| Name ▲▼ | Origin ▲▼ | Description ▲▼ |
|---|---|---|
| God name "Rsabha (the bull)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | God. An unusual avatara of VIS'NU. Said to be similar to the Jain deity Rsabhanatha and therefore may represent an attempt to meld the two religions by absorbing Jainism locally.... |
| God name "Rudra (howler)" | Hindu / Vedic | weather god. An early deity, largely superseded by SIVA, who controls the gales and storms. Often linked with the fire god AGNI and the Rain god INDRA. Generally a malignant god, Rudra lives in the mountains and is deemed to be either tall or dwarf, depending on the severity of the storm. He brings death and disease to man and domestic animals through his thousand shafts, and is considered to be highly unpredictable.... |
| God name "Sakti (energy)" | Hindu, Jain / Buddhist | Personification of a god. The effective power, or creative force, of a deity in the form of a female aspect. In a more specific context, the SAKTI identifies the creative force of the god SIVA, particularly the ugra or violent aspects DURGA and KALI. The Sakti may frequently have the same characteristics and carry the same attributes as the principal god. In Tantrism, the unity of opposites is defined by the Sakti, which is the yoni or female sexuality that unites with the male lingam of Siva.... |
| Goddess name "Sanju" | Kafir / Afghanistan | Harvest goddess. A littlereported deity, the consort of the war god GISH and daughter of SANU. She controls the harvesting, threshing and winnowing of grain and the safe storage of wheat and butter. She carries a golden winnow and is either depicted in human form or as a goat. Her cult is known chiefly from the village of Pronz in the southern Hindukush where she enjoyed an important sanctuary with stone seats around the icon, part of which reportedly still exists. Wooden statues depict her in human form, nude to the waist. Alternatively, she is perceived as a bird that acts as a messenger. The blood of sacrificial animals was poured over the figure. Also Sulmech; SANU.... |
| Goddess name "Sarama (the nimble one)" | Hindu / Vedic, Epic / Puranic | Attendant goddess. She acts as a messenger to the god INDRA and guards his herds. In later Hindu texts Sarama is reputedly the mother of all dogs and is given the epithet the bitch of heaven. The Rg Veda accounts her as having punished the minor deity Panis for stealing cows.... |
| Deity name "Savitri" | Hindu | Vivifier, stimulator; an aspect of the Sun deity. Hindu |
| God name "Sesa(naga) (remainder)" | Hindu / Vedic, Epic / Puranic | Snake god or naga. The great serpent lying in the primeval sea and encircling the world. The son of KASYAPA and KADRU. A many-headed attendant on VIS'NU who uses the snake as a couch on which to rest between cycles of the universe. Its many hoods overshadow and protect him. Not technically a deity but important enough in literature to be included here. Also Adisesa; ANANTA.... |
| Goddess name "Siddhi (accomplishment, success)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Minor goddess of good fortune. A deity who grants favors. Sometimes åśśociated with the elephant god GANESA or MAHA-GANAPATI, on whose knee she may sit. In earlier times she was described as a consort of BHAGA.... |
| Deity name "Sikhandin (with a tuft of hair)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Minor deity. One of a group of emancipated VIDYESVARAS (lords of knowledge) considered to be aspects of S IVA. Attributes: knife and sword.... |
| Deity name "Srikantha (beautiful throat)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Minor deity. One of a group of emancipated VIDYESVARAS (lords of knowledge) considered to be aspects of S IVA, in this instance referring to his darkish blue neck. Also one of the EKADASARUDRAS or eleven forms of RUDRA. Attributes: hatchet and trident.... |
| Goddess name "Srividyadevi (of excellent knowledge)" | Hindu | Minor goddess. A deity of terrifying appearance. Attributes: necklace of bones, teeth.... |
| Deity name "Subrahmanya" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Minor warrior deity. A form of KARTTIKEYA which is depicted with six heads and twelve arms. Also SHADANANASUBRAHMANYA; see also SKANDA.... |
| Deity name "Suksma (very small)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Minor deity. One of a group of emancipated VIDYESVARAS (lords of knowledge) considered to be aspects of S IVA. Attributes: hatchet and trident.... |
| Goddess name "Ugratara (violent Tara)" | Hindu / Puranic | Goddess. A terrible deity who carries a cup and a corpse upon her head.... |
| Goddess name "Usas" | Hindu / Vedic | Goddess of the dawn. The daughter of Dyaus and, according to some texts, the consort of the Sun god SURYA. An auspicious deity, Usas brings the dawn, heralding Surya, and drives away darkness. She is the all-seeing eye of the gods. In the Rg Veda she is depicted as a beautiful young virginal figure who rides in a hundred chariots. She sets all things in motion and can render strength and fame to her devotees. In addition to being perceived as a sky goddess, she is also drawn as a mother goddess in the guise of a cow. Epithets include mother of the gods and mother of cows. She is invoked to give the boon of longevity, but a more malignant aspect reveals her as a huntress who wastes human life. Usas sometimes enjoys a domestic worship as a guardian hearth goddess who drives away darkness and evil spirits. She disappears, however, from the later traditions of Hinduism.... |
| God name "Vata" | Hindu / Persian | God of the wind and a deity with a violent personality. Hindu / Persian |
| God name "Vata" | Hindu / Vedic / / Persian / Iran | God of wind. The name appears in the Rg Veda as a deity of violent personality. According to Asvestan tradition the god of victory, VERETHRAGNA, appeared to Zarathustra in the guise of Vata.... |
| God name "Venkata" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Form of the god V ISNU. According to the Aditya Purana, Venkata is a deity of considerable importance in southern India. The name does not occur in the north. He is worshiped extensively by Hindus but particularly in the Tamil shrine of Tirupati where there is argument that the deity depicted is SIVA or KARTTIKEYA. The image appears to carry attributes of Vis'nu on the left and Siva on the right. Also Venkatesa.... |
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