Hindu Deities & their meanings

samcdkey said:
I was being simplistic here, but aren't the Mahadevas called as gods under Brahman?

And I believe there are differences in thought based on the schools.

In Advaita Vedanta, they differentiate between Saguna Brahman and Nirguna Brahman.

In Dvaita Vedanta, they consider the world to be Saguna Brahman. This is probably the one you refer to.

The Trimurti, (Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva) though are believed to be representatives of different aspects of Brahman or the Parabrahman.
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Parabrahman is superior to all of them. Although Visnu is said to be equal, or a direct incarnation. God is acting through everyone and everything, even as the demons, the wicked, the cruel, however when he incarnates as himself, it is him, himself, just as a dreaming person dreaming that they are themself are indeed themself.

SB 2.9.33: Brahmā, it is I, the Personality of Godhead, who was existing before the creation, when there was nothing but Myself. Nor was there the material nature, the cause of this creation. That which you see now is also I, the Personality of Godhead, and after annihilation what remains will also be I, the Personality of Godhead.

"The transcendental Personality of Godhead is indirectly associated with the three modes of material
nature, namely passion, goodness and ignorance, and just for the material world's creation,
maintenance and destruction He accepts the three qualitative forms of Brahma, Visnu and Siva. Of
these three, all human beings can derive ultimate benefit from Visnu, the form of the quality of
goodness." (SB 1.2.23)

SB 2.6.32: By His will, I [Brahma] create, Lord Śiva destroys, and He Himself, in His eternal form as the Personality of Godhead, maintains everything. He is the powerful controller of these three energies.

SB 2.6.43-45: I myself [Brahmā], Lord Śiva, Lord Viṣṇu, great generators of living beings like Dakṣa and Prajāpati, yourselves [Nārada and the Kumāras], heavenly demigods like Indra and Candra, the leaders of the Bhūrloka planets, the leaders of the earthly planets, the leaders of the lower planets, the leaders of the Gandharva planets, the leaders of the Vidyādhara planets, the leaders of the Cāraṇaloka planets, the leaders of the Yakṣas, Rakṣas and Uragas, the great sages, the great demons, the great atheists and the great spacemen, as well as the dead bodies, evil spirits, satans, jinn, kūṣmāṇḍas, great aquatics, great beasts and great birds, etc. — in other words, anything and everything which is exceptionally possessed of power, opulence, mental and perceptual dexterity, strength, forgiveness, beauty, modesty, opulence, and breeding, whether in form or formless — may appear to be the specific truth and the form of the Lord, but actually they are not so. They are only a fragment of the transcendental potency of the Lord.
 
samcdkey

Contrary to popular belief in the West, Hindu deities are not "individual gods", indicating a polytheistic faith. They are, rather, different representations of particular aspects of the one god, the source, known as Brahman. The "human" or physical representation of Brahman's aspects or attributes in the form of deities is a vehicle for the devotee to focus his or her attention, devotion or meditation on that particular aspect or attribute in a form more easily visualized and held in the mind.
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Actually there are two catergories - namely god and the demigods - god is accepted as vishnu tattva (tattva - truth) and demigods are jiva tattva (there is some controversy whether shiva is jiva or vishnu tattva but according to puranic statements he is neither).

So an ordinary living entity who is very pious can attain the position of a demigod (ajudicated managers of particular affairs - liek for instance a living entity who lives as a faultless brahmana for 100 life times can attain the position of Lord Brahma - similar guidelines there for chandra, ganesh, indra, varuna, surya etc etc) - there are pranic descriptions of how sometimes Indra gets a bit worried by yogis performing austerities thinking that they may be out to usurp his position by dint of their austerities so he sends apasaras to distract them with their heavenly wiles ....

Vishnu tattva is something different - like even though there are numerous incarnations of vishnu they are never accepted as jivas - nor is their worship credited to be anything like worshipping a demigod, which is why in the BG Krishna declares that worship of the demigods is by the less inteligent for material benedictions and why worship of him is conducive for actual happiness, liberation, the eternal abode etc

Endowed with such a faith, he endeavors to worship a particular demigod and obtains his desires. But in actuality these benefits are bestowed by Me alone.

BG 7.23: Men of small intelligence worship the demigods, and their fruits are limited and temporary. Those who worship the demigods go to the planets of the demigods, but My devotees ultimately reach My supreme planet.

BG 7.24: Unintelligent men, who do not know Me perfectly, think that I, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, was impersonal before and have now assumed this personality. Due to their small knowledge, they do not know My higher nature, which is imperishable and supreme.


Each deity is associated with a 'vehicle', a bird or animal on which it travels. The vehicles are used in Indian religious art to reflect and at times to extend the powers or qualities of the deity with which it is associated. These are often better expressed by an animal than by a human being. The vehicle also represents the close relationship between all living things.
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The vehicles of the demigods are actually subtle constructions whereas the vehicles of vishnu tattva (like garuda for instance) are actually conscious (actually garuda is an expansion of maha visnu, which makes him vishnu tattva)
 
Hey Guys...
Great posts...
I've been a regular reader of this forum and never have seen such discussion before on Hinduism...
I was born a Hindu, but am not religious.
But the philosophies are great....
Sadly, not many know what Hinduism actually is...
In fact not many know that there was no such thing as "Hinduism" or a Hindu "religion" until the British came...
 
