Hindu gods

Brahma: The creator

He is depicted as an old man with four faces and flowing white beards. He is scholar and is considered the supreme sage. The is the master of the vedas and the other holy texts. His duty is to create the entire cosmos and attribute a form to each soul, based on the past deeds of the soul. He holds a sacrificial tool(Sruva), The Vedas(knowledge), a Water pot(kamandalu), and a rosary. His vehicle is a swan, which is known for its judgement between good and bad.

Vishnu: The protector

His main duty is to protect the devotees from the evil forces. He is so devout to this duty of his that at regular intrevals of time he himself descends to the Earth to destroy the anarchists. He is most famous for his 10 incarnations or Avatars. Among all the gods, he has the maximum number of forms and hence has a large following. His followers are called the Vaishnavaites. Vishnu's first hand holds a conch shell (sankha) indicating spread of the divine sound "Om"; one holds a discus (chakra), a reminder of the wheel of time, and to lead a good life; one holds a lotus (Padma) which is an example of glorious existence and the fourth hands holds a mace (gada) indicating the power and the punishing capacity of the Lord if discipline in life is ignored. His vehicle is a swift-flying bird called Garuda which spreads the Vedic knowledge.

Shiva: The destroyer

His role is complemantary to that of Brahma. In the constant creation and destruction of the cosmos, he is responsible for the destruction. Shiva is the most feared of the gods and great kings had huge temples built to appease him. Infact almost all the huge temples in India, have Shiva in the sanctum sanctorum. The very act of destruction is performed in the form of a dance called the 'Rudra Thandav'. He is always worshipped in his 'linga' form and never in his true form. His devotees are called the Shaivaites. He is also responsible to safe guard the souls after destruction, till Brahma is ready for creation. He has matted hair which holds the flowing river Ganges and a crescent moon. A serpent is coiled around his neck, a trident (trishul) in his hand and ashes all over his body. His vehicle is a bull (symbol of happiness and strength) named Nandi.

This page is under construction. i'll list in more gods soon, so you can bookmark this page, and come back later.

Back to my HomePage