Idolatry Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==Indian religions== ===Provenance=== The first attested date in peer-reviewed academic literature for the worship of [[murti]] (Sanskrit) or [[vigraha]] (Sanskrit) in India is not clear, as different sources have different opinions and interpretations. However, the [[Indus Valley Civilization]] (circa 2500 - 1500 BCE) may have produced some of the earliest murtis or vigrahas in India, as evidenced by various terracotta and bronze figurines found in the archaeological sites. Some of these figurines have been interpreted as representations of deities, such as the so-called [[Pashupati seal]], which depicts a horned figure surrounded by animals and possibly identified with [[Shiva]]. Another example is the bronze statuette of a [[Dancing Girl (sculpture)|Dancing Girl]], which some scholars have associated with [[Parvati]] or [[Shakti]]. However, these interpretations are not universally accepted, and some scholars have argued that the Indus Valley Civilization did not practice murti or vigraha worship, but rather used symbols and signs to express their religious beliefs.<ref name="oneindia.com">Source: https://www.oneindia.com/india/why-india-is-a-land-of-murti-and-vigraha-and-not-idols-and-idolators-as-perceived-by-the-west-3455405.html (accessed: Wednesday September 27, 2023)</ref> The [[Vedic period]] (circa 1500 - 500 BCE) is traditionally considered as the origin of Hinduism proper, but it also did not emphasize murti or vigraha worship, as the [[Historical Vedic religion|Vedic religion]] was mainly focused on fire sacrifices and hymns to various gods and goddesses. However, some [[Vedic texts]] do mention the use of clay or wooden images for ritual purposes, such as the [[Shatapatha Brahmana]] (circa 8th - 6th century BCE), which describes how a clay image of [[Prajapati]] (the creator god) was made and consecrated for the [[agnicayana ritual]]. Another example, is the [[Aitareya Brahmana]] (circa 8th - 6th century BCE), which mentions how a wooden image of [[Varuna]] (the god of water and law) was installed in a temple and worshipped by the king. These examples suggest that murti or vigraha worship was not unknown in the Vedic period, but it was not widespread nor dominant.<ref name="oneindia.com"/> The post-Vedic period (circa 500 BCE - 300 CE) witnessed the emergence and development of various religious movements and schools, such as [[Buddhism]], [[Jainism]], [[Shaivism]], [[Vaishnavism]], [[Shaktism]] and others. This period also saw the rise of murti or vigraha worship as a prominent feature of Hinduism, as evidenced by various literary and archaeological sources. For instance, the [[Ramayana]] (circa 5th - 4th century BCE) and the [[Mahabharata]] (circa 4th - 3rd century BCE) contain several references to murti or vigraha worship, such as [[Rama]] worshipping a [[Shiva linga]] at [[Rameshwaram]], or [[Krishna]] installing an image of [[Vishnu]] at [[Dwarka]]. Another example, is the Buddhist text [[Lalitavistara Sutra]] (circa 3rd century BCE - 3rd century CE), which mentions how Buddha's mother Maya dreamt of a white elephant entering her womb, and how [[King Suddhodana]] made an image of this elephant and worshipped it. Moreover, many stone and metal sculptures of various deities and saints have been found from this period onwards, such as the famous [[Pancha Rathas]] at [[Mahabalipuram]] (circa 7th century CE), which depict five chariots dedicated to different gods and goddesses.<ref name="oneindia.com"/> ===General=== The oldest forms of the ancient religions of India apparently made no use of cult images. While the [[Vedas|Vedic literature]] leading up to [[Hinduism]] is extensive, in the form of [[Samhita]]s, [[Brahmana]]s, [[Aranyaka]]s and [[Upanishad]]s, and has been dated to have been composed over a period of centuries (1200 BC to 200 BC),<ref name="Salmond2006p15"/> [[historical Vedic religion]] appears not to have used cult images up to around 500 BC at least. The early Buddhist and [[Jain]] (pre-200 BC) traditions suggest no evidence of idolatry. The Vedic literature mentions many gods and goddesses, as well as the use of [[Homa (ritual)|Homa]] (votive ritual using fire), but it does not mention images or their worship.