Hindu Gods

[Toby Stimpson]

Hello...this is a question for any of the Hindu worshippers here. I've been trying to develop a way to list the major Gods in Hinduism, and I havn't had much luck. After the Trinity and the major gods connected with that...and the Devatas...whats next? Most of the Goddesses are all connected through Devi and Shakti...and yet they are also connected with the trinity as well. I was just wondering how you see the God's relationships to each other...perhaps I might become inspired. Namaste!

Galadraal

[!~*Ganesa Fire*~!]

I'm sorry, I'm not really helping...but I have a question. Is the god Ganesha considered a Hindu god? I think my name came to me because of his name (since it's the same). If so, do you think you could give me information on him? That you for listening. Blessed Be!

~*~*Ganesha*~*~ :broomride

[Velvet]

I'm sorry, I'm not really helping...but I have a question. Is the god Ganesha considered a Hindu god? I think my name came to me because of his name (since it's the same). If so, do you think you could give me information on him? That you for listening. Blessed Be!

~*~*Ganesha*~*~
Yes, he is a hindu god. I think he stands for good luck, but don't know much else.

[SylverStar]

Yes Ganesha is the elephant headed god in the hindu pantheon. How he got the head depends on the story. I'm a bit in a hurry so you just get a link http://hinduism.about.com/library/weekly/aa083000a.htm

To answer the original question well I pretty much do the same the trinity/avatars, family relationships, and such. I am actually really new to hinduism so I have a lot to learn. I'll try to come back to this question.

[Ron]

I have no clue, I am just posting here for Galadraal to see that I really do read his threads.

[SacredWithin]

I think Vishnu and Shiva are major deities. Then we also have to think about Krishna (he's a deity right, or is he like that Jesus figure?)

[DebLipp]

Hello...this is a question for any of the Hindu worshippers here. I've been trying to develop a way to list the major Gods in Hinduism, and I havn't had much luck. After the Trinity and the major gods connected with that...and the Devatas...whats next? Most of the Goddesses are all connected through Devi and Shakti...and yet they are also connected with the trinity as well. I was just wondering how you see the God's relationships to each other...perhaps I might become inspired. Namaste!

Galadraal

I would group them as the Vedic gods (Indra, Agni) and the post-Vedic gods (Shiva, for example, was relatively unimportant in the Vedas). Then I would look at the pre-Vedic (Dravadian) connections. Rudra, for example, is the Dravadian precursor to Shiva.

You could also group them through major Hindu sects. For example, you're going to find a lot of Hanuman worship in Vaishnaism, because Hanuman was part of the Ramayana. But you're also going to find Hanuman worship in Tantrism and Devism, because Hanuman is a servant of Durga.

[Toby Stimpson]

To answer a few questions here:
GaneshaFire: Yes, he is a Hindu God...one of the more popular. He is the son of Parvathi and adopted son of Shiva. He is the remover of obstacles and his symbolism is just that. He is worshipped by anyone before going on any trips or starting anything new. One of the stories of his origins is that he was created by Parvathi from the foam of her bath, and asked to guard the door while she baved. Shiva came along, and not knowing who the little man was destroyed Ganesh's head for refusing entry to his wife. When Parvathi found opu she was furious and forced Shiva to replace the head, and Shiva found a baby elephant and used it's head to replace Ganesh's. Your name, Ganesha Fire, makes no real sense but is still substantive. Since Ganesh is the God of Compassion, but a son of Shiva (who's main symbol is the scared flame) then it makes sense :).

Sacredwithin: Yes, Shiva and Vishnu are major deities. Perhaps I should type what I have so far and who all the major Gods are,....then how I've organized them:

Trinity
Brahma, The Creator: God of all creation.
Vishnu, the Preserver: God of creation and preservation
Shiva, the Destoyer: God of destructon and recreation

Parvathi: Wife of Shiva, and a Goddess of destructive female power
Lakshmi: Wife of Vishnu, Goddess of elegance and creative female power
Sarasvati: Wife of Brahma, Goddess of knowledge

Ganesha: Son of Parvathi, God of Compassion
Skanda: Son of Shiva, the closest thing to a God of War in modern Hinduism, Leader of the Divine Armies
Ayyapan: A relitivly new God, is considered the third son of Shiva and Vishnu in a female form, God of Celibacy
Garuda: Bird God, mount of lord Vishnu
Hanuman: MonkeyGod, God of Devotion

Avatars
Avatars are forms that the gods have taken sicne creation. The Goddess and The God have both taken Avatars, although the most well known for the taking of avatars is Vishnu. Vishnu has appeared on the earth 9 times, and is suppose to appear as a tenth at the end of Kaliyuga.
Rama: The second human avatar of Vishnu, is a powerful hero and is worshipped as a Goid in his own right, although his legend has been mingled with Krishna among some followers.
Krishna: The God of Love and the 9th avatar of Vishnu, appears in the epic Bhagavad Gita as a teacher.
The Buddha: Theres a lot of contreversy surrounding Siddartha Gautama Buddha's placement by Hindu theologians as an avatar of Viishnu to delude the faithful into a false religion. These myths were probably created by the ancient leaders of the Vishnu sect inorder to bring the Buddhist group back into Hindusim. Buddhists disagree strongly that Lord Buddha was even associated with Vishnu.

