THE 'SHAKTI' TRINITY
Pt. 2 - EASTERN MYSTICISM: The (Un-)'Holy' Trinity of The Shack
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(Continued from Pt. 1 - THE SHACK - Parallels to the 'Shakti' of Hinduism, and the One-World Church)
In regard to a connection with 'Eastern Mysticism' in The Shack, first, let's take a look at the very name of the book itself. While on the surface of the story 'The Shack' refers to just that, a remote shack in the Oregon wilderness, it is also a metaphor of the main character, Mack's, 'darkest nightmare'.
It is in this Shack that his youngest daughter, Missy, may have been brutally murdered. In this moving allegory of God's grace in the midst of great tragedy and sadness, I am not without empathy for the character of 'Mack', Mackenzie Allen Philips. As a parent, I could strongly feel the emotion that the loss of a child would bring, especially under the horrific circumstances of abduction and murder.
All the truly heart-rending emotion aside, however, if this story is viewed somewhat more objectively, elements of a different sort appear that transcend a mere story about a father's loss and suffering, and his subsequent reconciliation with God. While this story is a work of fiction, it is however meant to be based on Christian belief and faith.
In most stories of fiction, even those based on historical fact, some 'artistic license' is allowable. However, when you are writing Biblical fiction, you cannot stray from Biblical teaching lest you come into grave error and lead yourself, and others, astray.
Many elements in this book point to a very different kind of 'faith' than that put forth in the true Word of God. While I am willing to give the author, William Paul Young, the benefit of the doubt, there is much more in The Shack akin to a 'New Age' belief system than there is to the Bible.
There are far too many 'coincidental' parallels that can be drawn with many of the New Age influences currently entering the Church, particularly those such as Eastern Mysticism, Universalism, and Ecumenism, for it to be mere 'coincidence'.
Though certainly not the most obvious, or telling, of these 'coincidences,' I will start with the name on the cover of the book, The Shack, as this is the very first thing most readers will encounter. This name has been said to have a possible connection to the religion of Hinduism in the form of the Sanskrit word 'Shakti' or 'Shaci'.
An article entitled 'Hidden Heresies of The Shack' asks, "Is it pure luck that "The Shack" and Shaci sound alike, and that Kali in the form of Elousia (the Black Madonna), her daughter Sara-La-Kali (Saryu or Sarayu), and Indra (a false 'Christ' who makes his appearance in India), all meet together in the form Shaci like they meet in "The Shack"...[3]
This may seem at first to be rather 'far-fetched' until you observe the many parallels with the The 'Shack' of this story, and the Shakti (or Shaci) of Hinduism. For instance, two of the three characters in the 'trinity' of the shakti, and of The Shack, even have nearly the exact same name -
Elousia is another name in the book for 'Papa', as well as being the name of Kali in the Shakti in the form of Elousia, the Black Madonna; Sarayu is the name for Holy Spirit (of God) in the story of The Shack, as well as being the name of the daughter of Kali, Saryu, Saranyu, Kali-in-the-Spirit (Kali's Spirit), or Sara-La-Kali.
Following is the definition from Wikipedia of the Hindu concept of Shakti which will help to show the connection of 'The Shack' with a Male/Female - God/Goddess deity, and a 'Trinity' that meets in a 'Shakti':
"Shakti, from Sanskrit shak (Shack!)- "to be able," meaning sacred force or empowerment, is the primordial cosmic energy and represents the dynamic forces that move through the entire universe."
"Shakti is the concept, or personification, of divine feminine creative power, sometimes referred to as 'The Great Divine Mother' in Hinduism. On the earthly plane, Shakti most actively manifests through female embodiment ('Papa' / Sarayu) and fertility - while also existing in males ('Jesus'), in its potential, unmanifest form." [4]
As portrayed in The Shack, the female embodiment of the sacred force in Shakti is manifested in the female form of 'Papa' (as well as 'Sarayu,' a female personification of the Holy Spirit). As stated above, "Shakti most actively manifests through female embodiment, while also existing in males"[5]
- Such as in the character of 'Jesus' in The Shack! "Shakti is the concept sometimes referred to as 'The Great Divine Mother'."[6] In The Shack, 'Papa' (God) often refers to herself as the Mother, and to Jesus as her son. The article on Shaktism in the Wikipedia online dictionary continues:
"In Shaktism, Shakti is worshiped as the Supreme Being... Shakti embodies the active feminine energy. Not only is the Shakti responsible for creation, it also the agent of all change. Shakti is cosmic existence as well as liberation... Shakti exists in a state of svātantrya, dependence on no-one, being interdependent with the entire universe.[7]
See Pt. 3 - EAST MEETS WEST: (In the "Shack")
© Copyright 2009 / His Faithfulness Ministries
Read entire eBook FREE on Amazon!