<ref name="Salmond2006p15"/><ref>{{cite book|author=Richard Payne|editor=Michael Witzel|title=Homa Variations: The Study of Ritual Change Across the Longue Durée|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tIShCgAAQBAJ|year=2015|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-935158-9|pages=1–5, 143–148}}; Phyllis Granoff (2000), [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023%2FA%3A1004883605055 Other people's rituals: Ritual Eclecticism in early medieval Indian religious], Journal of Indian Philosophy, Volume 28, Issue 4, pages 399–424</ref> The ancient Buddhist, Hindu and Jaina texts discuss the nature of existence, whether there is or is not a [[creator deity]] such as in the [[Nasadiya Sukta]] of the ''[[Rigveda]]'', they describe meditation, they recommend the pursuit of simple monastic life and self-knowledge, they debate the nature of absolute reality as [[Brahman]] or [[Śūnyatā]], yet the ancient Indian texts mention no use of images. Indologists such as the [[Max Muller]], [[Jan Gonda]], [[Pandurang Vaman Kane]], [[Ramchandra Narayan Dandekar]], [[Horace Hayman Wilson]], [[Stephanie W. Jamison|Stephanie Jamison]] and other scholars state that "there is no evidence for icons or images representing god(s)" in the ancient religions of India. Use of cult images developed among the Indian religions later,<ref name="Salmond2006p15">{{cite book|author=Noel Salmond|title=Hindu Iconoclasts: Rammohun Roy, Dayananda Sarasvati, and Nineteenth-Century Polemics against Idolatry |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vu50CwAAQBAJ&pg=PA15|year=2006|publisher=Wilfrid Laurier University Press|isbn=978-1-55458-128-3|pages=15–17}}</ref><ref>Stephanie W. Jamison (2011), The Ravenous Hyenas and the Wounded Sun: Myth and Ritual in Ancient India, Cornell University Press, {{ISBN|978-0801477324}}, pages 15-17</ref> perhaps first in Buddhism, where large images of the Buddha appear by the 1st century AD. According to John Grimes, a professor of [[Indian philosophy]], Indian thought denied even dogmatic idolatry of its scriptures. Everything has been left to challenge, arguments and enquiry, with the medieval Indian scholar [[Vācaspati Miśra]] stating that not all scripture is authoritative, only scripture which "reveals the identity of the individual self and the supreme self as the non-dual Absolute".<ref>{{cite book| author=John Grimes| title=Problems and Perspectives in Religious Discourse |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ySff1LxPHp8C&pg=PA60| year=1994| publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0-7914-1791-1| pages=60–61}}</ref> ===Buddhism=== {{See also|Aniconism in Buddhism}}{{multiple image | align = right | image1 = Prayers in front of Jokhang temple.jpg | width1 = 156 | alt1 = | caption1 = | image2 = Di Lac Worship Tam Thai.JPG | width2 = 156 | alt2 = | caption2 = | footer = Buddhists praying before a statue in Tibet (left) and Vietnam }} According to Eric Reinders, icons and idolatry have been an integral part of Buddhism throughout its later history.<ref name="Pellizzi2005p61">{{cite book|author=Eric Reinders|editor=Francesco Pellizzi|title=Anthropology and Aesthetics, Volume 48: Autumn 2005|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SlMLvFIplLAC&pg=PA61|year=2005|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-87365-766-2|pages=61–63}}</ref> Buddhists, from Korea to Vietnam, Thailand to Tibet, Central Asia to South Asia, have long produced temples and idols, altars and malas, relics to amulets, images to ritual implements.