HINDUISM ~ THE VEDIC GODS
There are two distinct classes of gods: the Vedic Gods and the Brahman Gods. The Vedic Gods were the earliest known Gods and they represented the elemental powers. Primitive agricultural people worshipped several of these Gods.
When worshipping the Gods or Goddesses it was thought best to go to the God representing what you needed assistance with ~ for example, if you were a farmer and needed more rain for your crops, you would ask Indra who would slash the heavens with his thunderbolts to release the rain.
Prithvi and Dyaus
Prithvi the earth god and heroic female; and Dyaus the bright sky [or heaven] god and a vigorous god; were symbolized as cow and bull. They were early deities, worshipped as fertility gods and considered to have produced all the other gods and men. Their importance diminished and though they were remembered their offspring were much reduced. Of all their offspring the best known of them was Indra.
Ushas
Ushas [their daughter ~ the dawn] is the Goddess of Wisdom. The name Ushas is derived from a root ‘us’ ~ to burn. She is also the same as the Sanscrit Ahoma. The language in which the physical Ushas was spoken ~ was especially capable or easy transformation into a purely spiritual meaning.
Agni
Agni [their son ~ the fire] is the god of fire, the guardian of homes, and the protector of humans against evil. The association of the heavenly fire with the
life giving forces of nature is very common in the myths of both hemispheres.
Agni and the Norse god Thor were said to be patrons of marriage. In Norway, the most lucky day on which to be married is still supposed to be Thursday, which in old times was the day of the fire god.
Indra
Indra [their son] is the sky god. He is depicted as a four-armed man on a white elephant carrying a thunderbolt. It is he who slashes the clouds with his thunderbolt to release the rain. He is the hurler of thunder bolts and compeller of clouds ~ he is the chief god and king of heaven. At the time of Indra's birth the heavens, the earth and the mountains began to shake and all the gods were afraid. Prithvi, herself, was fearful and hid her son and gave him no attention. None of the gods came to the infant's aid for they all felt, as was indeed the case, that this child was the herald of great changes in the divine order and possibly, of their own doom.
Varuna
Varuna [their son] is also a sky god but according to another account he is a water god. Varuna is considered a thousand-eyed god who sees all that happens in the world. The name is derived from Var ~ to cover ~ or to overarch: and so far Varuna means the vault of heaven.
Surya
Surya [their son] is the chief sun god and in time Savitar and Vivasat were absorbed to become mere aspects of him. Surya [the god of light] has golden hair and arms, and rides a golden chariot drawn by seven mares or alternatively by a mare with seven heads. He became an honorary Aditya for he was referred to as the eye of Varuna and Mitrs. He was the father of the Aswins by a nymph who disguised herself as a mare and was therefore called Aswini.
Soma
Soma [said to be a son of Surya] has certain myths about him that makes him the most curious of any gods. Soma [as the intoxicating juice of the Soma plant] corresponds to the mixture of honey and blood of the Qoasir, which [in the Norse mythology] imparts prolonged life to the gods. In the Rig Veda the Soma is similarly described as the process by which it is converted into an intoxication liquid. He was originally the personification of the sacrificial ambrosia and is the deity who imparts to men life, knowledge, and happiness. At the same time Soma [the god of light and dark] is also described as an all-powerful god and a rain god. It is he who gives strength to Indra and enables him to conquer his enemy Vritra [the snake of darkness]. He is like Indra, and Varuna, as the supporter of heaven & earth, and gods & men; thus it would seem as if the myth of the god Soma is but an example of that stage in the history of the human kind during which men attributed conscious life and energy to whatever hurt or assisted them.
Savitar
Savitar [another personification of the sun] is an all-powerful Sun God. His name means ‘the Inspirer’, and it means to drive or stimulate. As the Sun God he is spoken of as being golden eyed, golden tongued, and golden handed. The gold hand represents when he cut off one of his hands as a sacrifice and the priests gave him a gold hand to replace it.
Vayu
Vayu is the god or the winds or air. Allied to him are the Maruts ~ the storm gods or ‘crushers’ whose name is derived from a root word ~ meaning to grind.
Copyright © 1994, Victoria Nelson
HINDUISM - The Brahman Gods
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