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Because of the central place that Brahman plays in Hindu belief and worship, and the potential overlap with the western notion of God, a more detailed examination of this central deity in Hinduism is warranted. There were many gods or devas during the Vedic period including earth gods (plant god Soma, fire god Agni, and priestly power god Brhaspati), atmosphere gods (warrior god Indra, wind god Vayu, storm god Maruts, and the capricious god Rudra, who had both good and bad qualities), and sky gods (sky god Dyaus, cosmic law god Varuna, night god Mitra, and nourisher god Pushan) (Flood, 2009a). Brahman was first mentioned in the Taittiriya Samhita VII.3.1.4 (one of the oldest Vedic texts), and subsequently became prominent in hundreds of later Vedic hymns. The word Brahman in Sanskrit means “the Supreme God,” “the Absolute Reality,” or “Godhead.” Further descriptions are contained in the Upanishads. The Mundaka Upanishad describes Brahman as:
“Brahman alone here extends to the east; Brahman, to the west; it alone, to the south, to the north, it alone extends above and below; it is Brahman alone that extends over this whole universe, up to its widest extent” (2:2:11).
Brahman is the one eternal cause and foundation of all existence, the transcendent power that exists beyond the universe and supports everything, the Ultimate Reality.
According to Flood (1996), the concept of Brahman evolved during the Vedic period from (a) the power contained in sound (specifically, the syllable Om), words, and rituals, and (b) the “essence of the universe”… the “deeper foundation of all phenomena”… the “essence of the self (Atman, soul)”… and the “truth of a person beyond apparent difference.” Brahman has many characteristics similar to Western notions of God, but is not exactly equivalent to God, says Flood. However, Hindus in actual practice have many different beliefs and they do not always agree on those beliefs, making it difficult to make any definitive statements above similarities and differences between Brahman and the notion of God in the West.
Hindus do not worship Brahman as Jews, Christians or Muslims worship God. However, they may worship manifestations of Brahman such as Vishnu and Shiva (BBC 2003). Brahman is manifested in three forms as a trinity (or Trimurti): Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the preserver), and Shiva (the transformer). Brahma (different from Brahman) created the universe, and so his work is done and he is not worshipped. Vishnu preserves the universe, whereas Shiva destroys the universe, and both may be worshiped as manifestations of Brahman.
Vishnu (also called Vasudeva, Narayana, or Hari) was not a major god during the Vedic period, and was worshipped as the Sun god (Doniger, 2015). This changed over time, such that Hindus now worship Vishnu as a manifestation of Brahman. Vishnu preserves and protects the universe and has appeared on the earth through his incarnations as Rama, Lord Krishna and Narasimha. During the Gupta Empire (320-500 CE), the great traditions of Vaishnavism (focused on Vishnu), Shaivism (focused on Shiva), and Shaktism (focused on Devi, a female manifestation of Brahman) developed. It is from this period that many elements of Hinduism arose such as bhakti (devotion) and worship in temples (Flood, 2009a).
Closely related to the concept of Brahman is atman. As noted above, atman is the “spiritual Self” beyond the ego or the “false self,” and is considered the eternal spirit or soul that each human possesses. The word atman itself means “eternal self,” which is in contrast to the temporary body. The atman can exist in more than one body across time, as the essence of the individual is reborn during the process of reincarnation. The atman is God within the person, representing their true identity. In the Brhadaranyaka Upsanishad it says:
“If a man knows “I am brahman” in this way, he becomes this whole world. Not even the gods are able to prevent it, for he becomes their very self (atman). So when a man venerates another deity, thinking, “He is one, and I am another”, he does not understand… It is his self (atman) alone that a man should venerate as his world. And if someone venerates his self alone as his world, that rite of his will never fade away, because from his very self he will produce whatever he desires.” (1:4:10, 15)
This concept of the true Self (spirit or soul) as non-material has encouraged detachment from the world and promoted asceticism in Hinduism (Flood, 2009b).