<ref name="Pellizzi2005p61" /><ref>Minoru Kiyota (1985), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/30233958 Tathāgatagarbha Thought: A Basis of Buddhist Devotionalism in East Asia], Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, Vol. 12, No. 2/3, pages 207–231</ref><ref name="pori153">Pori Park (2012), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/23943371 Devotionalism Reclaimed: Re-mapping Sacred Geography in Contemporary Korean Buddhism], Journal of Korean Religions, Vol. 3, No. 2, pages 153–171</ref> The images or relics of Buddha are found in all Buddhist traditions, but they also feature gods and goddesses such as those in Tibetan Buddhism.<ref name="Pellizzi2005p61" /><ref>Allan Andrews (1993), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/3270396 Lay and Monastic Forms of Pure Land Devotionalism: Typology and History], Numen, Vol. 40, No. 1, pages 16–37</ref> Bhakti (called ''Bhatti'' in Pali) has been a common practice in [[Theravada Buddhism]], where offerings and group prayers are made to [[Cetiya]] and particularly images of Buddha.<ref>Donald Swearer (2003), Buddhism in the Modern World: Adaptations of an Ancient Tradition (Editors: Heine and Prebish), Oxford University Press, {{ISBN|978-0195146981}}, pages 9–25</ref><ref>Karen Pechelis (2011), The Bloomsbury Companion to Hindu Studies (Editor: Jessica Frazier), Bloomsbury, {{ISBN|978-1472511515}}, pages 109–112</ref> [[Karel Werner]] notes that Bhakti has been a significant practice in [[Theravada]] Buddhism, and states, "there can be no doubt that deep devotion or ''bhakti / bhatti'' does exist in Buddhism and that it had its beginnings in the earliest days".<ref>Karel Werner (1995), Love Divine: Studies in Bhakti and Devotional Mysticism, Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0700702350}}, pages 45–46</ref> According to Peter Harvey – a professor of Buddhist Studies, Buddha idols and idolatry spread into northwest Indian subcontinent (now Pakistan and Afghanistan) and into Central Asia with Buddhist Silk Road merchants.<ref name="Harvey2013p194"/> The Hindu rulers of different Indian dynasties patronized both Buddhism and Hinduism from 4th to 9th century, building Buddhist icons and cave temples such as the [[Ajanta Caves]] and [[Ellora Caves]] which featured Buddha idols.<ref name=cohen83>{{cite book|author=Richard Cohen|title=Beyond Enlightenment: Buddhism, Religion, Modernity|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R5IPMKb4WFUC&pg=PA83 |year=2006|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-134-19205-2|pages=83–84}}, '''Quote:''' Hans Bakker's political history of the Vakataka dynasty observed that Ajanta caves belong to the Buddhist, not the Hindu tradition. That this should be so is already remarkable in itself. By all we know of Harisena he was a Hindu; (...).</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last = Spink |first = Walter M. |year = 2006 |title = Ajanta: History and Development Volume 5: Cave by Cave |publisher = Brill Academic |place = Leiden |isbn = 978-90-04-15644-9 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=UPqUHXlwXdcC |pages = 179–180}}</ref><ref name=malandra1993p13/> From the 10th century, states Harvey, the raids into northwestern parts of South Asia by Muslim Turks destroyed Buddhist idols, given their religious dislike for idolatry. The iconoclasm was so linked to Buddhism, that the Islamic texts of this era in India called all idols as ''Budd''.<ref name="Harvey2013p194">{{cite book|author=Peter Harvey|title=An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u0sg9LV_rEgC&pg=PA194 |year=2013|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-85942-4|pages=194–195}}</ref> The desecration of idols in cave temples continued through the 17th century, states Geri Malandra, from the offense of "the graphic, anthropomorphic imagery of Hindu and Buddhist shrines".