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There are variousnames of God and many titles that refer to God, many of which enumerate the variousqualities of a Supreme Being. The English wordgod (and its equivalent in other languages) is used by multiple religions as anoun to refer to different deities, or specifically to the Supreme Being, as denoted in English by the capitalized and uncapitalized termsGod andgod.[1] Ancientcognate equivalents for thebiblical HebrewElohim, one of the most commonnames of God in the Bible,[2] includeproto-SemiticEl,biblical AramaicElah, andArabicilah.[2] The personal or proper name forGod in many of these languages may either be distinguished from suchattributes, orhomonymic. For example, inJudaism thetetragrammaton is sometimes related to the ancient Hebrewehyeh ("I will be").[2] It is connected to the passage inExodus 3:14 in which God gives his name asאֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה (Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh), where the verb may be translated most basically as "I Am that I Am", "I shall be what I shall be", or "I shall be what I am". In the passage,YHWH,[2] the personal name of God, isrevealed directly toMoses.
Correlation between various theories and interpretation of the name of "the one God", used tosignify amonotheistic or ultimate Supreme Being from which all other divine attributes derive, has been a subject ofecumenical discourse between Eastern and Western scholars for over two centuries.[3] InChristian theology the word is considered a personal and a proper name of God.[4] On the other hand, the names of God in a different tradition are sometimes referred to by symbols.[5] The question whether divine names used by different religions are equivalent has been raised and analyzed.[6]
Exchange of names held sacred between different religious traditions is typically limited. Other elements of religious practice may be shared, especially when communities of different faiths are living in close proximity (for example, the use ofKhuda orPrabhu within the Indian Christian community) but usage of the names themselves mostly remains within the domain of a particular religion, or even may help define one's religious belief according to practice, as in the case of the recitation of names of God (such as thejapa).[7]Guru Gobind Singh'sJaap Sahib, which contains 950 names of God is one example of this.The Divine Names, the classic treatise byPseudo-Dionysius, defines the scope of traditional understandings in Western traditions such as Hellenic, Christian, Jewish and Islamic theology on the nature and significance of the names of God.[8] Further historical lists such asThe 72 Names of the Lord show parallels in the history and interpretation of the name of God amongstKabbalah, Christianity, and Hebrew scholarship in various parts of theMediterranean world.[9]
The attitude as to the transmission of the name in many cultures was surrounded by secrecy. InJudaism, the pronunciation of the name of God has always been guarded with great care. It is believed that, in ancient times, the sages communicated the pronunciation only once every seven years;[10] this system was challenged by more recent movements. The nature of a holy name can be described as either personal or attributive. In many cultures it is often difficult to distinguish between the personal and the attributive names of God, the two divisions necessarily shading into each other.[11]
El comes from a root word meaning "god" or "deity", reconstructed in theProto-Semitic language asʾil. Sometimes referring to God and sometimes the mighty when used to refer to the God of Israel, El is almost always qualified by additional words that further define the meaning that distinguishes him fromfalse gods. A common title of God in the Hebrew Bible is Elohim (Hebrew:אלהים). The rootEloah (אלה) is used in poetry and late prose (e.g., theBook of Job) and ending with the masculine plural suffix-imים creating a word likeba`alim ('owners') andadonim ('lords', 'masters') that may also indicate a singular identity.
In theBook of Exodus, God commands Moses to tell the people that 'I AM' sent him, and this is revered as one of the most important names of God according toMosaic tradition.
Moses said to God, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?" God said to Moses, "I Am who I Am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I Am has sent me to you.'" God also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.' This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation".
InExodus 6:3, when Moses first spoke with God, God said, "I used to appear to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai, but I did not make myself known to them by my name YHWH."
