Journal Article

Hinduizm’de Vahiy: Köken ve Tanrıyla İlintisi Bağlamında İslam Vahyiyle Karşılaştırmalı Bir Değerlendirme

Güngör, Fatih

2024

Overview

In general terms, the concept of revelation (wahy), which can also be expressed as the communication of the authority of Godhead with mankind, has been interpreted in different ways in various religions, cultures and even by different thinkers. This divergence of opinion will have a profound impact on our intellectual landscape. The meanings attributed to certain concepts have the capacity to direct our perceptions and shape our understanding in significant ways. Revelation represents a significant concept,particularly in the context of understanding religious beliefs and practices within their own cultural and historical contexts. This article will examine the concept of revelation in Hinduism, with a particular focus on the meanings attributed to the Vedas, the Hindu sacred texts, and the Qur'anic revelation, with reference to its terminological or conventional meanings. The existing literature on the subject tends to focus on the expression of revelation (wahy) in Hinduism, with little attention paid to a detailed comparison of the essence of this concept in the context of its use in Islamic religion, which is its terminological or conventional (ıstılāhī) origin. Without emphasising its metaphorical meaning, it is observed that the expression 'God's revelation' used for the Vedas, the Hindu sacred texts, causes various perception problems in understanding the truth of this religion and making sense of its sacred things. This study, aimed at addressing stated deficiency and contributing to resolving perception issues, initially underscores the importance of the meanings ascribed to concepts in human attempts to understand and briefly highlights the importance of knowing the terminological meanings of concepts used within a particular discipline for an accurate comprehension of that discipline. Then, a brief semantic analysis of the concept of wahy and the related terms such as kashf, ilhām, shruti, and revelation is provided, which lays the groundwork for identifying the most suitable concept to use when addressing the topic of revelation in Hinduism. By drawing attention to the qualities such as the fact that the wahy, has the property of inzāl and tenzīl, has Arabic and talkable (kalāmī) quality, has limited to “a chosen messenger” and that this has a matter under the control of the sender not the receiver of the revelation, the main framework of the essence (māhiyah) dimension of this concept has been tried to be drawn. Subsequently, the origin and divine connection of the Vedas in Hindu thought have been described, and the semantic contour line (implications) of the concept of revelation in Hinduism have been elucidated. Accordingly, it has been determined that there is no consensus among Hindus regarding the origin or divine connection of the Hindu sacred texts, the Vedas; these texts are believed to have been obtained by the rishis, or wise seers, through personal ascetic practices, kashf (unveiling), and mushāhadah (witnessing); therefore, this process is not an external event but rather an internal, spiritual occurrence that can only be achieved through pure nature, virtuous actions, and significant effort. In this context, it has been emphasized that revelation can only occur within theistic religions that maintain a distinction between God and the world, on the other hand, in Hinduism, which is characterized by a pantheistic conception of God that implies a unity between God and the world, the use of concepts such as keşf(intuition) and ilhām (inspiration) is more appropriate than the concept of wahy (revelation).

• Publisher: Cumhuriyet Üniversitesi İlahyat Fakültesi,Cumhuriyet University Faculty of Theology
• Subject: Comparative Studies of Religion / Islam studies / Sociology of Religion