<ref name=malandra1993p13>{{cite book|author=Geri Hockfield Malandra|title=Unfolding A Mandala: The Buddhist Cave Temples at Ellora|url=https://archive.org/details/unfoldingmandala0000mala |url-access=registration|year=1993|publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0-7914-1355-5|pages=[https://archive.org/details/unfoldingmandala0000mala/page/n22 1]–4}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=Trudy Ring|author2=Noelle Watson|author3=Paul Schellinger|title=Asia and Oceania: International Dictionary of Historic Places|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=voerPYsAB5wC&pg=PA256|year=2012|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-63979-1|page=256}}, Quote: "Some had been desecrated by zealous Muslims during their occupation of Maharashtra in the fifteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth centuries."</ref> In East Asia and Southeast Asia, worship in Buddhist temples with the aid of icons and sacred objects has been historic.<ref name="Reinders2012p17"/> In Japanese Buddhism, for example, ''Butsugu'' (sacred objects) have been integral to the worship of the Buddha (''kuyo''), and such idolatry considered a part of the process of realizing one's Buddha nature. This process is more than meditation, it has traditionally included devotional rituals (''butsudo'') aided by the Buddhist clergy.<ref name="Reinders2012p17"/> These practices are also found in Korea and China.<ref name=pori153/><ref name="Reinders2012p17">{{cite book|author1=Fabio Rambelli|author2=Eric Reinders|title=Buddhism and Iconoclasm in East Asia: A History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yVYWmJUPQooC |year=2012|publisher=Bloomsbury Academic|isbn=978-1-4411-8168-8|pages=17–19, 23–24, 89–93}}</ref> ===Hinduism=== {{Main|Murti}} {{multiple image | align = right | image1 = Ganesh mimarjanam EDITED.jpg | width1 = 150 | alt1 = | caption1 = | image2 = Meerabai (crop).jpg | width2 = 156 | alt2 = | caption2 = | footer = [[Ganesha]] statue during a contemporary festival (left), and Bhakti saint [[Meera]] singing before an image of [[Krishna]] }} In Hinduism, an icon, image or statue is called ''[[murti]]'' or ''pratima''.<ref name="fowler41" /><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=pratima (Hinduism)|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/398379/pratima|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=21 August 2011}}</ref> Major Hindu traditions such as [[Vaishnavism]], [[Shaivism]], [[Shaktism]], and [[Smarta Tradition|Smartism]] favor the use of a ''murti'' (idol). These traditions suggest that it is easier to dedicate time and focus on [[Spirituality#Hinduism|spirituality]] through [[anthropomorphic]] or non-anthropomorphic [[icons]]. The ''[[Bhagavad Gita]]'' – a Hindu scripture, in verse 12.5, states that only a few have the time and mind to ponder and fix on the unmanifested Absolute (abstract formless Brahman), and it is much easier to focus on qualities, virtues, aspects of a manifested representation of god, through one's senses, emotions and heart, because the way human beings naturally are.<ref name="Cortright2010p106">{{cite book|author=Brant Cortright|title=Integral Psychology: Yoga, Growth, and Opening the Heart |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rqIlNbelQ0AC&pg=PA106 |year=2010|publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0-7914-8013-7|pages=106–107}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.bhagavad-gita.org/Gita/verse-12-04.html | title=Bhagavad-Gita: Chapter 12, Verse 5}}</ref> A ''murti'' in Hinduism, states Jeaneane Fowler – a professor of Religious Studies specializing on Indian Religions, is itself not god, it is an "image of god" and thus a symbol and representation.<ref name="fowler41" /> A ''murti'' is a form and manifestation, states Fowler, of the formless Absolute.<ref name="fowler41" /> Thus a literal translation of ''murti'' as idol is incorrect, when idol is understood as superstitious end in itself. Just like the photograph of a person is not the real person, a ''murti'' is an image in Hinduism but not the real thing, but in both cases the image reminds of something of emotional and real value to the viewer.