1. Hindu Deities The Hindu idea of God

2. The Hindu Idea of God The idea of Hindu God develops from the beginning of the Rig-Veda in about 1200 BCE The early hymns of the Rig-Veda praise the spirits of the natural forces such as fire, thunder, sky, dawn, water, rain, earth and the sun.  Remember: The Aryans were in awe of forces of nature and of the magnificent and worshipped them as gods

3. The Hindu idea of God However, its main idea rested on the fact that the various deities were really different aspects of one Supreme Power. They called the Supreme Power “TRUTH” A line from the Rig-Veda reads “Truth is One, wise men call it by different names.”

4. The Deities of Modern Hinduism The Hindu scriptures gave a new name to the ‘Truth’ of the Vedas. In Upanishads, the Supreme Spirit is called Brahman. He is without quality or form and can e male or female, human, animal or bird or a combination of these. Brahman controls the created world through its three major aspects known as Trimurti or the Hindu Trinity

5. The Hindu Trinity 1.Brahma: The creator aspect of Brahman. He has four faces, is seated on a lotus and holds a book, a rosary and a gourd.

6. The Hindu Trinity: Brahma Continued Saraswati, the wife of Brahma, is the Goddess of Learning and the Arts.  She holds a book and a veena (musical instrument), and her vahana (vehicle) is a peacock or a swan.

7. The Hindu Trinity 1.Vishnu: The preserver aspect of Brahman. He has four arms and he holds a conch shell, a discus, a lotus and a mace. His vehicle is the divine eagle. Garuda, Rama and Krishna are the most important avatars (reincarnations) of Vishnu.

8. The Hindu Trinity: Vishnu Continued Laxmi is his wife and the Goddess of Good Fortune.  She is depicted as a woman of beauty, modesty and gentleness, fully clothed, and standing on a lotus, rewarding the worshipper with gold.

9. The Hindu Trinity 1.Shiva: The destroyer aspects of Brahman. He holds a trident, a rosary, and a gourd. He has a serpent round his neck and the crescent moon in his coiled hair. He is also depicted a s great yogi and the Lord of the Beasts. He rides Nandi, the Bull.

10. The Hindu Trinity: Shiva Continued Shiva is often represented as Nataraj, performing the dance of creation. The dancing Shiva image shows the river Ganga in his hair, a drum in his right hand, a cobra or serpent, his right hand granting freedom from fear, his left foot raised signifying salvation, a crescent moon in his coiled hair, his left hand holding sacred fire, the circle of glory, and ignorance being trampled underfoot.

11. The Hindu Trinity: Shiva Continued Parvati is Shiva’s wife and is worshipped as the female energy in creation.

12. The Hindu Trinity: Shiva Continued She is the Mother Goddess but she is also worshipped in other appearances such as Durga; the warlike form, riding a tiger and holding many weapons in her eight arms. Kali, her evil image represented as a bloodthirsty deity demanding blood- sacrifices.

13. The Hindu Trinity: Shiva Continued Ganesha, a son of Parvati and Shiva, has a large human body with four arms and an elephant’s head. Ganesha is seen as the remover of obstacles and is worshipped at the beginning of pujas as well as at the start of important undertakings. He rides a mouse.

14. The Hindu Trinity: Shiva Continued Subrahmanya (Muruga) is the second son of Shiva and Parvati.  He is popularly worshipped in south India Hanuman – the monkey general of Rama. He holds an Indian club and is the deity of physical culture. Prominent in western India.