Sita: Is an avatar of Lakshmi, and is the wife of KLord Rama. She, along with Rama, is seen as the perfect couple. She appears in the Ramayana, and is kidnapped by Ravana.

Radha: Another avatar of Lakshmi, this time in the form of the Gopala Radha. She is the young lover of Krisghna, and represents the devotion to God.

Kali: My personal Goddess, she is not an avatar, but a form of the Great Goddess. She is the dark Goddess of choas, and comes in many forms.

Durga: Another powerful form of the Goddess. There are many legends as to who she is connected with, but most certainly place her as either a form of Parvathi, a culmination of all Gods, or an independant Goddess. However, she and Kali are closely connected with Parvathi and Shiva.

There are many i haven't added, like the Vedic Gods, because those are pretty straightforward. However the Goddesses are the problem, and trying to coem up with atleast a vague way to place them together to symbolicly show their ties is, well, impossible. Perhaps I should put each one individually?

Deblipp: In what tradition is Hanuman a servent of Durga? I thought her sole attendants were the Yoginis

[DebLipp]

Deblipp: In what tradition is Hanuman a servent of Durga? I thought her sole attendants were the Yoginis

There are two very different streams of Kali worship. Most of us are familiar with Tantric worship; this is based primarily in Bengal.

I have recently become devoted to the worship of Vaishna Devi (roughly translated as "vegetarian Goddess"). This is Kali worship as found in the Punjab. The book that was profoundly influential for me was Victory to the Mother by Barbara Erndl. In the Punjab, the Vaishna Devi iconography often depicts Hanuman serving or at the feet of Kali or Durga.

I would say you've done enough on connected Hindu deities into a cosmology. Remember that India is a big place with a long history. The interconnections are imperfect when they exist at all. The book Hindu Goddesses by David Kinsley will provide a lot of information about major and minor goddesses.

Connecting the Goddesses depends on where you come from. All Goddesses trace ultimately through Mahakali, Mahalakshmi, or Mahasarasvati. But these are forms. Kali is the mother of Lakshmi and Sarasvati when she is worshipped as Mahakali, but Laksmi is the mother of Kali and Sarasvati when she is worshipped as Mahalakshmi. The maha-goddesses are energy shapes of the great goddess: Shakti/Devi. I liked the book The Living Goddess by Linda Johnsen, which described and diagramed the author's understanding of the relationship of these divine energies, but the book is only valuable if you understand that she is 'selling' one particular school of thought. She gives Lakshmi and Mahalakshmi pride of place, and as a Kali worshipper I am uncomfortable with that. Nonetheless, I think you will enjoy her discussion of cosmology.

[Matsumoto]

I've always seen Hinduism as a beautiful religion. I absolutly love Sari (is that how you say it) and traditional wedding dress. As for the gods only one is in regular contact with me and that is Shiva the destroyer. But there are reasons for that *cough* anyway I'd liketo learn more myself. I learned some in my world religions classes and I liked what I heard :)

[SaberWolf]

Here's a website that I've found that might help:
http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/buddhism.shtml
It has alot of Asian gods, and probably alot of good resources and links too (I haven't check for that yet)

[KaliHobbit]

There are two very different streams of Kali worship. Most of us are familiar with Tantric worship; this is based primarily in Bengal.


I would say you've done enough on connected Hindu deities into a cosmology. Remember that India is a big place with a long history. The interconnections are imperfect when they exist at all. The book Hindu Goddesses by David Kinsley will provide a lot of information about major and minor goddesses.

.

I recommend Kinsley's book as well, it's a great overview of the Hindu Goddesses and includes the Matrikas and Mahavidyas who, although generally excluded from Western books, are HUGLY important (and amazing, wonderful, powerful Goddesses).

Since Tantra was brought up as well as a 'Hindu cosmology', it's important to mention that within Tantra everything is viewed as sacred, nothing is profane nor seprate from the Divine. In 'orthodox"(not the word I'm looking for but it will have to do) Hinduism, everything is an emmination of Brahma, in Shakta Tantra it is often MaaKali who exists behind all others. I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's much harder to create a 'list' of gods in Hinduism that it is say in the Norse or Celtic Traditions (in my opinion). Like DepLipp said,"Remember that India is a big place with a long history. The interconnections are imperfect when they exist at all."
Also, the Matrikas are often regarded as demons, but don't write them off.