<ref name="fowler41" /> When a person worships a ''murti'', it is assumed to be a manifestation of the essence or spirit of the deity, the worshipper's spiritual ideas and needs are meditated through it, yet the idea of ultimate reality – called [[Brahman]] in Hinduism – is not confined in it.<ref name="fowler41" /> Devotional (''[[bhakti movement]]'') practices centered on cultivating a deep and personal bond of love with God, often expressed and facilitated with one or more murti, and includes individual or community hymns, [[japa]] or singing (''bhajan'', ''[[kirtan]]a,'' or ''[[Arti (Hinduism)|arati]]''). Acts of devotion, in major temples particularly, are structured on treating the ''murti'' as the manifestation of a revered guest,<ref name="Gale Encyclopedia of Religion" /> and the daily routine can include awakening the ''murti'' in the morning and making sure that it "is washed, dressed, and garlanded."<ref name="klaus">Klaus Klostermaier (2007) Hinduism: A Beginner's Guide, 2nd Edition, Oxford: OneWorld Publications, {{ISBN|978-1-85168-163-1}}, pages 63–65</ref><ref>{{Citation|last=Fuller|first=C. J.|year=2004|title=The Camphor Flame: Popular Hinduism and Society in India|place=Princeton, NJ|publisher= Princeton University Press|isbn=978-0-691-12048-5|pages=67–68}}</ref>{{refn|group=Note|name=note1}} In Vaishnavism, the building of a temple for the ''murti'' is considered an act of devotion, but non-murti symbolism is also common wherein the aromatic [[Tulsi|tulasi]] plant or [[Shaligram|''shaligrama'']] is an aniconic reminder of the spiritualism in Vishnu.<ref name="klaus" /> In the [[Shaivism]] tradition of Hinduism, [[Shiva]] may be represented as a masculine idol, or half-man half woman [[Ardhanarishvara]] form, in an anicon [[Lingam|linga]]-[[yoni]] form. The worship rituals associated with the ''murti'', correspond to ancient cultural practices for a beloved guest, and the ''murti'' is welcomed, taken care of, and then requested to retire.<ref name="willis96">Michael Willis (2009), The Archaeology of Hindu Ritual, Cambridge University Press, {{ISBN|978-0-521-51874-1}}, pages 96–112, 123–143, 168–172</ref><ref>Paul Thieme (1984), "Indische Wörter und Sitten," in Kleine Schriften (Wiesbaden), Vol. 2, pages 343–370</ref> Christopher John Fuller states that an image in Hinduism cannot be equated with a deity and the object of worship is the divine whose power is inside the image, and the image is not the object of worship itself, Hindus believe everything is worthy of worship as it contains divine energy.<ref name="Fuller2004">{{cite book|author=Christopher John Fuller|title=The Camphor Flame: Popular Hinduism and Society in India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=To6XSeBUW3oC&pg=PA58|year=2004|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-0-691-12048-5|pages=58–61}}</ref> The idols are neither random nor intended as superstitious objects, rather they are designed with embedded symbolism and iconographic rules which sets the style, proportions, the colors, the nature of items the images carry, their ''[[mudra]]'' and the legends associated with the deity.<ref name="Fuller2004" /><ref>PK Acharya, A summary of the Mānsāra, a treatise on architecture and cognate subjects, PhD Thesis awarded by Rijksuniversiteit te Leiden, published by BRILL, {{oclc|898773783}}, pages 49–56, 63–65</ref><ref name="aliceboner7" /> The ''Vāstusūtra Upaniṣad'' states that the aim of the ''murti'' art is to inspire a devotee towards contemplating the Ultimate Supreme Principle ([[Brahman]]).<ref name="aliceboner7">Alice Boner, Sadāśiva Rath Śarmā and Bettina Bäumer (2000), Vāstusūtra Upaniṣad, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-81-208-0090-8}}, pages 7–9, for context see 1–10</ref> This text adds (abridged): {{Blockquote| From the contemplation of images grows delight, from delight faith, from faith steadfast devotion, through such devotion arises that higher understanding (''parāvidyā'') that is the royal road to [[moksha]]. Without the guidance of images, the mind of the devotee may go ashtray and form wrong imaginations. Images dispel false imaginations. (... ) It is in the mind of ''Rishis'' (sages), who see and have the power of discerning the essence of all created things of manifested forms. They see their different characters, the divine and the demoniac, the creative and the destructive forces, in their eternal interplay. It is this vision of Rishis, of gigantic drama of cosmic powers in eternal conflict, which the ''Sthapakas'' (Silpins, murti and temple artists) drew the subject-matter for their work. |Pippalada|Vāstusūtra Upaniṣad, Introduction by Alice Boner et al.