Adevism (from the
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...
term ''deva'', on the analogy of
atheism
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the Existence of God, existence of Deity, deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the ...
) is a term introduced by
Friedrich Max Müller to imply the denial of gods, in particular, the legendary gods of
Vedic Hinduism. Müller used it in the
Gifford Lectures in connection with the
Vedanta
''Vedanta'' (; , ), also known as ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six orthodox (Āstika and nāstika, ''āstika'') traditions of Hindu philosophy and textual exegesis. The word ''Vedanta'' means 'conclusion of the Vedas', and encompa ...
philosophy, for the correlative of ignorance or
nescience
Nescience is the obverse of science presumes a want of Trust (social science), trustworthy knowledge that is necessary for one to flourishing, flourish.
It is relevant to philosophical study and some religious traditions in which nescience is el ...
. In modern contexts it is rarely found, though it is sometimes used to represent a disbelief in ''any'' gods, contrasted with a specific disbelief in the
Judaeo-Christian deity (
God
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
). Adevism is not to be confused with
atheism
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the Existence of God, existence of Deity, deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the ...
, which is the denial of a god ''or'' gods.
Adevism is used extremely infrequently in writing, probably because of the much used term atheism, which sounds similar.
See also
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Hindu atheism
Hindu atheism or non-theism, which is known as Nirīśvaravāda (Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: ) has been a historically propounded viewpoint in many of the ''Āstika and nāstika, Astika'' (Orthodox) streams of Hindu philosophy. Hindu Spiritua ...
*
Nastika
*
Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religions, Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zoroaster, Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, ...
*
Asura
*
Ahura Mazda
Ahura Mazda (; ; or , ),The former is the New Persian rendering of the Avestan form, while the latter derives from Middle Persian. also known as Horomazes (),, is the only creator deity and Sky deity, god of the sky in the ancient Iranian ...
*
Daeva
*
Deva (Hinduism)
''Deva'' (, ) means 'shiny', 'exalted', 'heavenly being', 'divine being', 'anything of excellence', and is also one of the Sanskrit terms used to indicate a deity in Hinduism.Monier Monier-Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary” Etymologicall ...
*
Secular Buddhism
References
Gifford lectures, 1892, c. ix.
Agnosticism
Hinduism and atheism
Religion and atheism
Hindu philosophical concepts
{{Atheism-stub