YHWH (יהוה) is the proper name of God in Judaism. Neither vowels norvowel points were used in ancient Hebrew writings and the original vocalisation of YHWH has been lost.[12]
Later commentaries additionally suggested that the true pronunciation of this name is composed entirely ofvowels, such as the GreekΙαουε.[13] However, this is put into question by the fact that vowels were only distinguished in the time-period by their very absence due to the lack of explicit vowels in the Hebrew script. The resulting substitute made fromsemivowels and glottals, known as the tetragrammaton, is not ordinarily permitted to be pronounced aloud, even in prayer. The prohibition on misuse (not use) of this name is the primary subject of the command not totake the name of the Lord in vain.
Instead of pronouncing YHWH during prayer, Jews say "Adonai" ('Lord').Halakha requires that secondary rules be placed around the primary law, to reduce the chance that the main law will be broken. As such, it is common religious practice to restrict the use of the word "Adonai" to prayer only. In conversation, many Jewish people, even when not speaking Hebrew, will call GodHaShem (השם), which is Hebrew for 'the Name'; this appears inLeviticus 24:11.
Almost allOrthodox Jews avoid using either Yahweh or Jehovah altogether on the basis that the actual pronunciation of the tetragrammaton has been lost in antiquity. Many use the termHaShem as an indirect reference, or they use "God" or "The Lord" instead. Mark Sameth argues that Yahweh was a pseudo name for a dual-gendered deity, the four letters of that name being cryptogram which the priests of ancient Israel read in reverse ashuhi, 'he–she', as earlier theorized byGuillaume Postel (16th century) andMichelangelo Lanci [it] (19th century).[14][15][16][17]
In Christianity, the Old Testament revealsYHWH (יהוה; often vocalized with vowels as "Yahweh" or "Jehovah") as the personal name of God.[18][19] References, such asThe NewEncyclopædia Britannica, affirm the vocalization "Yahweh" by offering additional specifics to its (Christian) reconstruction out of Greek sources:
Early Christian writers, such as Clement of Alexandria in the 2nd century, had used a form like Yahweh, and claim that this pronunciation of the tetragrammaton was never really lost. Other Greek transcriptions also indicated that YHWH should be pronounced Yahweh.[13]
Jah or Yah (rendered asיָהּ in Hebrew) is an abbreviation of Jahweh/Yahweh/Jehovah.[20] It appears in certain translations of the Bible, such as theRevised Standard Version, and is used by Christians in the interjectionHallelujah, meaning "Praise Jah", which is used to give Jahweh glory.[20] In Christianity, certain hymns dedicated to God invoke the divine name using the vocalizationJehovah (יְהֹוָה,Yəhōwā), such asGuide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah.[21]
The Hebrew personal name of God YHWH is rendered as "the LORD" in many translations of the Bible, with Elohim being rendered as "God"; certain translations of Scripture render the Tetragrammaton with Yahweh or Jehovah in particular places, with the latter vocalization being used in theKing James Version,Tyndale Bible, and other translations of the Bible from that time period and later.[22] Many English translations of the Bible (such as ESV, NIV, KJV, etc.) translate the tetragrammaton asLORD, thus removing any form of YHWH from the written text and going well beyond the Jewish oral practice of substituting Adonai for YHWH when reading aloud.[23][failed verification]
English Bible translations of the GreekNew Testament renderho theos (Greek:Ο Θεός) asGod andho kurios (Greek:Ο Κύριος) as "the Lord", with the latter being the "Greek translation of the Hebrew OT name for God, Yahweh."[24]
Jesus (Iesus,Yeshua[25]) was a common alternative form of the nameיְהוֹשֻׁעַ (Yehoshua 'Joshua') in later books of theHebrew Bible and among Jews of theSecond Temple period. The name corresponds to the Greek spellingIesous, from which comes the English spellingJesus.[26][27]Christ means 'theanointed' inGreek (Χριστός).Khristos is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew wordMessiah; while in English the old Anglo-Saxon Messiah-renderinghæland ('healer') was practically annihilated by the LatinChrist, some cognates such asheiland in Dutch and Afrikaans survive—also, in German, the wordHeiland is sometimes used as reference to Jesus, e.g., in church chorals).