<ref>Alice Boner, Sadāśiva Rath Śarmā and Bettina Bäumer (2000), Vāstusūtra Upaniṣad, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-81-208-0090-8}}, page 9</ref>}} Some Hindu movements founded during the [[Colonial India|colonial era]], such as the [[Arya Samaj]] and [[Satya Mahima Dharma]] reject idolatry.<ref>{{cite book | last = Naidoo | first = Thillayvel | title = The Arya Samaj Movement in South Africa | publisher = [[Motilal Banarsidass]] | page = 158 | year = 1982 | isbn = 978-81-208-0769-3}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last = Lata | first = Prem | title = Swami Dayānanda Sarasvatī | publisher = Sumit Publications | page = x | year = 1990 | isbn = 978-81-7000-114-0}}</ref><ref>Bhagirathi Nepak. [http://orissagov.nic.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/may2005/engpdf/mahima_dharma_bhima_bhoi_biswanathbaba.pdf Mahima Dharma, Bhima Bhoi and Biswanathbaba] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090410054934/http://orissagov.nic.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/may2005/engpdf/mahima_dharma_bhima_bhoi_biswanathbaba.pdf |date=10 April 2009 }}</ref> ===Jainism=== [[File:Gommateshwara, Shravanabelagola.jpg|thumb|[[Gomateshwara statue|Gomateshwara Bahubali statue]] in [[Jainism]]]] Devotional idolatry has been a prevalent ancient practice in various Jaina sects, wherein learned [[Tirthankara]] (''Jina'') and human ''gurus'' have been venerated with offerings, songs and [[Aarti|Āratī]] prayers.<ref name=johncort>John Cort, Jains in the World : Religious Values and Ideology in India, Oxford University Press, ISBN, pages 64–68, 86–90, 100–112</ref> Like other major Indian religions, Jainism has premised its spiritual practices on the belief that "all knowledge is inevitably mediated by images" and human beings discover, learn and know what is to be known through "names, images and representations". Thus, idolatry has been a part of the major sects of Jainism such as Digambara and Shvetambara.<ref name="Cort2010p3"/> The earliest archaeological evidence of the idols and images in Jainism is from [[Mathura]], and has been dated to be from the first half of the 1st millennium AD.<ref>{{cite book|author=Paul Dundas|author-link=Paul Dundas|title=The Jains, 2nd Edition|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jt6-YXE2aUwC|year=2002|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-26606-2|pages=39–40, 48–53}}</ref> The creation of idols, their consecration, the inclusion of Jaina layperson in idols and temples of Jainism by the Jaina monks has been a historic practice.<ref name="Cort2010p3">{{cite book|author=John Cort|title=Framing the Jina: Narratives of Icons and Idols in Jain History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0IF2CAAAQBAJ |year=2010|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-045257-5|pages=3, 8–12, 45–46, 219–228, 234–236 }}</ref> However, during the iconoclastic era of Islamic rule, between the 15th and 17th century, a Lonka sect of Jainism emerged that continued pursuing their traditional spirituality but without the Jaina arts, images and idols.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Suresh K. Sharma|author2=Usha Sharma|title=Cultural and Religious Heritage of India: Jainism|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VwsbJgJX84cC&pg=PA53 |year=2004|publisher=Mittal|isbn=978-81-7099-957-7|pages=53–54}}</ref> ===Sikhism=== {{Main|Idolatry in Sikhism}} [[Sikhism]] is a monotheistic Indian religion, and Sikh temples are devoid of idols and icons for God.