There are 1028 hymns in the
RigvedaThe Rigveda is an ancient Indian sacred collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns...
, most of them dedicated to specific
deitiesA deity is a recognized preternatural or supernatural immortal being, who may be thought of as holy, divine, or sacred, held in high regard, and respected by believers....
.
Indra' or is the King of the demi-gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hindu mythology. He is also the God of War, Storms, and Rainfall.Indra is one of the chief deities in the Rigveda...
, a heroic god, slayer of Vrtra and destroyer of the
ValaVala , meaning "enclosure" in Vedic Sanskrit, is an Asura of the Rigveda and the Atharvaveda, the brother of Vrtra.Historically, it has the same origin as the Vrtra myth, being derived from the same root, and from the same root also as Varuna, *val-/var- "to cover, to enclose" .Parallel to Vrtra...
, liberator of the cows and the rivers;
AgniAgni is a Hindu deity, one of the most important of the Vedic gods. He is the god of fire and the acceptor of sacrifices. The sacrifices made to Agni go to the deities because Agni is a messenger from and to the other gods...
the sacrificial fire and messenger of the gods; and
SomaSoma , or Haoma , from Proto-Indo-Iranian *sauma-, was a ritual drink of importance among the early Indo-Iranians, and the subsequent Vedic and greater Persian cultures. It is frequently mentioned in the Rigveda, whose Soma Mandala contains 114 hymns, many praising its energizing qualities...
the ritual drink dedicated to Indra are the most prominent deities.
Invoked in groups are the Vishvedevas (the "all-gods"), the
MarutsIn Hinduism the Marutas , also known as the Marutagana and sometimes identified with Rudras, are storm deities and sons of Rudra and Diti and attendants of Indra. The number of Maruts varies from two to sixty . They are very violent and aggressive, described as armed with golden weapons i.e...
, violent storm gods in Indra's train and the
AshvinsThe Ashvins , in Hindu mythology, are divine twin horsemen in the Rigveda, sons of Saranya , a goddess of the clouds and wife of Surya in his form as Vivasvat. The Ashvins are Vedic gods symbolising the shining of sunrise and sunset, appearing in the sky before the dawn in a golden chariot,...
, the twin horsemen.
There are two major groups of gods, the
Devas' is the Sanskrit word for god or deity, its related feminine term is devi. In modern Hinduism, it can be loosely interpreted as any benevolent supernatural beings. The devs in Hinduism, also called Suras, are often juxtaposed to the Asuras, their half brothers. Devs are also the maintainers of...
and the
Asura-In Hinduism:In Hinduism, the Asuras constitute a group of power-seeking deities, sometimes considered sinful and materialistic. The Daityas and Danavas were combinedly known as Asuras. The Asura were opposed to the Devas. Both groups are children of Kasyapa...
s. Unlike in later Vedic texts and in
HinduismHinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
, the Asuras are not yet demonized,
MitraThis article is about the Vedic deity Mitra. For other divinities with related names, see the general article Mitra.Mitra is an important divinity of Indic culture, and the patron divinity of honesty, friendship, contracts and meetings...
and
VarunaIn Vedic religion, Varuna is a god of the sky, of water and of the celestial ocean, as well as a god of law and of the underworld...
being their most prominent members.
AditiAditi in Sanskrit, an ancient Indian language. In the Vedas Aditi is mother of the gods from whose cosmic matrix the heavenly bodies were born...
is the mother both of Agni and of the
AdityasIn Hinduism, Āditya , meaning "of or related to Aditi", refers to the offsprings of Aditi. Adityas are solar class deities. In later Hinduism, Aditya is used in the singular to mean the sun.-Vedas:...
or Asuras, led by Mitra and Varuna, with
AryamanAryaman is one of the early Vedic deities . His name signifies "bosom friend". He is the third son of Aditi. He is an Aditya, a solar deity. He is supposed to be the chief of the manes and the Milky Way is supposed to be his path.Aryaman is another name for Surya or the Sun God...
,
BhagaSanskrit is a term for "lord, patron", but also for "wealth, prosperity". The cognate term in Avestan and Old Persian is , of uncertain meaning but used in a sense in which "lord, patron" might also apply. A Slavic cognate is "god"...
,
AnsaAnsa or ANSA can refer to any of the following:* Ansa, Queen of the Lombards, 8th century, wife of Desiderius, king of the Lombards*Ansa , genus of moth* Ansa or in Hinduism, a solar deity and one of the Adityas....
and
DakshaIn Hinduism, Daksha, "the skilled one", is an ancient creator god, one of the Prajapatis, the Rishis and the Adityas. Daksha is said to be the son of Aditi and Brahma...
.
SuryaSurya Suraya or Phra Athit is the chief solar deity in Hinduism, one of the Adityas, son of Kasyapa and one of his wives, Aditi; of Indra; or of Dyaus Pitar . The term Surya also refers to the Sun, in general. Surya has hair and arms of gold...
is the personification of the
SunThe Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
, but
SavitarSavitar may refer to:*Savitr, a Vedic Hindu Solar deity of Aditya class*Savitar , a supervillain published by DC Comics*Savitar, a character from Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark-Hunter series...
