What is the image of God in religious thought? The image of God has taken on different forms in various religions, and even within religions God has taken on different forms. As much as religion says that God created humanity in His image, it seems that humanity has attempted to create God according to our own image of HIm. It is interesting to see the ways that God has manifested Himself in the culture of humanity, and how God has made an impact on the entire world.
Even in the Christian faith, God has taken upon many different personas. God has been good, bad, evil, all powerful, and yet sometimes defers to humanity to figure out what we are doing. While God has a plan for us all according to the Christian faith, He also gives us free-will, or the choice to follow His laws or not. God has flooded the Earth, he has given the faithful a promised land, and he has given the Earth order.
Above all though, God is an all-powerful figure that is going to judge the world someday. He is usually portrayed as a very tall figure, usually with a long flowing beard. This is meant to characterise him as wise, and as a larger than life figure that should be revered and coveted above all else. He usually is seen in some sort of robe, or something elegant that shows that he is royalty, and should be treated as such.
In the Buddhist fatih, Buddha is seen as not so much a person, but an ever present being. He represents the beginning, and the end, and everything in between. He is an earthly symbol of the presence of Buddha, and is more seen as a symbol of reality. He is what people should strive to seek, and that you can find Buddha more by waking up from your own ignorance, and realizing that he is the one that represents reality.
In Hinduism, there is one God, but there are also other gods that accompany the main god. Brahman is the main god, yet there is Atman, or the part of the self that is eternal. Only by allowing yourself to realize that Brahman is all powerful do your really get to see what Brahman is. Basically the image of God according to Hindus is that Brahman is something that really is inside of you, and it is up to you to really find out what that is.
Among most major faiths it is usually recognized that God is an all knowing being, and that God is something that we have to find within ourselves. God doesn’t want to punish us, but sometimes He has to, but in the end it is really up to us to figure out that God wants what is best for us. According to the major faiths, God represents a presence that has always existed, and will never die out.
