The Pantheon of Hindu Gods

27, 28. (a) Which gods form the Hindu Trimurti? (b) Who are their wives or consorts? (c) Name some other Hindu gods and goddesses.

²⁷ While Hinduism may lay claim to millions of gods, in actual practice there are certain favorite gods that have become the focal point for various sects within Hinduism. Three of the most prominent gods are included in what Hindus call Trimurti, a trinity, or triad of gods.​—For other Hindu gods, see box, pages 116-17.

²⁸ The triad consists of Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Preserver, and Siva the Destroyer, and each has at least one wife or consort. Brahma is wedded to Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge. Vishnu’s wife is Lakshmi, while Siva’s first wife was Sati, who committed suicide. She was the first woman to enter sacrificial fire, and thus she became the first suttee. Following her mythological example, thousands of Hindu widows over the centuries have sacrificed themselves on their husband’s funeral pyre, although this practice is now illegal. Siva also has another wife known by several names and titles. In her benign form, she is Parvati and Uma, as well as Gauri, the Golden One. As Durga or Kali, she is a terrifying goddess.

29. How is Brahma viewed by Hindus? (Compare Acts 17:22-31.)

²⁹ Brahma, although central to Hindu mythology, does not occupy a place of importance in the worship of the average Hindu. In fact very few temples are dedicated to him, even though he is called Brahma the Creator. However, Hindu mythology attributes the assignment of creating the material universe to a supreme being, source, or essence​—Brahman, or Brahm, identified with the sacred syllable OM or AUM. All three members of the triad are considered part of that “Being,” and all other gods are viewed as different manifestations. Whichever god is then worshiped as supreme, that deity is thought to be all-embracing. So while Hindus openly venerate millions of gods, most acknowledge only one true God, who can take many forms: male, female, or even animal. Therefore, Hindu scholars are quick to point out that Hinduism is actually monotheistic, not polytheistic. Later Vedic thinking, however, discards the concept of a supreme being, replacing it with an impersonal divine principle or reality.

30. What are some of the avatars of Vishnu?

³⁰ Vishnu, a benevolent solar and cosmic deity, is the center of worship for the followers of Vaishnavism. He appears under ten avatars, or incarnations, including Rama, Krishna, and the Buddha.c Another avatar is Vishnu Narayana, “represented in human form asleep on the coiled serpent Shesha or Ananta, floating on the cosmic waters with his wife, the goddess Lakshmi, seated at his feet while the god Brahma arises from a lotus growing out of Vishnu’s navel.”​—The Encyclopedia of World Faiths.

31. What kind of god is Siva?

³¹ Siva, also commonly called Mahesha (Supreme Lord) and Mahadeva (Great God), is Hinduism’s second-greatest god, and the worship rendered to him is called Saivism. He is described as “the great ascetic, the master yogin who sits wrapped in meditation on the slopes of the Himalayas, his body smeared with ashes and his head covered in matted hair.” He is also noted “for his eroticism, as the bringer of fertility and the supreme lord of creation, Mahadeva.” (The Encyclopedia of World Faiths) Worship is rendered to Siva by means of the lingam, or phallic representation.​—See photos, page 99.

32. (a) What forms does the goddess Kali take? (b) How was an English word derived from her worship?

³² Like many other world religions, Hinduism has its supreme goddess, who can be attractive or terrifying. In her more pleasant form, she is known as Parvati and Uma. Her fearsome character is displayed as Durga or Kali, a bloodthirsty goddess who delights in blood sacrifices. As the Mother Goddess, Kali Ma (Black Earth-Mother), she is the chief deity for the Shakti sect. She is depicted as naked to the hips and wearing adornments of corpses, snakes, and skulls. In times past, strangled human victims were offered to her by believers known as thugi, from which came the English word “thug.”

