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9. COMING OF THOMAS
All these were very new to the Indian religions. I see no way of explaining these away as something, which was hidden in the Vedas, because that will require twisting of the truth and unacceptable hermeneutics. The usual method employed to accomplish this is to use allegorical interpretation. Anyone who had used allegory knows that any body can establish anything using allegory because there the interpreter imposes his own meaning and symbolism without justification on the text.
Bhakthi or faith itself took up a new meaning with the coming of Christianity. Puja and sacrifices were indeed in existence even in the Vedic religion. However, the intent of those was to give gods something in exchange for something the yajamana of the yajna can get from them. Gods liked Whisky (Soma drink) so we give it to them. In return, the Yajamana gets prosperity, children etc.
That is barter, not Bhakthi. Bhakthi towards a loving God is in response to who God is, whom we know in our daily life through his faithfulness, provision and love. Man cannot bribe God. This is what Christianity presented. God drank the poison vicariously to save mankind. In response, he demands total surrender. This was the basis of the later Bhakthi movement of South India. Bhakthi movement was a resurgence of the lost concept of Bhakthi as brought in by Thomas. It somehow got lost. We will discuss the mechanism and the agent of such heresy in another chapter. Evidently, something happened during the period soon after the advent of Christian Era in the history of Indian Religions.
Soma
Vedism disappeared totally which was reeling under the pressure of rationalistic atheistic religious movements of Buddhism and Jainism. There were only three choices for common man - rigorously ascetic religions of Jainism and Buddhism or primitive village gods and goddesses. Brahmins were at the verge of extinction and were scattered throughout India as minority groups trying to clasp at the final straw. The straw came in the form of a foreigner who brought in a totally new religion, which no one has ever heard of before. This was good news - that there is indeed a Supreme God
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