Hindu was actually a term coined by the muslims as those who lived over the Sindu river (They pronounced their S's as H - thus "Hindu") - hence the term hindu encompasses the broad variety of what goes down in the name of vedic scripture, which on a casual observation extends to the social practices, ie varnasrma - divisions of spiritual and occupational duties
 
samcdkey said:
Hindu deities are not "individual gods", indicating a polytheistic faith. They are, rather, different representations of particular aspects of the one god, the source, known as Brahman.
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Are you refusing these God any Individual Manifestation?

At a certain level they exist in and of themselves in the same way that we exist in and of ourselves. Yes, some Advaita Nut might say that we are all One in God, but it is a meaningless statement. you can say all of the Particular Gods are one in Brahman, but, likewise, we are back to meaningless statements.

When one is on the stratum of a particular God, where that God has its Manifestation, well, one owes that God enough respect to acknowledge its existence.

When you are finally at the Highest Stratum of Brahman then you can begin to talk about how everything is Brahman, because, there, you will be right.

In the Catholic Tradition, we have God, we have the Manifestions and Aspects of the Blessed Virgin Mother of God, and we have the Angels and the Saints. One could say they are all elements of the All Inclusive God, but how useful is such a statement?

We know where we are in our Spirituality by the Gods or Angels we meet up with in our Dreams, Visions and Meditations.

Just because you are only on the Level of a Minor Demi-god, it doesn't mean you must slap Him in the face and dismiss His existence. You should acknowledge how High you are, not how low.

Every God or Angel has something to teach us... an experience that will enrich us. We don't have to hurry past these Spiritual Beings. We are on their Level for a reason. Make friends. Stay awhile. Move onward and upward when the time comes.

You wouldn't want all the Gods and Angels to begin seeing you as clever, cunning and ambitious, would you? a Snob?
 
There is the view that "everything is brahman" works on the same principle of "god made man in his image" - in other words brahman means spiritual, but if you want to determine who is para brahman (the supreme brahman) then that requires a bit more than just a rudimentary observation - according to vedic scripture there are 330 000 000 demigods and they are empowered designated representatives of visnu, just as a king has many ambassadors and officials that act on his behalf
 
philosopher´s stone said:
WOW - it is his birthday ....!!!!!!!!!
I always thought Gandhi was one of the most important persons in the last
millenium - still to this day , I do NOT understand why he did not receive
the Nobel price of peace !!!!!!!!

:)
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They save it for real peaceniks like Kissinger....
 
Devi: the Mother Goddess.

http://www.asia.si.edu/devi/

deviHome.gif


Who Is Devi?

The Great Goddess, known in India as Devi (literally "goddess"), has many guises. She is "Ma" the gentle and approachable mother. As Jaganmata, or Mother of the universe, she assumes cosmic proportions, destroying evil and addressing herself to the creation and dissolution of the worlds. She is worshiped by thousands of names that often reflect local customs and legends. She is one and she is many. She is celebrated in songs and poems.

A nice exhibit on the representation of the Mother Goddess in all her forms in Hinduism.


http://www.asia.si.edu/devi/
 
samcdkey said:
Devi: the Mother Goddess.

http://www.asia.si.edu/devi/

deviHome.gif


Who Is Devi?

The Great Goddess, known in India as Devi (literally "goddess"), has many guises. She is "Ma" the gentle and approachable mother. As Jaganmata, or Mother of the universe, she assumes cosmic proportions, destroying evil and addressing herself to the creation and dissolution of the worlds. She is worshiped by thousands of names that often reflect local customs and legends. She is one and she is many. She is celebrated in songs and poems.

A nice exhibit on the representation of the Mother Goddess in all her forms in Hinduism.


http://www.asia.si.edu/devi/
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Brahma samhita 5.44

The external potency Mäyä who is of the nature of the shadow of the cit potency, is worshiped by all people as Durgä, the creating, preserving and destroying agency of this mundane world. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda in accordance with whose will Durgä conducts herself.

Srimad Bhagavatam 10.2.11-12
Lord Kṛṣṇa blessed Māyādevī by saying: In different places on the surface of the earth, people will give you different names, such as Durgā, Bhadrakālī, Vijayā, Vaiṣṇavī, Kumudā, Caṇḍikā, Kṛṣṇā, Mādhavī, Kanyakā, Māyā, Nārāyaṇī, Īśānī, Śāradā and Ambikā.