In theBook of Revelation in the ChristianNew Testament, God, that is, Jesus is quoted as saying "I am theAlpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End". (cf.Rev. 1:8,21:6, and22:13)
SomeQuakers refer to God with the title ofthe Light. Another term used isKing of Kings or Lord of Lords andLord of Hosts. In addition to the personal name of God YHWH (pronounced with the vocalizations Yahweh or Jehovah), titles of God used by Christians include theHebrew titles Elohim, El-Shaddai, and Adonai, as well asAncient of Days,Father/Abba which is Hebrew, "Most High".[18]Abba ('father' in Hebrew) is a common term used for the creator within Christianity because it was a title Jesus used to refer toGod the Father.
InMormonism the name of God the Father is Elohim[28] and the name of Jesus in hispre-incarnate state was Jehovah.[29][30] Together, with the Holy Ghost they form theGodhead; God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.[31] Mormons typically refer to God as "Heavenly Father" or "Father in Heaven".[32][non-primary source needed]
Although Mormonism views the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as three distinct beings, they are one in purpose and God the Father (Elohim) is worshipped and given all glory through his Son, Jesus Christ (Jehovah). Despite the Godhead doctrine, which teaches that God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are three separate, divine beings, many Mormons (mainstreamLatter-day Saints and otherwise, such as theFundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) view their beliefs as monotheist since Christ is the conduit through which humanity comes to the God the Father.The Book of Mormon ends with "to meet you before the pleasing bar of the great Jehovah, the eternal Judge of both the quick and dead. Amen."[33]
Jehovah's Witnesses believe that God has a distinctive name, represented in the Old Testament by the Tetragrammaton. In English, they prefer to use the formJehovah.[34] According to theirNew World Translation of the Holy Scriptures, the nameJehovah means "He causes to become".[35]
Though scholars prefer the formYahweh, Jehovah's Witnesses maintain that the nameJehovah is the most well known form in English.[citation needed] Their literature compares the use of the formJehovah in English to the widespread use ofJesus in English as a translation ofYeshua orYehoshua.[36]
Allah—meaning 'the God' in Arabic—is the word for God inIslam.[37] The wordAllah has been used by Arabic people of different religions since pre-Islamic times. More specifically, it has been used as a term for God byMuslims (both Arab and non-Arab) andArab Christians. God has many names in Islam. The Qur'an says (in translation) "to Him Belong the Best Names (Lahu Al-Asma' Al-Husna)"; examples includeAr-Rahman ('the Entirely Merciful') andAr-Rahim ('the Especially Merciful'). Beside these Arabic names, Muslims of non-Arab origins may also sometimes use other names in their own languages to refer to God, such asKhuda inPersian,Bengali andUrdu.Tangri orTengri was used in theOttoman Turkish language as the equivalent of Allah.[38]
He is Allah, other than whom there is no deity, Knower of the unseen and the witnessed. He is the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. He is Allah, other than whom there is no deity, the Sovereign, the Pure, the Perfection, the Bestower of Faith, the Overseer, the Exalted in Might, the Compeller, the Superior. Exalted is Allah above whatever they associate with Him. He is Allah, the Creator, the Inventor, the Fashioner; to Him belong the best names. Whatever is in the heavens and earth is exalting Him. And He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise. (Translation of Qur'an: Chapter 59, Verses 22-24)
InTasawwuf, often characterised as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam,Hu,Huwa (depends on placement in the sentence), orParvardigar in Persian are used as names of God. The soundHu derives from the last letter of the wordAllah, which is read asAllahu when in the middle of a sentence.Hu means 'Just He' or 'Revealed'. The word explicitly appears in manyverses of theQuran:
"La ilaha illa Hu"
— Al Imran:18