Personal God
As noted above, the understanding of “Brahman” evolved and expanded over time in ancient India, and there is now a range of views concerning the nature of Brahman (Flood, 1996). As noted above, many Hindus believe that Brahman does not have attributes or form (NriguNa Brahman or “the Highest Absolute”) and so is beyond all description and conceptualisation:
“What cannot be seen, what cannot be grasped, without colour, without sight or hearing, without hands or feet; What is eternal and all-pervading, extremely minute, present everywhere – What is the immutable, which the wise fully perceive” (Mundaka Upanishad 1:1:6).
However, there is also belief that Brahman may take a personal form that has good attributes (SaguNa Brahman or “the Absolute with qualities”) (see discussion by Stephen Knapp, 2016). The notion that there is a personal aspect to Brahman that is loving, gives grace, and can be the subject of devotion and worship (bhakti) comes from the Shvetashvatara Upanishad. Here it states:
“The one God rules over both the perishable and the self (atman). By meditating on him, by striving towards him, and, further, in the end by becoming the same reality as him, all delusion disappears. When one has known God, all the fetters fall off; by eradication of the blemishes, birth and death come to an end; by meditating on him, one obtains, at the dissolution of the body, a third – sovereignty over all; and in the absolute one’s desires are fulfilled.” (1:10-11)
Elsewhere the Svetasvatara Upanishad states:
“Who is higher than that, higher than Brahman, the immense one hidden in all beings, in each according to its kind, and who alone encompasses the whole universe – when people know him as Lord, they become immortal. I know that immense Person, having the colour of the sun and beyond darkness. Only when a man knows him does he pass beyond death; there is no other path for getting there. This whole world is filled by that Person, beyond whom there is nothing; beneath whom there is nothing; smaller than whom there is nothing; larger than whom there is nothing; and who stands like a tree planted firmly in heaven.” (3:7-9)
This suggests a “pantheistic” notion of God as being in and part of everything. It was not until the Bhagavad Gita, though, that a “new dimension of love of God for people and people for God” was introduced, says professor Mariasusai Dhavamony (2002, p 88). The characteristics of Lord Krishna (the eighth incarnation of Vishnu/Brahman) provides clues about the personal nature of Brahman. In the Gita, as noted earlier, Lord Krishna engages in relationships with devout believers and saves them from the effects of their own karma (similar to “grace” in Christianity). Consider the following quote from the Bhagavad Gita:
“Even the evil-doer, if he shares in me with single-minded devotion, may be thought of as good, for he has fixed on what is right. He quickly conforms to the true law and obtains everlasting peace. You should realise, Son of Kunti [Arjuna], that no devotee of mine is lost.” (9:30-31)
According to Dhavammony (2002, p 88), the Gita emphasises that good action and right living (dharma) “paves the way to liberation, it is through God’s grace alone that one attains the liberated state and enters into union with him in love and bliss.” Note also the following passages from the Gita (Lord Krishna speaking) that focus on knowledge, action/behaviour, and devotion to him as God:
“For knowledge is better than study, meditation is superior to knowledge, and abandonment of the fruit of actions is better than meditation, and after abandonment peace immediately follows.
Without hared for any creature, friendly and compassionate, free from possessiveness and egoism, indifferent to pleasure and pain, enduring, contented, ever the self-controlled yogin, certain of purpose, his mind and intelligence concentrated on me, he who is devoted to me is dear to me.
He is dear to me who does not afflict the world and is not afflicted by it – who is free from excitement, impatience, fear, and anxiety.
He is dear to me who, devoted to me, is disinterested, pure, able, non-partisan, unworried, and does not initiate any actions.
He is dear to me who, filled with devotion, is neither excited nor repelled by things, neither grieves nor gives way to longing, and who abandons both the auspicious and the inauspicious.
The man is dear to me who, filled with devotion, if the same with regard to enemies and friends, in honour and dishonour, the same in heat and cold, pleasure and suffering, who, freed from attachment, weights blame and praise the same, who was silent, satisfied in all circumstances, homeless, and firm-minded.
And above all, those devotees are dear to me who, full of faith, with me as their highest object, attend to this immortal nectar of truth, which I have just delivered to you.” (12:12-20; see also 18:65)
Conclusions
In Hinduism, then, Brahman can be worshipped as either God who is formless or as God who is personal and has attributes, both of whom are understood as the same One Supreme God. In practice, many Hindus relate to the personal aspects of Brahman as one who has attributes such as strength, power, and goodness, and is worthy of worship.