Tag: 365 Names Of God

“GOD” (quotation marks deliberate) is a more concise statement of Intent than “that-which-some-call-God” or even “that-which-passes-for-God.” (Or even The Metaphorager’s own working definition.) The shorter, the sweeter.

Once upon a time, in 2011 in fact, The Metaphorager aspired each day to feature a different name for that-which-passes-for-God. Some were creative, others traditional, each unique; so we’re going to attempt that project again (though not every day) until we run out of the names we’ve collected so far. If you want to see your favorite here, but haven’t, send it along with the subject line “365 Names” and let us know whether or not you want to be credited.

THE UNSEEN SEER Google this, and you’ll find a bunch of links describing a Dungeons & Dragons character class. But I recently saw this Name in an (unremembered, alas) online Torah publication, and I like it because of the image it provokes: a Presence invisible yet omniscient; an Observer which uses our eyes, but lives just outside our own perception; a Witness to all that transpires. Spooky-but-cool, isn’t it? Continue reading “365 Names: “The Unseen Seer””

LOVE is defined here in its Divine sense as “That which attracts and unifies.” Similar in principle to the Great Magnet, but different in its connotation of intimacy. The Greeks have specified this Name’s essential qualities as “eros,” or sexuality, and “agape,” a more selfless emotion and one better suited for our analytic purposes. (The latter sense is Christian in origin, but why should we let only one religion have all the fun?) Continue reading “365 Names: “Love””

G-D is a bit of linguistic trickery. Because traditional Judaism teaches that the name of G?d (see what I did there?) is not to be erased, “G-d” is a way to write that Name without really writing it: on a Hebrew school blackboard, say, or a Xeroxed handout, or a computer screen, or any transient or otherwise ephemeral medium. Of course, as Rabbi Larry Kushner points out, “‘God’ is not God’s name” — thus, erasing “God” should pose no theological problem. Some habits, though, are hard to break. (So what’s with the question mark? See here, o seeker after Divine nomenclature.) Continue reading “365 Names: “G-d””

FLOW is preferred to The Flow, since “the” suggests separateness — “Thingness,” if you will — and as Flow cannot be reliably distinguished from that-which-flows, said usage would upset “the” carefully built phenomenological apple-cart. (And we certainly can’t have that.) Just another attempt at naming the Nameless…without naming it, of course. Continue reading “365 Names: Flow”

TEACHER The active metaphor here is that G?d has set lessons all around us, and it’s our job to discover them; imagine everything in the Universe labeled with a great big “LEARN HERE” sticker. No one of us really knows anybody else’s lesson, and in fact, it’s none of anyone else’s business what those lessons are. It’s a secret between us and what-some-choose-to-call-G?d. And isn’t it nice having a secret that you don’t have to share? Continue reading “365 Names: “Teacher””

THE SHEKHINA, or “Presence (of G?d),” comes from the Hebrew root meaning “to dwell” (it’s the same root as “mishkan,” the portable desert G?d-tent AKA “Tabernacle”). There’s a seamless distinction between the Presence of G?d and G?d Itself. Tradition teaches that G?d is everywhere/when — but that doesn’t mean we always feel that. Shekhina is that closeness. With attention and practice, G?d’s Presence can be easier to experience in some places and times than others (e.g., the Western Wall, a maternity ward, or an observatory for the former; for the latter, Shabbat and other holy days, solar or lunar eclipses). Continue reading “365 Names: “Shekhina””

THE PRESENCE is a more experiential-than-otherwise Divine descriptor. It attempts to portray the ineffable (nameless/wordless) quality of that-which-some-people-call-God, or what Freud’s friend Romain Rolland termed the “oceanic feeling” of being One with the Universe. It has the advantage of being both non-dogmatic and non-dual; there’s nothing to argue about, only something to feel or, if you prefer, to see. That’s certainly bad news for people who like to write about such things, but much easier on the rest of us who don’t (or don’t choose to) understand the reference. Right? Continue reading “365 Names: “The Presence””

G?D IS MY GO-TO Name for the that-which-some-people-call-God concept. It’s adapted from the traditionalist Jewish spelling “G-d,” with a twist: the “?” denotes Its Greatly Unknowable aspect. There is no way I (or anyone) could reasonably explain or even talk about “God” — Which is, by definition, indefinable — and spelling this most basic Name with a question-mark keeps me mindful of that important fact. Affected? Perhaps. Pretentious? Not at all. Catchy? I hope so. Continue reading “365 Names: G?d”

KING ALPHA From the 1970 song “Rivers of Babylon” by The Melodians comes this Rastafarian take on Psalms 19 and 137 (but mostly 137). Although the group may intend King Alpha to refer to the Ethiopian king and Rasta hero Haile Selassie, I respectfully suggest that this Name also makes a good in-general moniker for G?d: “Alpha” is the first letter of the Greek alphabet, reflecting the “G?d is One” theme of the Shema; “King” can be a metaphor for the Sovereign Constructor or (Constructing Principle) of the Universe. Put ’em both together and they spell t-h-e-o-l-o-g-y. Continue reading “365 Names of God: “King Alpha””