Thescriptures of theBaháʼí Faith often refer to God by various titles and attributes, such as Almighty, All-Possessing, All-Powerful, All-Wise, Incomparable, Gracious, Helper, All-Glorious, and Omniscient.[39] Baháʼís believe theGreatest Name of God is "All-Glorious" orbahá in Arabic.Bahá is the root word of the following names and phrases: the greetingAlláh-u-Abhá ('God is the All-Glorious'), the invocationYá Bahá'u'l-Abhá ('O Thou Glory of the Most Glorious'),Bahá'u'lláh ('the Glory of God'), andBaháʼí ('Follower of the All-Glorious'). These are expressed in Arabic regardless of the language in use (seeBaháʼí symbols).[40] Apart from these names, God is addressed in the local language, for exampleIshwar in Hindi,Dieu in French andDios in Spanish.[citation needed] Baháʼís believeBahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith, is the "complete incarnation of the names and attributes of God".[41]
Mandaeans believe in one God calledHayyi Rabbi ('The Great Life' or 'The Great Living God').[42] Other names for God used includeMare d'Rabuta ('Lord of Greatness'),Mana Rabba ('The Great Mind'),Melka d'Nhura ('King of Light') andHayyi Qadmaiyi ('The First Life').[43]
Adivine name is an official title for any divine being. In Egypt, divine names were indicated with a god's inscription (nṯr, which can be Anglicised asnetjer.)[44] In Sumerian cuneiform, theDingir sign (𒀭) was used.[45]
A divine being's name is distinct from an epithet. A divine epithet expresses specific traits, aspects, or domains of a god, or applies a common noun to them.[46] Rahmouni says a locative name isʔil yṯb bʕṯtrtin KTU 1.108, 2 meaning "The god who sits (enthroned) in ʕAṯtartu.[47]
A name is sometimes double-barreled, like inShagar-we-Ishtar orKothar-wa-Hasis.
ʔṯrt w rḥmyAsherah-wa-Rachmai takes this ("binomial") form but is of slightly unclear categorization.[48] In this case and that of theLady of Byblos, it is not clear if the appellation is a personal name.
Binomial names can be found in "bound forms" likeBethel's Anat-Bethel, Ashim-Bethel, "and Herem-Bethel from the archives of Elephantine."[49]
In one Egyptian story, the sun god Ra'strue name was cunningly uncovered by Isis. Using a secret scheme, Isis gained complete dominion over Ra. This enabled her to elevate her son Horus to the throne, showing the power that a name had over the gods.[50]
The maiden goddesses of Canaan and Phoenicia were sometimes called the "name of the lord" (Ba'al) or the "face of the lord." In their less-virginal incarnations as the consort Anat-Bethel or as a mother goddess ʕtr [ʕ-t-r-m = ʕtr-(ʕ)m(y) "ʕtr my mother"] these and "hand of" the deity are added. This might mean hypostasis or intercession.[51]
There are multiple names for God's various manifestations worshiped inHinduism. Some of the common names for these deities in Hinduism are:
Additionally, most Hindu deities have a collection of 8/12/16/32/100/108/1000/1008 names exclusively dedicated to them known asNamavali.[clarification needed][citation needed]
Maharishi Dayanand in his bookSatyarth Prakash has listed 100 names of God each representing some property or attribute thereof mentioning "Om" or "Aum" as God's personal and natural name.
Jainism rejects the idea of acreator deity responsible for the manifestation, creation, or maintenance of this universe. According to Jain doctrine, the universe and its constituents (soul, matter, space, time, and principles of motion) havealways existed. All the constituents and actions are governed by universal natural laws and an immaterial entity like God cannot create a material entity like the universe. Jainism offers an elaboratecosmology, including heavenly beings (devas), but these beings are not viewed as creators; they are subject to suffering and change like all other living beings, and must eventually die.
Jains define godliness as the inherent quality of any soul characterizing infinite bliss, infinite power,perfect knowledge and perfect peace. However, these qualities of a soul are subdued due tokarmas of the soul. One who achieves this state of soul throughright belief, right knowledge and right conduct can be termed as god. This perfection of soul is calledkaivalya (omniscience). A liberated soul thus becomes a god – liberated of miseries, cycles of rebirth, world,karmas and finally liberated of body as well. This is callednirvana ormoksha.
