This would appear to be a totally inappropriate use of the word. What do you think?
2007-11-01 07:19:24 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
According to my dictionary, an Avatar is a person of unqiue religious portent, being sent to instruct the world, roughly every 2, 000 years.
Any othe use seems inappropriate. That it seems to come from the gaming world, even more so
2007-11-01 10:42:21 · update #1
avatar is a Sanskrit word that mean incarnation of God or of a divine person, since the ordinary person would be a reincarnating person, not an avatar.
The use is inappropriate in the same way they misuse the word guru, a spiritual master, they relate it for master in any thing.
2007-11-01 20:14:55 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It would be, but "avatar" has been long used in the software world for anything representing the user on the screen. This is mostly in the game development world where it is a reasonable analogy.
2007-11-01 07:24:21 · answer #2 · answered by Pirate AM™ 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Well, the word "icon" refers to a religious image while "avatar" means roughly "incarnation", I think "avatar" is more appropriate .
2007-11-01 07:25:57 · answer #3 · answered by Julie F 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Business and ego r part of the game of this world. People use popular names including names of God for this purpose.
2007-11-03 07:47:38 · answer #4 · answered by dd 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well it depends the image is the online embodyment of the user with the words expressing the users view so if you look at krishna for example he was the avatar (from the sanscrit Avatara) of vishnu and he represented certain aspects of vishnu so the use of the word isn't out of sorts as the image and words are the expression of us in the online world from the offlineworld.
2007-11-01 08:38:32 · answer #5 · answered by manapaformetta 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