List of Hindu deities

Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva seated on lotuses with their consorts

Hinduism is the dominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. It comprises three major traditions, Shaivism, Vaishnavism and Shaktism,[1] whose followers considered Shiva, Vishnu and Shakti (also called as Devin) to be the supreme deity respectively. Most of the other deities were either related to them or different forms (incarnations) of these deities. Hinduism has been called the "oldest religion" in the world, and many practitioners refer to Hinduism as "the eternal law". (Sanātana Dharma).[2] Given below is a list of the chief Hindu deities followed by a list of Hindu deities (including demi-gods).The Hindus are claimed to be monotheistis Smartism, a relatively modern Hindu tradition (compared to the three older traditions), invites the worship of more than one god including Shiva, Vishnu, Shakti, Ganesha (the elephant god) and Surya (the sun god) among other gods and goddesses. It is not as overtly sectarian as either Vashnavism or Saivism and is based on the recognition that Brahman (God) is the highest principle in the universe and pervades all of existence.[3][4][5][6]

Main Deities

The Hindu trinity consists of Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Preserver, and Shiva the Destroyer. The followers of the last two form two major sects.

Vishnu

Main article: Vishnu

Vaishnavism is the sect within Hinduism that worships Vishnu, the preserver god of the Hindu Trimurti ('three images', the Trinity), and his ten incarnations. It is a devotional sect, and followers worship many deities, including Rama and Krishna, both considered as incarnations of Vishnu. The adherents of this sect are generally non-ascetic, monastic and devoted to meditative practice and ecstatic chanting.[3][4][5][6] Some alternate names of Vishnu the Preserver:

Shiva

Main article: Shiva

Saivism is the Hindu sect that worships the god Shiva. Shiva, the destroyer god among the Trimurti, is sometimes depicted as the fierce god Bhairava. Saivists are more attracted to asceticism than adherents of other Hindu sects, and may be found wandering with ashen faces performing self-purification rituals.[3][4][5][6] Some alternate names of Shiva:

Devi

Main article: Devi

Cults of goddess worship are ancient in India. The branch of Hinduism that worships the goddess, known as Devi, is called Shaktism. Followers of Shaktism recognize Shakti as the power that underlies the female principle, and Devi is often depicted as Parvati the consort of Shiva or as Lakshmi the consort of Vishnu. She is also depicted in other guises, such as the fierce Kali or Durga. In Shaktism, Adi Parashakti is regarded as Ultimate Godhead or Para Brahman. She is formless i.e. Nirguna in reality but may take many forms i.e. Saguna. Durga or Lalita tripur sundari is regarded as Supreme deity with forms. Shaktism is closely related with Tantric Hinduism, which teaches rituals and practices for purification of the mind and body.[3][4][5][6] Some alternate names of Shakti (Devi) the Mother Goddess:

Related Deities

Avatars (Incarnations)

Vishnu

Dasavatara

  1. Matsya, the fish
  2. Kurma, the tortoise
  3. Varaha, the boar
  4. Narasimha, the Half Man-Half Lion (Nara = man, simha = lion)
  5. Parashurama, Rama with the axe
  6. Vamana, the Dwarf
  7. Sree Rama, Sri Ramachandra, the king of Ayodhya and the hero of the epic Ramayana
  8. Bala Rama,Lord of Cultivation and Elder Brother of Lord Sree Krishna
  9. Sree Krishna, a hero of the epic Mahabharata and the creator of the Bhagavad Gita (Lord's Song).
  10. Kalki who is expected to appear at the end of Kali Yuga, the time period in which we currently exist.

Krishna is often associated with His beloved goddess Radha, and hence also known as Radha Krishna. Krishna was also manifested as Lord Jagannatha. People of Eastern India consider Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to be his re-incarnation. Krishna is the chief deity of the Iskcon Hare Krishna and other sects.

Sheshnag

Lakshmi

Minor Gods

The Rigveda speaks of Thirty-three gods called the Tridasha ('Three times ten'). They consisted of the 12 Adityas, the 8 Vasus, the 11 Rudras and the 2 Ashvins. Indra also called Śakra, lord of the gods, is the first of the 33 followed by Agni. Some of these brother gods were invoked in pairs such as Indra-Agni, Mitra-Varuna and Soma-Rudra.

Adityas

Vasus

Assistants of Indra and of Vishnu

Rudras

The Ramayana tells they are eleven of the 33 children of the sage Kashyapa and his wife Aditi, along with the 12 Adityas, 8 Vasus and 2 Ashvins, constituting the Thirty-three gods.[2] The Vamana Purana describes the Rudras as the sons of Kashyapa and Aditi.[3] The Matsya Purana notes that Surabhi – the mother of all cows and the "cow of plenty" – was the consort of Brahma and their union produced the eleven Rudras. Here they are named Nirriti, Shambhu, Aparajita Mrigavyadha, Kapardi, Dahana, Khara, Ahirabradhya, Kapali, Pingala and Senani – the foremost.[4] Brahma allotted to the Rudras the eleven positions of the heart and the five sensory organs, the five organs of action and the mind.[2][3] [7][8]

Ashvins

The Ashvins (also called the Nāsatyas) were twin gods. Nasatya is also the name of one twin, while the other is called Dasra.

List in alphabetical order

Most of the Hindu temples are dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu (including his incarnations Krishna and Rama), Shakti (the mother goddess, hence including the forms of Durga and Kali and the goddesses Lakshmi and Saraswati), Ganesh and Hanuman.[9][10][11] The Hindu scriptures claimed that there were 33 Crore or 330 million (1 Crore = 10 million) gods, but this is not 33 crore, 33 Koti. Koti means kind "prakar". in translation koti is translated into crore that was wrong.

The number might be figurative but there are several names and forms for the multitude of gods.[12] Given below is an incomplete list of deities.

A

B

C

D

Ram-faced Daksha (right) with Virabhadra form of Shiva

G

Ganga

H

Hanuman

I

J

K

L

M

19th century South Indian depiction of Raja-Matangi

N

P

R

Radha

S

Saraswati

T

U

V

Y

See also

References

Notes
  1. ↑ Nath 2001, p. 31.
  2. ↑ Knott 1998, p. 5.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "The Four Denominations of Hinduism". Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "The Four Main Denominations". Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Hindu Sects". Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Dubois. Hindu Manners, Customs and Ceremonies. Cosimo. p. 111.
  7. ↑ Mani, Vettam (1975). Puranic Encyclopaedia: A Comprehensive Dictionary With Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 0-8426-0822-2.
  8. ↑ Daniélou, Alain (1991). The myths and gods of India. Inner Traditions International. pp. 102–4, 341, 371. ISBN 0-89281-354-7.
  9. ↑ "Hindu Gods & Goddesses". Sanatan Society. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  10. ↑ "Hinduism". About.com. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  11. ↑ "Hindu gods and goddesses". usefulcharts. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  12. ↑ Lynn Foulston, Stuart Abbott. Hindu goddesses: beliefs and practices. pp. 1–2.

External links

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