<ref name="Cole">{{cite book |title=Sikhism and Christianity: A Comparative Study (Themes in Comparative Religion) | publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |author1=W. Owen Cole |author2=Piara Singh Sambhi | year=1993 | location=Wallingford, United Kingdom |pages=117–118 | isbn=978-0333541074}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Mark Juergensmeyer|first=Gurinder Singh Mann|year=2006|title=The Oxford Handbook of Global Religions|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=US|isbn=978-0-19-513798-9|page=41}}</ref> Yet, Sikhism strongly encourages devotion to God.<ref name=deol11>S Deol (1998), Japji: The Path of Devotional Meditation, {{ISBN|978-0-9661027-0-3}}, page 11</ref><ref name=singha110>HS Singha (2009), The Encyclopedia of Sikhism, Hemkunt Press, {{ISBN|978-81-7010-301-1}}, page 110</ref> Some scholars call [[Sikhism]] a [[Bhakti movement|Bhakti]] sect of Indian traditions.<ref>W. Owen Cole and Piara Singh Sambhi (1997), A Popular Dictionary of Sikhism: Sikh Religion and Philosophy, Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0700710485}}, page 22</ref><ref name=davidlorenzen>David Lorenzen (1995), Bhakti Religion in North India: Community Identity and Political Action, State University of New York Press, {{ISBN|978-0791420256}}, pages 1–3</ref> In Sikhism, "Nirguni Bhakti" is emphasised – devotion to a divine without [[Gunas]] (qualities or form),<ref name=davidlorenzen/><ref name=hardip>Hardip Syan (2014), in The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies (Editors: Pashaura Singh, Louis E. Fenech), Oxford University Press, {{ISBN|978-0199699308}}, page 178</ref><ref>A Mandair (2011), Time and religion-making in modern Sikhism, in ''Time, History and the Religious Imaginary in South Asia'' (Editor: Anne Murphy), Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0415595971}}, page 188-190</ref> but its scripture also accepts representations of God with formless (''nirguni'') and with form (''saguni''), as stated in Adi Granth 287.<ref>Mahinder Gulati (2008), Comparative Religious And Philosophies : Anthropomorphism And Divinity, Atlantic, {{ISBN|978-8126909025}}, page 305</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=W.O. Cole|author2=Piara Singh Sambhi|title=Sikhism and Christianity: A Comparative Study |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G8KMCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA34 |year=2016|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-1-349-23049-5|pages=34–35}}</ref> Sikhism condemns worshipping images or statues as if it were God,<ref>{{cite book|author1=W.O. Cole|author2=Piara Singh Sambhi|title=Sikhism and Christianity: A Comparative Study |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G8KMCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA34 |year=2016|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-1-349-23049-5|pages=36–37}}</ref> but have historically challenged the iconoclastic policies and Hindu temple destruction activities of Islamic rulers in India.<ref>{{cite book|author=John F. Richards|title=The Mughal Empire|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHyVh29gy4QC&pg=PA178|year=1995|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-56603-2|page=178}}</ref> Sikhs house their scripture and revere the [[Guru Granth Sahib]] as the final [[Sikh gurus|Guru]] of Sikhism.<ref>Jane Bingham (2007), Sikhism, Atlas of World Faiths, {{ISBN|978-1599200590}}, pages 19-20</ref> It is installed in Sikh ''[[Gurdwara]]'' (temple), many Sikhs bow or prostrate before it on entering the gurdwara.{{refn|group=Note|name=note1|Such idol caring practices are found in other religions. For example, the [[Infant Jesus of Prague]] is venerated in many countries of the Catholic world. In the [[Prague]] Church it is housed, it is ritually cared for, cleaned and dressed by the sisters of the Carmelites Church, changing the Infant Jesus' clothing to one of the approximately hundred costumes donated by the faithfuls as gift of devotion.