1. BrahmaDurgaGaneshaBrahmaDurgaGanesha IndraKaliRamayanaIndraKaliRamayana RudraShakti ShivaRudraShakti Shiva Trimurti VarunaVishnuTrimurtiVarunaVishnu

2. Within the hindu trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, Brahma is the creator. Brahma grew in a lotus out of the navel of the sleeping Vishnu. The daily alteration of light and dark is attributed to the activity of Brahma. In order to create the world and produce the human race, Brahma made a goddess out of himself. One half was woman and the other half was man. Brahma called the woman Gayatri, but she also became known by many other names such as Saraswati. Return to list of Gods

3. Durga is an incarnation of Devi or the Mother Goddess, a unified symbol of all divine forces. For Shaivas, Durga is the wife of Shiva. The Hindu Goddess Durga manifested when evil forces threatened the very existence of the Gods. To destroy these demons, all gods offered their radiance to her creation and each formed a part of Durga’s body. The name “Durga” in Sanskrit means “invincible”. The syllable “du” is synonymous with the 4 devils of poverty, sufferings, famine and evil habits. The “r” refers to diseases and the “ga” is the destroyer of sins, injustice, irreligion, cruelty and laziness. Return to list of Gods

4. All Tantric and spiritual worship in the Hindu tradition begins with the invocation of Lord Ganesha. Ganesha became the Lord of all existing beings after winning a contest from his brother Kartikay. His father was Shiva and his mother was Parvati and they were known to be the source of all existence. He is the lord of success and destroyer of evils and obstacles. His aliases include: Ganesa, Ganesh and Ganapati. Return to list of Gods

5. The most popular Vedic god is Indra. He is an adventuresome and friendly hero who embodies the energy of thunderstorms. Indra is the king of the gods and ruler of the heavens, Indra is the god of thunder and rain and a great warrior, a symbol of courage and strength. Vayu is his friend and servant and the Vasus are his advisers. Indra’s mount is the elephant Airavata and he also has a golden chariot drawn by ten thousand horses. Return to list of Gods

6. Kali is a ferocious form of the Divine Mother, who sent her Shakit, the Moether Gauri, to free the gods from the dominion of the demonic forces Shumbh and Nishumbh. Kai is the goddess of time and of the transformation that is death (Kala). Lord Shiva and Mother Gauri in their destructive form are known as Kali. Kali the the Kundalini energy that paralyses the attachments produced by the solar and lunar currents. This attachment causes fear of death. In the ignorant ones she creates fear, while for others Kali removes the avidya (ignorance) that makes us fear death. Return to list of Gods

7. Ram is the 7 th incarnation of Vishnu and the central figure of the Ramayana epic. The Ramayan is the very soul of India. It is a complete guide to God- realisation, the path to which lies to righteousness. The ideals of man are beautifully portrayed in it. Everyone should emulate those ideas and grow into ideal human beings and ideal citizens. Ram took birth to free the earth from the cruelty and sins of the demon King Ravana. Return to list of Gods

8. Rudra is an ancient god of storms and of the winds in early Hinduism. Rudra is given many names, and is generally viewed as a terrifying god, as befits his status of storm god. He is known as the Terrible, as the Howler, and as the Wild One. Although in early Hinduism Rudra was an independent deity, in later Hinduism the god became synonymous with a form of Shivas. Return to list of Gods

9. Shakti is the divine force, manifesting to destroy demonic forces and restore balance. Every God in Hinduism has his Shakti and without that energy they have no power. Lakshmi is the energy of Vishnu, Parvati is energy of Shiva. Shakti is also called Devi or mahadevi, assuming different roles as Sati, Parvati, Durga and Kali. Shakti is the mother goddess, the source of all, the universal principle of energy, power or creativity. Return to list of Gods

10. Shiva is the god of the yogis, self-controlled and celibate, while at the same time a lover of his spouse (Shakti). Lord Shiva is the destroyer of the world, following Brahma the creator and Vishnu the preserver, after which Brahma again creates the world and so on. Shiva is responsible for change both in the form of death and destruction and in the positive sense of destroying the ego, the false identification with the form. This also includes the shedding of old habits and attachments. Return to list of Gods

11. The Trimurti is a concept in Hinduism in which the cosmic functions of creation, maintenance, and destruction are personified by the forms of Brahma the creator, Vishnu the maintainer or preserver and Shiva the destroyer or transformer. These three deities have been called “The Hindu Triad” or the “Great Trinity”. Return to list of Gods

12. The most noble of the Vedic gods is Vaura, Lord of the sky. He is also god of water and of the celestial ocean, as well as a god of law and the underworld. He is a god of healing, who gives deliverance ‘from the sins we have incurred.’ He is the most prominent Asura in the Rigveda, and lord of the heavens and the earth. In Hindu mythology, Varuna continued to be the god of all forms of the water element, particularly the oceans. Return to list of Gods

13. The Hindu god Vishnu is the preserver and proteector of creation, Vishnu is the embodiment of mercy and goodness, the self-existent, all- pervading power that preserves the universe and maintains the cosmic order Dharma. Vishnu is often represented resting on the coiled serpent Shesha, with Vishnu’s consort Lakshmi massaging his feet. Vishnu never sleeps and is the diety of Shanti, the peaceful mood. Vishnu does not however tolerate Ego. Return to list of Gods