Hinduism and the River Ganges

33. Why is the Ganges sacred to Hindus?

³³ We cannot speak of Hinduism’s pantheon of gods without mentioning its most sacred river​—the Ganges. Much of Hindu mythology is directly related to the river Ganges, or Ganga Ma (Mother Ganga), as devout Hindus call it. (See map, page 123.) They recite a prayer that includes 108 different names for the river. Why is the Ganges so revered by sincere Hindus? Because it is so closely associated with their daily survival and with their ancient mythology. They believe that it formerly existed in the heavens as the Milky Way. Then how did it come to be a river?

34. According to Hindu mythology, what is one explanation of how the river Ganges came to exist?

³⁴ With some variations most Hindus would explain it like this: Maharajah Sagara had 60,000 sons who were killed by the fire of Kapila, a manifestation of Vishnu. Their souls were condemned to hell unless the goddess Ganga would come down from heaven to cleanse them and release them from the curse. Bhagīratha, a great-grandson of Sagara, interceded with Brahma to allow the sacred Ganga to come down to the earth. One account continues: “Ganga replied. ‘I am so mighty a torrent I would shatter the earth’s foundations.’ So [Bhagīratha], after doing penance for a thousand years, went to the god Shiva, the greatest of all ascetics, and persuaded him to stand high above the earth amidst the rock and ice of the Himalayas. Shiva had matted hair piled on his head, and he allowed Ganga to thunder down from the skies into his locks, which absorbed gently the earth-threatening shock. Ganga then trickled softly out on to the earth and flowed down from the mountains and across the plains, bringing water and therefore life to the dry earth.”​—From the Ocean to the Sky, by Sir Edmund Hillary.

35. How do the followers of Vishnu explain the river’s existence?

³⁵ The followers of Vishnu have a somewhat different version of how the Ganges was started. According to an ancient text, the Vishnu Purana, their version is:

“From this region [the holy seat of Vishnu] proceeds the river Ganges, that removes all sins . . . She issues from the nail of the great toe of Vishnu’s left foot.”

Or as Vishnu’s followers say in Sanskrit: “Visnu-padabja-sambhuta,” which means “Born of the lotus-like foot of Vishnu.”

36. What do Hindus believe about the power of the waters of the Ganges?

³⁶ Hindus believe that the Ganges has the power to release, purify, cleanse, and cure believers. The Vishnu Purana states:

“Saints, who are purified by bathing in the waters of this river, and whose minds are devoted to Kesava [Vishnu], obtain final liberation. The sacred river, when heard of, desired, seen, touched, bathed in, or hymned, day by day purifies all beings. And those who living even at a distance . . . exclaim ‘Ganga and Ganga’ are relieved of the sins committed during the three previous existences.”

The Brahmandapurana states:

“Those who bathe devoutly once in the pure currents of the Ganga, their tribes are protected by Her from hundreds of thousands of dangers. Evils accumulated through generations are destroyed. Just by bathing in the Ganga one gets immediately purified.”

37, 38. Why do millions of Hindus flock to the Ganges?

³⁷ Indians flock to the river to perform puja, or worship, by offering flowers, chanting prayers, and receiving from a priest the tilak, the spot of red or yellow paste on the forehead. Then they wade into the waters to bathe. Many will also drink the water, even though it is heavily polluted by sewage, chemicals, and cadavers. Yet such is the spiritual attraction of the Ganges that it is the ambition of millions of Indians to bathe at least once in their ‘holy river,’ polluted or not.

³⁸ Others bring the bodies of their loved ones to be burned on pyres by the riverside, and then the ashes may be strewn in the river. They believe that this guarantees eternal bliss for the departed soul. Those too poor to pay for a funeral pyre just push the shrouded body off into the river, where it is attacked by scavenger birds or just decomposes.