(from the purport)
The names by which Māyādevī is known in different places have been listed by Vallabhācārya as follows. In Vārāṇasī she is known as Durgā, in Avantī she is known as Bhadrakālī, in Orissa she is known as Vijayā, and in Kulahāpura she is known as Vaiṣṇavī or Mahālakṣmī. (The representatives of Mahālakṣmī and Ambikā are present in Bombay.) In the country known as Kāmarūpa she is known as Caṇḍikā, in Northern India as Śāradā, and in Cape Comorin as Kanyakā. Thus she is distributed according to various names in various places.

Śrīla Vijayadhvaja Tīrthapāda, in his pada-ratnāvalī-ṭīkā, has explained the meanings of the different representations. Māyā is known as Durgā because she is approached with great difficulty, as Bhadrā because she is auspicious, and as Kālī because she is deep blue. Because she is the most powerful energy, she is known as Vijayā; because she is one of the different energies of Viṣṇu, she is known as Vaiṣṇavī; and because she enjoys in this material world and gives facilities for material enjoyment, she is known as Kumudā. Because she is very severe to her enemies, the asuras, she is known as Caṇḍikā, and because she gives all sorts of material facilities, she is called Kṛṣṇā. In this way the material energy is differently named and situated in different places on the surface of the globe.

more names and translations on
http://www.stephen-knapp.com/108_names_of_devi.htm
 
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http://www.om-guru.com/

Gurus, Saints, and Seekers:
Holy Men and Women in the Indian Tradition

The tradition of seeking, evaluating, accepting, and following a guru is deeply rooted in Hindu society from the time of the earliest Hindu writings. However, not all disciples maintain a close outer connection with their guru. While some disciples spend years with their guru, others meet the guru only once in their lifetime. Some see the guru only in visions and dreams. In other cases, the only contact is through written material or pictures of the guru.

In Hinduism, it is believed that certain individuals have developed spiritually to the point where they can lead others to liberation (moksha), or give them access to spiritual states either in this life, or after death. These teachers are believed to have special abilities, such as the capacity to give darshan (a transfer of blessings or spiritual power from guru to disciple via glance or mantra). In addition, some Gurus are said to be able to enter a disciple's dreams to give teachings or initiation. Sometimes the guru's gaze can cause a profound spiritual experience. Many students claim to sense a spiritual atmosphere around their teacher which affects their moods and perceptions in positive ways.

(Short biographies of some gurus in the link)
 
1008 names of radharani
http://www.krishna.com/main.php?id=254


radharani.jpg


from
http://www.krishna.com/main.php?id=257

Who is That Girl with Krishna?
When people see a picture like the one you see here, they often ask, "Who is that girl with Krishna?" The answer is that She is Srimati Radharani, Krishna's pleasure potency. The devotees of the Krishna consciousness movement humbly try to glorify Srimati Radharani because by her mercy one can advance wonderfully in Krishna consciousness.
 
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Common prayers in glorification of Mother Ganga
http://www.chinmaya-chicago.org/BV/Ganga Stotram.pdf

"O Jahnavi! You are full of compassion. You purify your devotees with your holy waters. Your feet are
adorned with the gems of Indra’s crown. Those who seek refuge in you are blessed with happiness."

There is a puranic statement to the effect that no qualification is required to participate in spiritual life - everyone is free to participate, just as one is free to take bath in the ganga during the month of magha (winter season)

;)



Ganga.jpg
 
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Asta-Nama-Stava from the Padma Purana The Eight Names of Vrinda-devi


Vrindavani, vrinda, visvapujita, pushpasara, nandini, Krishna-jivani, visva-pavani, tulasi


VRINDAVANI - One who first manifested in Vrindavan.
VRINDA - The goddess of all plant and trees ( even if one Tulasi plant is present in a forest it can be called Vrindavana.)
VISHVAPUJITA - One whom the whole universe worships.
PUSHPASARA - The topmost of all flowers, without whom Krishna does not like to look upon other flowers.
NANDINI - Seeing whom gives unlimited bliss to the devotees.
KRISHNA-JIVANI - The life of Sri Krishna.
VISHVA-PAVANI - One who purifies the three worlds.
TULASI - One who has no comparison.

Anyone while worshiping Tulasi-devi chants these eight names will get the same results as one who performs the Ashvamedha sacrifice. And one who on the full-moon day of Kartika (Tulasi-devi's appearance day) worships Her with this Mantra will break free from the bonds of this miserable world of birth and death, and very quickly attains Goloka Vrndavan. On the full moon-day of Kartik Lord Sri Krishna Himself worships Srimati Tulasi-devi with this Mantra.

tulasi.jpg


tulasi6.jpg
 
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samcdkey; whats you real name dude; im me the name.

you seem to know some things :)


Rick
 
actually; i want to clarify this for some hindus who dont know (i didnt know this some time ago)

A gayatri mantra is something from a meter (vedic meter): it consists of 3 padas each pada consisting of 8 alphabets in sanskrit( essentially rough estimates to be 3 lines with 8 alphabets each)
so theres gayatri mantra for shiv; ganesha etc.

(if i am slightly wrong on this; could you clarify? on gayatri mantra's metrics...)

Rick
 
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