If godliness is defined as the state of having freed one's soul from karmas and the attainment ofKevala Jnana and a god as one who exists in such a state, then those who have achieved such a state can be termed gods/Tirthankara. Thus,Rishabhanatha was god/Tirthankara but he was not the onlyTirthankara; there were many otherTirthankara. However, the quality of godliness is one and the same in all of them.
Jainism does not teach the dependency on any supreme being for enlightenment. TheTirthankara is a guide and teacher who points the way to enlightenment, but the struggle for enlightenment is one's own. Moral rewards and sufferings are not the work of a divine being, but a result of an innate moral order in thecosmos; a self-regulating mechanism whereby the individual reaps the fruits of his own actions through the workings of the karmas.
Jains believe that to attain enlightenment and ultimately liberation from all karmic bonding, one must practice the ethical principles not only in thought, but also in words (speech) and action. Such a practice through lifelong work towards oneself is called as observing theMahavrata ('Great Vows').
Gods can be thus categorized into embodied gods also known asTīrthankaras andArihantas or ordinaryKevalis, and non-embodied formless gods who are calledSiddhas. Jainism considers thedevīs anddevas to be souls who dwell in heavens owing to meritorious deeds in their past lives. These souls are in heavens for a fixed lifespan and even they have to undergo reincarnation as humans to achievemoksha.
There are multiple names for God in Sikhism. Some of the popular names for God in Sikhism are:
In the Sikh scripture, both Hindu and Muslim names of the Supreme Being are also commonly employed, expressing different aspects of the divine Name. For instance, names likeRam ('pervading'),Hari ('shining'),Parmeshwar ('supreme lord'), andJagdish ('world lord') refer to Hindu terms, while names likeAllah (Arabic forGod),Khuda (Persian forGod),Rahim ('merciful'),Karim ('generous'), andSahib ('lord') are of Muslim origin.[52]
God, according toGuru Nanak, is beyond full comprehension byhumans; has an endless number of virtues; takes on innumerable forms, but is formless; and can be called by an infinite number of names thus "Your Names are so many, and Your Forms are endless. No one can tell how many Glorious Virtues You have."[53]
The wordAllah (Punjabi:ਅਲਹੁ) is used 12 times in theGuru Granth Sahib (primary religious scripture) by Sheikh Farid. Guru Nanak Dev, Guru Arjan Dev and Bhagat Kabeer used the word 18 times.
Yazidism knows only one eternal God, often namedXwedê.[54] According to some Yazidi hymns (known asQewls), God has 1001 names.[55]
InZoroastrianism, 101 names of God (PazandSad-o-yak nam-i-khoda) is a list of names of God (Ahura Mazda). The list is preserved inPersian,Pazand andGujarati.Parsi tradition expanded this to a list of 101 names of God.[56]
The Supreme Being in!Kung mythology (known as Khu, Xu, Xuba, or Huwa) is the Creator and Upholder of life.[57]
Chukwu is the supreme being of theOdinani religion of theIgbo people. In theIgbo pantheon, Chukwu is the source of all otherIgbo deities and is responsible for assigning them their different tasks. TheIgbo people believe that all things come from Chukwu, who brings therain necessary forplants to grow and controls everything onEarth and thespiritual world. They believe Chukwu to be an undefinableomnipotent andomnipresent supreme deity that encompasses everything inspace and time itself. Igbo Christians also refer to the Abrahamic God as Chukwu.[58]
Nana Buluku is the female supreme being inWest African Vodun. InDahomey mythology, Nana Buluku is the mother supreme creator who gave birth to the moon spiritMawu, the sun spiritLisa, and all of the universe. After giving birth to these, she retired and left the matters of the world to Mawu-Lisa. She is the primary creator, Mawu-Lisa the secondary creator, and the theology based on these is called Vodun, Voodoo or Vodoun.[59]
The supreme creator in thetraditional religion of theYoruba people is known asOlorun orOlodumare. The Yoruba believe that Olodumare is omnipotent and is the source of all.[60] Olodumare is aloof; he is not directly involved in earthly matters and lets other Yoruba deities (orisha), who are his sons and daughters, answer human concerns through divination, possession, sacrifice and more.[61] However, everything is in the hands of Olodumare when they are going to bed at night.[60] Yoruba Muslims and Christians also refer to the Abrahamic God as Olorun.
