The Vedas: An Exploration
Gods of the Vedas LAKSHMI DEVNATH (Continued from previous issue...)
May 2019
सहस्रशीर्ष ा पुरुषः। सहस्राक्षः सहस्रपात्। The
The Vedanta Kesari
46
Purusha Sukta, A Vedic hymn extols the preeminence of the Purusha who is unanimously identified as Narayana. Purusha Sukta along with other hymns in the Vedas promulgates the pantheistic view of creation. An analysis of the Vedic hymns reveals that Lord Vishnu, is in reality the sum and substance of the verses. They clearly establish the supremacy of Vishnu. In fact, he is extolled as the highest God par excellence in the Rig Veda – an adjective applied to none other than Vishnu. A sampling of the verses given below reveal the veracity of this statement. ‘Three of these worlds Vishnu strode; thrice did he plant his foot’; ‘The whole of this universe was gathered in the dust of His footsteps’; ‘Vishnu, the Guardian of all, he whom none can deceive, made three strides and henceforth established the Dharma (an obvious reference to the Trivikrama)’; ‘As the eyes spread out as it were in the sky so do the wise ones see the supreme state of Vishnu’; ‘The ever prayerful and awakened wise realised that Supreme state of Vishnu.’ Yaska, the master of etymology, explains the literal meaning of the word Vishnu as immanent and the all-pervasive Principle who spreads over all the planes of existence. The rishis of the Vedas perceived the universe in three different stratas or planes of existence: Dyuloka or Swarga– the celestial sphere which is the topmost plane, Antariksha
or Bhuvarloka – the intermediary space, and Bhuloka – the terrestrial sphere. The presiding deities of these spheres are Savitr or Surya, Indra or Vayu and Agni or fire. These three Gods again got multiplied into 33 and divided as 11 for each sphere. Numerous passages in the Rig Veda as well as in the other Vedas indicate the existence of these 33 gods. The Satapatha Brahmana throws some more light on the subject when it elucidates that the 33 gods consist of the eighth Vasu-s, the 11 Rudras-s, the 12 Aditya-s, Dyu and Prithvi. The 8 Vasu-s are Dhava, Dhruva, Soma, Apa, Anila, Anaala, Pratyusha and Prabhasa. The 12 Aditya-s are Vishnu, Dhatr, Mitra, Aryaman, Tudra, Varuna, Surya, Bhaga, Vivasvat, Pusan, Savitr, and Tvastr. The names of the 11 Rudras are not clearly mentioned in the Vedas, but they have been variously referred to in the Yajurveda and Taittriya Aranyaka. These 33 Gods were further augmented into three thousand three hundred and thirty-nine Gods. (R. V. 111.9.99) The most mentioned God in the Rig Veda is Indra. Of the gods belonging to the Ethereal region, Vayu is the most prominent and Agni is described as the greatest of the Terrestrial gods. He perhaps next to Indra gets the largest number of prayers from the Vedic Rishis. Besides these principal deities there is also mention of many minor gods and goddesses in the Rig Veda. Some of the most sublime hymns of the Rigveda are dedicated to Mitra and Varuna revealing yet another facet of our Rishis
The author is a researcher and writer with various books and articles to her credit on Indian music and culture. lakshmidevnath@gmail.com