<ref>{{cite book|author=Courtney T. Goto|title=The Grace of Playing: Pedagogies for Leaning into God's New Creation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oUuPCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA67| year=2016|publisher=Wipf and Stock|isbn=978-1-4982-3300-2|pages=67–68}}</ref><ref name="Melton2001i">{{cite book| author=J. Gordon Melton|title=Encyclopedia of Occultism & Parapsychology: A-L|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=jn9IPgAACAAJ|year=2001 |publisher=Gale|isbn=978-0-8103-9488-9|page= Idolatry}}, [http://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/ancient-religions/ancient-religion/idolatry Alternate Link]</ref> The idol is worshipped with the faithful believing that it renders favors to those who pray to it.<ref name="Melton2001i"/><ref name="Bertrand2003p87">{{cite book| author=Régis Bertrand|title= La Nativité et le temps de Noël: XVIIe-XXe siècle| url= https://books.google.com/books?id=E-zYAAAAMAAJ| year=2003| publisher= Publ. de l'Université de Provence|language=fr|isbn=978-2-85399-552-8|pages=87–95}}</ref><ref>Margarita Simon Guillory (2011), [https://scholarship.rice.edu/bitstream/handle/1911/64444/GuilloryM.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y Creating Selves: An Interdisciplinary Exploration of Self and Creativity in African American Religion], PhD Thesis, Awarded by Rice University, Advisor: Anthony Pinn, pages 122–128</ref> Such ritualistic caring of the image of baby Jesus is found in other churches and homes in Central Europe and Portugal / Spain influenced Christian communities with different names, such as ''Menino Deus''.<ref name="Bertrand2003p87"/><ref name=reinhardt147>{{cite journal | last=Reinhardt | first=Steven G. | title=Review: La Nativité et le temps de Noël, XVIIe-XXe siècle | journal=The Catholic Historical Review | volume=94 | issue=1 | year=2008 | pages=147–149 | doi=10.1353/cat.2008.0002 | s2cid=159896901 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Francois Soyer|title=Ambiguous Gender in Early Modern Spain and Portugal: Inquisitors, Doctors and the Transgression of Gender Norms|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xfgyAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA212|year=2012|publisher=BRILL Academic|isbn=978-90-04-23278-5|pages=212–213}};<br />[http://itinerante.pt/avessadas-e-menino-jesus-de-praga-a-comunhao-perfeita/?lang=en Avessadas and the Infant Jesus of Prague] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180725121511/http://itinerante.pt/avessadas-e-menino-jesus-de-praga-a-comunhao-perfeita/?lang=en |date=25 July 2018 }} Portugal</ref>}} Guru Granth Sahib is ritually installed every morning, and put to bed at night in many ''Gurdwaras''.<ref>William Owen Cole and Piara Singh Sambhi (1995), The Sikhs: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices, Sussex Academic Press, {{ISBN|978-1898723134}}, page 44</ref><ref>Torkel Brekke (2014), Religion, War, and Ethics: A Sourcebook of Textual Traditions (Editors: Gregory M. Reichberg and Henrik Syse), Cambridge University Press, {{ISBN|978-0521450386}}, page 675</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Gerald Parsons|title=The Growth of Religious Diversity: Traditions|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vM--pQp5qBUC&pg=PA211|year=1993|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-08326-3|page=211}}</ref> In the [[Dasam Granth|Dasam Bani]], [[Guru Gobind Singh]] wrote "I am idol-breaker" on line 95 of his [[Zafarnama (letter)|Zafarnamah]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.sikhitothemax.org/shabad?id=12797&highlight=140347 | title=Shabad the Lord is One and His Word is True.. ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂ ਜੀ ਕੀ ਫ਼ਤਹ ॥ - SikhiToTheMax }}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. 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