Unkulunkulu is the supreme creator inZulu traditional religion. Unkulunkulu brought human beings and cattle from an area of reeds. He created everything, from land and water, to man and the animals. He is considered the first man as well as the parent of all Zulu. He taught the Zulu how to hunt, how to make fire, and how to grow food.[62] Zulu Christians also refer to the Abrahamic God as Unkulunkulu.
Gitche Manitou, also known as Gitchi Manitou, Kitchi Manitou, means "Great Spirit" in severalAlgonquian languages.Christian missionaries have translatedGod asGitche Manitou in scriptures and prayers in the Algonquian languages.
In China, belief systems can be considered to consist of four major traditions: the official belief system, the folk belief system, the Taoist belief system, and the Buddhist belief system. Among the first three—though none are monotheistic—there exists the concept of a supreme being.
At the official level in classical China, from the Shang dynasty to the Qing dynasty, the supreme deity worshipped was known asShangdi(上帝, literally "The Deity Above"),[63] also referred to as Haotian Shangdi (昊天上帝, "Shangdi of the Vast Heaven"). The belief in Shangdi originated from ancient Chinese worship of the sky and the North Star. After Confucianism became the state orthodoxy, Shangdi continued to be revered as the highest deity.
Due to the solemnity of sacrificial rites, only the emperor was traditionally permitted to offer sacrifices to Shangdi in ancient China. As a result, common people rarely worshipped Shangdi directly. Instead, they venerated theYudi (玉帝, literally "Jade Emperor"),[64] also known as Yuhuang (玉皇) or Yuhuang Dadi (玉皇大帝). In fact, belief in the Jade Emperor is considered to have developed from the earlier belief in Shangdi.
Taoism acknowledges the authority and status of the folk Jade Emperor, but it does not regard him as the supreme deity of the religion. Instead, the highest deities in Taoism are theThree Pure Ones.[65]
In Japan, manyJapanese new religions can be considered to be monotheistic[66] orhenotheistic.[67] Some names for God as a supreme deity (rather than as a localkami) in various Japanese religions are:[68]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)There is yet another name which is particularly assigned to God as His special or proper name, that is, the four letters YHWH (Exodus 3:14 and Isaiah 42:8). This name has not been pronounced by the Jews because of reverence for the great sacredness of the divine name. Therefore, it has been consistently translated as LORD. The only exception to this translation of YHWH is when it occurs in immediate proximity to the word Lord, that is, Adonai. In that case it is regularly translated GOD in order to avoid confusion.
Many of the uses ofkyrios for God are in citations of the OT and in expressions derived from the OT (e.g., "angel of the Lord"), and in these passages the term functions as the Greek translation of the Hebrew OT name for God, Yahweh. For example, twenty-five of the uses ofkyrios for God in Luke are in the first two chapters, where the phrasing is so heavily influenced by the OT. The third frequently used term for God is "Father" (patēr), doubtless the most familiar term for God in Christian tradition and also perhaps the most theologically significant title for God in the NT. Unlike the other terms for God already mentioned--without exception in the Synoptics, and with only a few exceptions in John--"Father" as a title for God appears only in the sayings attributed to Jesus (the Johannine exceptions are in editorial remarks by the Evangelist in 1:14, 18, a saying of Philip in 14:8 and the crowd's claim in 8:41).
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