[Box/​Pictures on page 116, 117]

Hinduism​—Some Gods and Goddesses

Aditi​—mother of the gods; sky-goddess; the Infinite

Agni​—god of fire

Brahma​—the Creator God, the principle of creation in the universe. One of the gods of the Trimurti (triad)

Brahman, or Brahm​—the Supreme, all-pervasive entity of the universe, represented by the sound OM or AUM. (See symbol above.) Also referred to as Atman. Some Hindus view Brahman as an impersonal Divine Principle or Ultimate Reality

Buddha​—Gautama, founder of Buddhism; Hindus view him as an incarnation (avatar) of Vishnu

Durga​—wife or Shakti of Siva and identified with Kali

Ganesa (Ganesha)​—Siva’s elephant-headed son-god, Lord of Obstacles, god of good fortune. Also called Ganapati and Gajanana

Ganga​—goddess, one of Siva’s wives and personification of the river Ganges

Hanuman​—monkey god and devoted follower of Rama

Himalaya​—abode of snow, father of Parvati

Kali​—Siva’s black consort (Shakti) and bloodthirsty goddess of destruction. Often portrayed with large red tongue hanging out

Krishna​—the playful eighth incarnation of Vishnu and the deity of the Bhagavad Gita. His lovers were the gopis, or milkmaids

Lakshmi​—goddess of beauty and good fortune; Vishnu’s consort

Manasa​—goddess of snakes

Manu​—ancestor of the human race; saved from the flood’s destruction by a great fish

Mitra​—god of light. Known as Mithras to the Romans

Nandi​—the bull, Siva’s vehicle or mode of transport

Nataraja​—Siva in dance posture encompassed by a ring of flames

Parvati or Uma​—goddess consort of Siva. Also takes the form of goddess Durga or Kali

Prajapati​—Creator of the universe, Lord of Creatures, father of gods, demons, and all other creatures. Later known as Brahma

Purusha​—cosmic man. The four main castes were made from his body

Radha​—consort of Krishna

Rama, Ramachandra​—the seventh incarnation of the god Vishnu. The epic narrative Ramayana relates the story of Rama and his wife Sita

Saraswati​—goddess of knowledge and consort of Brahma the Creator

Shashti​—goddess who protects women and children in childbirth

Siva​—god of fertility, death, and destruction; a member of the Trimurti. Symbolized by the trident and the phallus

Soma​—both a god and a drug; the elixir of life

Vishnu​—god the preserver of life; third member of the Trimurti

[Credit Line]

(Based on listing in Mythology​—An Illustrated Encyclopedia)

[Pictures]

From top left, clockwise, Nataraja (dancing Siva), Saraswati, Krishna, Durga (Kali)

[Box on page 120]

Hindu Legend of the Flood

“In the morning they brought to Manu [mankind’s ancestor and first lawgiver] water for washing . . . When he was washing himself, a fish [Vishnu in his incarnation as Matsya] came into his hands.

“It spoke to him the word, ‘Rear me, I will save thee!’ ‘Wherefrom wilt thou save me?’ ‘A flood will carry away all these creatures: from that I will save thee!’ ‘How am I to rear thee?’”

The fish instructed Manu on how to care for him. “Thereupon it said, ‘In such and such a year that flood will come. Thou shalt then attend to me (to my advice) by preparing a ship; and when the flood has risen thou shalt enter into the ship, and I will save thee from it.’”

Manu followed the fish’s instructions, and during the flood the fish pulled the ship to a “northern mountain. It then said, ‘I have saved thee. Fasten the ship to a tree; but let not the water cut thee off, whilst thou art on the mountain. As the water subsides, thou mayest gradually descend!’”​—Satapatha-Brahmana; compare Genesis 6:9–8:22.

[Map/​Pictures on page 123]

(For fully formatted text, see publication)

The Ganges runs over 1,500 miles from the Himalayas to Calcutta and its delta in Bangladesh

INDIA

Calcutta

Ganges River

[Pictures]

Ganga Ma, on top of Siva’s head, descends through his hair

Devout Hindus at a ghat, bathing in the Ganges at Varanasi, or Benares

[Picture on page 118]

Vishnu, with his wife Lakshmi, on the coils of the serpent Ananta with the four-headed Brahma on a lotus growing from Vishnu’s navel