In his book, The World’s Religions, Huston Smith discusses the various concepts of God across different religions, emphasizing their similarities and differences. In chapters 6, 7, and 8, Smith delves deeper into God’s attributes, exploring God’s characteristics in Judaism, Islam, and Christian religions. Smith highlights various attributes of God, some of which are similar to the concepts of Brahman and the Dao, while others are distinct. Smith’s attributes of God can be compared to the Hindu concept of Brahman and the Chinese concept of the Dao, revealing essential similarities and differences between the three spiritual philosophies.
The Abrahamic religions share a common belief in the nature of God. All three traditions believe that God is a single, omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent being who created the universe and everything in it. God is seen as a personal being who is loving, merciful, and just (Smith 244). Additionally, he is seen as a judge who rewards good and punishes evil. All three traditions also believe that God is ultimately unknowable and beyond human comprehension by being considered mysterious and beyond human understanding (Smith 278). Further, he is seen as a loving and caring father figure who desires to be in a relationship with his creation.
Consequently, the religions also share a belief in the importance of following the teachings of God as revealed in scripture. In each of these traditions, God is seen as a source of authority and truth, and his teachings are seen as binding upon all believers. Finally, all three traditions believe in the resurrection of the dead and the coming of a Messiah to usher in a new era of peace and justice. This belief in the afterlife is a core part of the Abrahamic religions and reinforces the importance of living a good and righteous life.
In Chapters 6, 7, and 8 of The World’s Religion, Huston Smith highlights God’s characteristics as the Creator and Sustainer of the universe. He notes that God is the source of all power, infinite in nature, and the ultimate source of love and mercy in both chapters (Smith 320). He also describes God as being omniscient and omnipresent, able to transcend time and space, and omnipotent, able to intervene in the natural order of the universe.
Like God, Brahman is the supreme source of all power and is infinite in nature. Brahman is also viewed as the ultimate source of love and mercy and is believed to be omniscient and omnipresent (Basinger 42). The Dao, or the Way, is also seen as an omnipresent and omniscient force that transcends time and space and is believed to have the power to intervene in the natural order of the universe (Basinger 113). God and the Dao are the source of all creation and sustaining the universe. However, there are some differences in how these concepts are expressed. Brahman is seen as an all-encompassing, impersonal force, while the Dao is seen as the universe’s natural order. How these characteristics are described differs depending on the particular religious tradition. Ultimately, there is a common thread of God as the source of all creation in the book. Whether expressed as Brahman or the Dao, this concept of God is seen as something beyond human comprehension, but which is ultimately the source of all power, love, and mercy.
In conclusion, Huston Smith’s exploration of the attributes of God in the Abrahamic religions provides insight into the similarities and differences between the concept of God and the other two major world religions, Brahman and the Dao. Although there are differences in how the characteristics of God are expressed, all three traditions share a common belief in the ultimate source of all creation and power and the leading source of love and mercy. This common thread of God as the source of all creation affirms the universality of the world’s religions and provides a glimpse into the mystery of the divine.
Works Cited
Basinger, David. Religious diversity: A philosophical assessment. Routledge, 2021. Web.
Smith, Huston. The World’s Religions. 2nd ed., HarperOne, 2009.