There are few words in the public consciousness that evoke both love and hate, fear and hope, and both omnipotence and impotence than the word ‘god’.
The etymology of the word ‘god’ in English stems from the Germanic Gott, which derives from the Gothic Gheu, which is thought to be derived from the Sanskrit: Hu, which may be translated as “the one who is invoked” or “the one who is sacrificed to”.
Of course, I appreciate that a conversation about such a loaded word has far more cultural, religious and existential context and nuance but even these two translations encapsulate a significant proportion of the populace’s understanding of the word itself.
The concept of invoking ‘god’ or sacrificing to ‘god’ can be seen running through various mythologies, religions, scriptures, and spiritual paths, with various gods that represent various human characteristics, qualities, and flaws.
Such examples include the Greek gods who could be seen as vain and vindictive, as well as benevolent, who were expected to provide prosperity, fertility and health in response to sacrificial offerings and gifts. In effect this was invoking the power of the gods.
The Bible may also come to mind, with the sacrifice of animals and other foods (such as grain) for the forgiveness of sins in the Old Testament, and then later on in the New Testament with the sacrifice of Jesus for the forgiveness of sins. In effect, appealing or invoking a divine power for salvation or purification. Additionally, the god of the Bible is also described using various character traits, such as being jealous, violent, merciful, good, and loving.
In these examples, the relationship between God and man may appear as transactional or conditional, and coupled with the various characteristics of god or the gods described above, it is no wonder that this word evokes such divisive emotions and beliefs. Furthermore we could also say that the gods represent the full spectrum of both positive and negative character traits that are expressed by humanity.
In order to understand the true power of the word ‘god’ we must take away all of the religious, and man-made associations, and iconography, and set aside the well established thought-forms and entities that have interacted with, and have been cemented within the collective consciousness concerning the nature of god, that have given this word its perceived power and influence. And when you remove these attached beliefs and associations you are just left with a neutral word, an empty vessel, construct, or title; a word that has been constructed to contain and describe something that may be relatively incomprehensible and vast in scope.
I believe that we empower the word (god), infusing it with our own ideals, biases, and personalities, which can make worship of a god the subject of ego, given that it is we as humans that have imagined them in our own image – or at least within a blurry image of something that we may not fully understand, at least at this time. Of course, this does not mean that ‘gods’ do not exist, and if you believe that they do then we as humans may only understand their nature, existence and purpose through the lens of our imposed beliefs, teachings, and worldviews.
In a sense, as our collective consciousness expands, so does our understanding of ‘god’ and in turn our understanding of ourselves, and it can be said that we are honouring or worshipping our highest self, or invoking our own innate power. Not the ego-driven consciousness but the purest form of ourselves, that which connected to and forms part of the Divine mind, or our Higher Selves.
Divorced of our attachments, addictions, and biases we are focussed on our purest form of self-love, otherwise known as Divine Love, as opposed to practising conditional love, which is often preached by some religions, as well as within many avenues and institutions in known civilisation.
Although most of this blog post may be more geared towards those with a theistic or spiritual leaning, those with an atheistic outlook can also take value from what is being discussed, as we each have the ability to measure our own inherent qualities against those of the gods of old, and create new gods, myths, and stories that we can use to re-invent ourselves. Resulting in the creation of an architype that may be more beneficial and progressive in supporting humanity’s growth, because a story or figure does not have to be literally true or real to contain truth, morals or wisdom. In fact, many ancient near eastern, and indigenous cultures and worship systems expressed many truths about human nature, virtues, and struggles through allegory.
This in itself is an intriguing statement as in the book of Genesis god states that “man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil. Now lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat it they will live forever”
Focussing on the allegory, this statement can be interpreted as humanity being as gods, given our knowledge, as knowledge is said to be power, and that the only thing stopping us from attaining ‘never-ending life’ (or abundance) is how we use it, which is the truest determination of our power. Furthermore, this statement in its purest form refers to knowledge of self, or our ability to perceive our own inner power and potential.
Therefore, we should take back the word ‘god’, see it as a reflection of ourselves, and understand that it has no power itself, for it is us who breathes life into the word, and indeed the very words of the ‘gods’ themselves.
The Philosopher's Poet 