[Toby Stimpson]

This is very true Kalihobbit and Deblipp, when describing the basics to others I try to follow a very mainstream version. I havn't evan began to touch most of the variations on the forms of Shakti itself. I'd be interested to know which story in Kali worship you two accept...that she 'sprang' from Durga's head, that she is a form of Lakshmi, or the more popular Parvathi link? I could be missing a whole other variation, but those are the main ones I've seen. Personally I accept the parvathi link more than any other, it makes sense because they are both aspects of nature.

Matsumoto, hehehe, yep it's Sari. Pronounced somewhat like Saaaree...meh. The clothing is very simple and yet so effeminate...and the patterns are amazing on some. I rememebr that theres a shop somewhere in Varanais, if your ever travelling to India, that can make anything you bring them and can reproduce it right down to the tag. If your interested in Hinduism, I'd also look into Vajrayana Buddhism, many of the same ideas are present, and i could be mistaken but Tantra is intermixed with the Buddhism, so it's an interesting and very mystical mix.

Thanks for the info Saberwolf...I always find it interesting the mixing of Gods over a woide area. I find it even more interesting what Monsters appear as. I recently picked up a good book on mythical creatures by Carol Rose, and the Asuras (demons) appear all over the east, all with regional names.

[DebLipp]

This is very true Kalihobbit and Deblipp, when describing the basics to others I try to follow a very mainstream version. I havn't evan began to touch most of the variations on the forms of Shakti itself. I'd be interested to know which story in Kali worship you two accept...that she 'sprang' from Durga's head, that she is a form of Lakshmi, or the more popular Parvathi link? I could be missing a whole other variation, but those are the main ones I've seen. Personally I accept the parvathi link more than any other, it makes sense because they are both aspects of nature.

When you say the "Parvati link" I am not sure what you mean. I have always thought that Kali sprang from Durga's head, and that she was also Parvati. The stories of Kali the demon-slayer who dances upon Shiva's body are the raw power stories; the Parvati stories are the socially acceptable version. I don't try to link them up in a narrative accept to know that they are one and the same. It's not linear for me; Kali is.

[Toby Stimpson]

what to say to that other than, I agree...

[KaliHobbit]

When you say the "Parvati link" I am not sure what you mean. I have always thought that Kali sprang from Durga's head, and that she was also Parvati. The stories of Kali the demon-slayer who dances upon Shiva's body are the raw power stories; the Parvati stories are the socially acceptable version. I don't try to link them up in a narrative accept to know that they are one and the same. It's not linear for me; Kali is.

Jai Jai Jai!!

[Padma]

Jai Jai Jai!!

Just curious....what does "Jai" mean?

[DebLipp]

Just curious....what does "Jai" mean?

The literal translation is "victory," and you will often see it translated like that. "Victory to the Mother" is Jai Ma or Jai Mata Di.

But you can't understand it unless you know that it is used in Hindu prayer the way we might use "Hail" or "Praise." All gods are, or can be, greeted with Jai.

[Padma]

The literal translation is "victory," and you will often see it translated like that. "Victory to the Mother" is Jai Ma or Jai Mata Di.

But you can't understand it unless you know that it is used in Hindu prayer the way we might use "Hail" or "Praise." All gods are, or can be, greeted with Jai.

Thanks. I'd been wondering about that for a while.

[Toby Stimpson]

Theres also Hare, which also means hail or praise...used mostly in Krishna and Rama worship.

[DebLipp]

Theres also Hare, which also means hail or praise...used mostly in Krishna and Rama worship.

I believe you are mistaken about that. Hare is another name for Vishnu. To say "Hare Krisha, Hare Rama" is to say "Vishnu is Krishna, Vishnu is Rama."

[Toby Stimpson]

Actually, Hari is an alternate name for Vishnu...Hara is Shiva...Hare is hail...

[DebLipp]

Actually, Hari is an alternate name for Vishnu...Hara is Shiva...Hare is hail...
Thanks, I didn't know that. I thought Hare was an alternate transliteration for Hari, since they're pronounced the same.

[Toby Stimpson]

You could be right about the Hare thing though...of what I've seen on ISKON and other Hindu originated websites, Hare is used in Mantras while they reference Hari as the name of Vishnu.

[KaliGiri5]

here are a few..
http://circleofinnervisions.com/HindoGods.htm

They also have minor "village" Gods & Goddesses
you'd have to look up a village and find out..
some are the same such as..
Tara, Chinnamasta, Bagala, Durga, Parvati are all Kali