfaction at the suffering of
non-believers is more akin to the worship of Odin than
any mainstream form of Christianity.
As you well know, Buddha and Jesus are the 8th and 9th
avatars of Vishnu --at least according to many Hindus.
Islam, as practiced by most Muslims, also incorporates
many aspects of preexisting religions --such as
adoration of saints, spirits, even other gods such as
Ram among Indian Muslims I've met.
Religion is probably the most malleable institution
that exists among humans.

--- Patrick Ryan <proto-language@...> wrote:

> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Rick McCallister" <gabaroo6958@...>
> To: <cybalist@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2008 10:45 PM
> Subject: Re: [tied] Re: Swiftness of Indra
>
>
> >
> > --- Patrick Ryan <proto-language@...> wrote:
> > >
> > > The only objections I would raise would be:
> > >
> > > 1) it is rather unusual to borrow a name for the
> > > supreme god;
> >
> > Not true: See Jehovah, Yahweh, Allah et al. In
> > Meso-America Nahuatl names were borrowed, calqued
> or
> > subjected to popular etymology, etc. In West
> Africa,
> > some names were shared: e.g. Legba was Ewe-Fon but
> > passed into Yoruba and then into Santería as
> Eleguá.
> > Some Buddhist deities, avatars and boddhisattvas
> had
> > names that passed from Sanskrit to Chinese to
> > Japanese.
> > Religion and religious terminology seem very prone
> to
> > borrowing
>
> <snip>
>
> ***
>
> True, Rick.
>
> You must differentiate between borrowing a foreign
> name for an existing
> native god, who keeps his native attributes,
>
> and
>
> adopting a foreign god with his original foreign
> attributes into the native
> pantheon (like Isis in the classical world).
>
> Continuing to worship Odin but calling him Yahweh?
> Pretty rare.
>
>
> Patrick
>
> ***
>
>

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