Cognitive Constraints on Hindu Concepts of the Divine
Abstract
Concepts of gods, like any other concepts, are informed and constrained by cross-cultural regularities of the human mind-brain. Specifically, divine beings that are represented as intentional agents are subject to the cognitive intuitions that govern all intentional agents. These intuitions may include psychological and physical attributes not endorsed by a given theological tradition. Experimental evidence is presented supporting the presence of these cognitive constraints and a resulting divergence between stated theological beliefs and implicit concepts. Hindu residents of northern India completed questionnaires regarding attributes of Brahman, Shiva, Vishnu, or Krishna and also participated in a narrative comprehension task. Results revealed striking differences in how the gods were conceived in the two contexts.
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Minds never free themselves entirely from their mortal coil: the dead continue to be imagined as possessing ethereal bodies resembling those they possessed in life, as well as being subject to physical limitations typically imposed by bodies.
“In a similar fashion, minds never free themselves entirely from their mortal coil: the dead continue to be imagined as possessing ethereal bodies resembling those they ' possessed ' in life, as well as being subject to the sorts of physical limitations typically imposed by bodies. 39”
From Body and Mind in Early China: An Integrated Humanities–Science Approach (2013) · cites this paper as Barrett 1998
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References 27 · Cited by 239
- Authors
- Barrett, J. L.
- Corresponding author
- Barrett, Justin L.
- ORCID
- Barrett, Justin L.
- Venue
- Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion
- Publisher
- JSTOR
- Published
- 1998-12
- Volume
- 37
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 608
- ISSN
- 0021-8294 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2068986063
- Cited by
- 239
- References
- 27
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 19 · 2019: 22 · 2018: 12 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 11 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 4 · 2012: 8
- FWCI
- 20.28
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion (publishedVersion)
- Oxford University Research Archive (ORA) (University of Oxford) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › Study and Philosophy of Religion
- Social Sciences › Health › Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Cultural Differences and Values
- Keywords
- cognitive limitations, Hinduism, Brahman, Shiva, Vishnu, Krishna, intentional agents, narrative comprehension, theological beliefs
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