I am fascinated with how major world religions deal with the issues of sin and of the world as a place that needs fixing.
Since I don't have a lot of time tonight, I am going to be writing this blog post in installments. I will deal mainly with Hinduism here, but my intent is to eventually examine the above-mentioned issues in Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, and possibly other religious traditions.
Hinduism
In Hinduism, Lord Vishnu is the restorer and protector of the world -- taking on human form to come to Earth and fix things when they go wrong. He does this until the work becomes simply too much for him, and then Lord Shiva comes and destroys the world with fire. For a comparative religious cross-reference, see Genesis 6:6-7.
One of Vishnu's incarnations, Sri Venkateswara, is called "Supreme Lord, Destroyer of Sins." This is Jesus's role in Christian theology, the human incarnation of the divine sent to redeem the sins of the world.
In Hinduism, the world is very broken. We live in the kali yuga, the fourth age, notable because it is the age when the divine has retreated almost entirely from our grasp. No longer does God mingle with humans, as in the first age, or even journey secretly down to Earth in disguise, as in the last age. All we have now are our own creations -- temples, rituals, icons, religions -- attempts to evoke the divine as best as we can.
Gloominess aside, if you visit a Hindu temple, (see "Where Man Becomes God" for more information on Hindu temples) you realize how even a broken attempt to realize divinity can be breathtaking. The Sri Venkateswara Temple of Cary, NC is one of my all-time favorite religious hang-out spots because it so powerfully lends a sense of the sacred.
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