Thirty-three gods explained

The Thirty-three gods, or Tridasha (Sanskrit: त्रिदश|Tridaśa|lit=three tens), is a pantheon of Hindu deities of the current manvantara.^{[1] [2]} The Samhitas, which are the oldest layer of text in the Vedas, enumerate 33 deities classified as Devas, either 11 each for the three worlds, or as 12 Adityas, 11 Rudras, eight Vasus and two Ashvins in the Brahmanas.^{[3] [4]}

List

The thirty-three deities are:

• Eight Vasus (deities of material elements) – Dyaus (sky), Prithvi (earth), Vayu (wind), Agni (fire), Nakshatra (stars), Varuna (water), Surya (sun), Chandra (moon)
• Twelve Adityas (personified deities) – Indra (Shakra), Aryaman, Tvashtr, Varuna, Bhaga, Savitr, Vivasvat, Amsha, Mitra, Pushan, Daksha, Vishnu (this list sometimes varies in particulars)
• Eleven Rudras, consisting of Aja, Ekapada, Ahirbudhanya, Tvasta, Rudra, Hara, Sambhu, Trayambaka, Aparajita, Ishana, and Tribhuvana
• Two Ashvins (or Nasatyas), twin solar deities

Variations

The list of deities varies across the manuscripts found in different parts of South Asia, particularly in terms of the Ashvins and the personified devas. One list based on Book 2 of the Aitereya Brahmana is:^{[5] [6]}

• Devas personified: Indra (Shakra), Varuna, Mitra, Aryaman, Bhaga, Amsha, Vidhata,^[7] Tvashtr, Pushan, Vivasvat (Surya), Savitr (Dhatr), Vishnu
• Devas as abstractions or inner principles: Ananda (bliss, inner contentment), Vijnana (knowledge), Manas (mind, thought), Prana (life-force), Vac (speech), Atma (Self), and five manifestations of Rudra – Ishana, Tatpurusha, Aghora, Vamadeva, Sadyojata
• Devas as forces or principles of nature – Prithvi (earth), Agni (fire), Antariksha (atmosphere, space), Jala (water), Vayu (wind), Dyaus (sky), Surya (sun), Nakshatra (stars), Soma (moon)
• Devas as guides or creative energy – Vasatkara, Prajapati

The reported identity of the two Ashvins sometimes varies:

Literature

The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad describes the existence of these deities with a different lineup:^[8]

See also

• Trāyastriṃśa, the Buddhist equivalent

Notes and References

1. Book: Lynn Foulston, Stuart Abbott . Hindu goddesses: beliefs and practices . 2009 . 9781902210438 . 1–2 .
2. Mani pp. 654–5
3. George Williams (2008), A Handbook of Hindu Mythology, Oxford University Press,, pp. 90, 112
4. Monier Monier-Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary" Etymologically and Philologically Arranged to cognate Indo-European Languages, Motilal Banarsidass, p. 492
5. Hermann Oldenberg (1988), The Religion of the Veda, Motilal Banarsidass,, pp. 23-50
6. AA MacDonell,, Oxford University Press, pp. 19-21
7. Francis X Clooney (2010), Divine Mother, Blessed Mother, Oxford University Press,, p. 242
8. Web site: www.wisdomlib.org . 2015-02-23 . Yajnavalkya and Vidagdha [Section IX] ]. 2022-07-31 . www.wisdomlib.org . en.