(Continued from Pt. 1 - THE SHACK - Parallels to the 'Shakti' of Hinduism, and the One-World Church)
In regard to a connection with 'Eastern Mysticism' in The Shack, first, let's take a look at the very name of the book itself. While on the surface of the story 'The Shack' refers to just that, a remote shack in the Oregon wilderness, it is also a metaphor of the main character, Mack's, 'darkest nightmare'.
It is in this Shack that his youngest daughter, Missy, may have been brutally murdered. In this moving allegory of God's grace in the midst of great tragedy and sadness, I am not without empathy for the character of 'Mack', Mackenzie Allen Philips. As a parent, I could strongly feel the emotion that the loss of a child would bring, especially under the horrific circumstances of abduction and murder.
All the truly heart-rending emotion aside, however, if this story is viewed somewhat more objectively, elements of a different sort appear that transcend a mere story about a father's loss and suffering, and his subsequent reconciliation with God. While this story is a work of fiction, it is however meant to be based on Christian belief and faith.
In most stories of fiction, even those based on historical fact, some 'artistic license' is allowable. However, when you are writing Biblical fiction, you cannot stray from Biblical teaching lest you come into grave error and lead yourself, and others, astray.
Many elements in this book point to a very different kind of 'faith' than that put forth in the true Word of God. While I am willing to give the author, William Paul Young, the benefit of the doubt, there is much more in The Shack akin to a 'New Age' belief system than there is to the Bible.
There are far too many 'coincidental' parallels that can be drawn with many of the New Age influences currently entering the Church, particularly those such as Eastern Mysticism, Universalism, and Ecumenism, for it to be mere 'coincidence'.
Though certainly not the most obvious, or telling, of these 'coincidences,' I will start with the name on the cover of the book, The Shack, as this is the very first thing most readers will encounter. This name has been said to have a possible connection to the religion of Hinduism in the form of the Sanskrit word 'Shakti' or 'Shaci'.
An article entitled 'Hidden Heresies of The Shack' asks, "Is it pure luck that "The Shack" and Shaci sound alike, and that Kali in the form of Elousia (the Black Madonna), her daughter Sara-La-Kali (Saryu or Sarayu), and Indra (a false 'Christ' who makes his appearance in India), all meet together in the form Shaci like they meet in "The Shack"...[3]
This may seem at first to be rather 'far-fetched' until you observe the many parallels with the The 'Shack' of this story, and the Shakti (or Shaci) of Hinduism. For instance, two of the three characters in the 'trinity' of the shakti, and of The Shack, even have nearly the exact same name -
Elousia is another name in the book for 'Papa', as well as being the name of Kali in the Shakti in the form of Elousia, the Black Madonna; Sarayu is the name for Holy Spirit (of God) in the story of The Shack, as well as being the name of the daughter of Kali, Saryu, Saranyu, Kali-in-the-Spirit (Kali's Spirit), or Sara-La-Kali.
Following is the definition from Wikipedia of the Hindu concept of Shakti which will help to show the connection of 'The Shack' with a Male/Female - God/Goddess deity, and a 'Trinity' that meets in a 'Shakti':
"Shakti, from Sanskrit shak (Shack!)- "to be able," meaning sacred force or empowerment, is the primordial cosmic energy and represents the dynamic forces that move through the entire universe."
"Shakti is the concept, or personification, of divine feminine creative power, sometimes referred to as 'The Great Divine Mother' in Hinduism. On the earthly plane, Shakti most actively manifests through female embodiment ('Papa' / Sarayu) and fertility - while also existing in males ('Jesus'), in its potential, unmanifest form." [4]
As portrayed in The Shack, the female embodiment of the sacred force in Shakti is manifested in the female form of 'Papa' (as well as 'Sarayu,' a female personification of the Holy Spirit). As stated above, "Shakti most actively manifests through female embodiment, while also existing in males"[5]
- Such as in the character of 'Jesus' in The Shack! "Shakti is the concept sometimes referred to as 'The Great Divine Mother'."[6] In The Shack, 'Papa' (God) often refers to herself as the Mother, and to Jesus as her son. The article on Shaktism in the Wikipedia online dictionary continues:
"In Shaktism, Shakti is worshiped as the Supreme Being... Shakti embodies the active feminine energy. Not only is the Shakti responsible for creation, it also the agent of all change. Shakti is cosmic existence as well as liberation... Shakti exists in a state of svātantrya, dependence on no-one, being interdependent with the entire universe.[7]
See Pt. 3 - EAST MEETS WEST: (In the "Shack")
© Copyright 2009 / His Faithfulness Ministries
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