, Vivasvant, the
AshvinAshvin , also known as Aswayuja, is the seventh month of the lunisolar Hindu calendar, the Tamil solar calendar where it is known as Aipassi and the solar India's national civil calendar. It is the sixth month of the solar Bengali calendar. It falls in the season of Shôrot, or Autumn...
s and the
RbhusThe Ribhus are three semi-divine beings of the Rigveda and the Atharvaveda, Ribhu, Vaja and Vibhvan, collectively called by the name of their leader. In later Hindu mythology , Ribhu is a son of Brahma....
, semi-divine craftsmen, also have aspects of
solar deitiesA solar deity is a sky deity who represents the Sun, or an aspect of it, usually by its perceived power and strength. Solar deities and sun worship can be found throughout most of recorded history in various forms...
. Other natural phenomena deified include
VayuVāyu is a primary Hindu deity, the Lord of the winds, the father of Bhima and the spiritual father of Lord Hanuman...
, (the wind), Dyaus and Prithivi (Heaven and Earth), Dyaus continuing
Dyeus*Dyēus is the reconstructed chief deity of the Proto-Indo-European pantheon. He was the god of the daylight sky, and his position may have mirrored the position of the patriarch or monarch in society....
, the chief god of the
Proto-Indo-European religionProto-Indo-European religion is the hypothesized religion of the Proto-Indo-European peoples based on the existence of similarities among the deities, religious practices and mythologies of the Indo-European peoples. Reconstruction of the hypotheses below is based on linguistic evidence using the...
, and
UshasUshas , Sanskrit for "dawn", is a Vedic deity, and consequently a Hindu deity as well.Sanskrit is an s-stem, i.e. the genitive case is . It is from PIE , cognate to Greek Eos and Latin Aurora....
(the dawn), the most prominent
goddessA goddess is a female deity. In some cultures goddesses are associated with Earth, motherhood, love, and the household. In other cultures, goddesses also rule over war, death, and destruction as well as healing....
of the Rigveda, and
ApasAp is the Vedic Sanskrit term for "water", in Classical Sanskrit occurring only in the plural, , whence Hindi . The term is from PIE hxap "water"....
(the waters).
RiversRivers, such as the Sapta Sindhu , play a prominent part in the hymns of the Rigveda, and consequently in early Vedic religion...
play an important role, deified as goddesses, most prominently the Sapta Sindhu and the
Sarasvati RiverThe Sarasvati River is one of the chief Rigvedic rivers mentioned in ancient Hindu texts. The Nadistuti hymn in the Rigveda mentions the Sarasvati between the Yamuna in the east and the Sutlej in the west, and later Vedic texts like Tandya and Jaiminiya Brahmanas as well as the Mahabharata...
.
YamaYama , also known as Yamarāja in India and Nepal, Shinje in Tibet, Yanluowang or simply Yan in China, Yeomla Daewang in South Korea and Enma Dai-Ō in Japan, is the lord of death, in Hinduism and then adopted into Buddhism and then further into Chinese mythology and Japanese mythology. First...
is the first ancestor, also worshipped as a deity, and the god of the
underworldThe Underworld is a region which is thought to be under the surface of the earth in some religions and in mythologies. It could be a place where the souls of the recently departed go, and in some traditions it is identified with Hell or the realm of death...
and death.
VishnuVishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
and
Rudra' is a Rigvedic God, associated with wind or storm, and the hunt. The name has been translated as "The Roarer", or "The Howler"....
, the prominent deities of later
HinduismHinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
(Rudra being an early form of
ShivaShiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
) are present as marginal gods.
The names of Indra, Mitra, Varuna and the Nasatyas are also attested in a
MitanniMitanni or Hanigalbat was a loosely organized Hurrian-speaking state in northern Syria and south-east Anatolia from ca. 1500 BC–1300 BC...
treaty, suggesting that the some of the religion of the Mitannis was very close to that of the Rigveda.
Deities by prominence
List of Rigvedic deities by number of dedicated hymns, after Griffith (1888). Some dedications are to paired deities, such as Indra-Agni, Mitra-Varuna, Soma-Rudra, here counted doubly.
- Indra
' or is the King of the demi-gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hindu mythology. He is also the God of War, Storms, and Rainfall.Indra is one of the chief deities in the Rigveda...
289
- Agni
Agni is a Hindu deity, one of the most important of the Vedic gods. He is the god of fire and the acceptor of sacrifices. The sacrifices made to Agni go to the deities because Agni is a messenger from and to the other gods...
218
- Soma
Soma , or Haoma , from Proto-Indo-Iranian *sauma-, was a ritual drink of importance among the early Indo-Iranians, and the subsequent Vedic and greater Persian cultures. It is frequently mentioned in the Rigveda, whose Soma Mandala contains 114 hymns, many praising its energizing qualities...
123 (most of them in the Soma Mandala)
- Vishvadevas 70
- the Asvins 56
- Varuna
In Vedic religion, Varuna is a god of the sky, of water and of the celestial ocean, as well as a god of law and of the underworld...
46
- the Maruts
In Hinduism the Marutas , also known as the Marutagana and sometimes identified with Rudras, are storm deities and sons of Rudra and Diti and attendants of Indra. The number of Maruts varies from two to sixty . They are very violent and aggressive, described as armed with golden weapons i.e...
38
- Mitra
This article is about the Vedic deity Mitra. For other divinities with related names, see the general article Mitra.Mitra is an important divinity of Indic culture, and the patron divinity of honesty, friendship, contracts and meetings...
28
- Ushas
Ushas , Sanskrit for "dawn", is a Vedic deity, and consequently a Hindu deity as well.Sanskrit is an s-stem, i.e. the genitive case is . It is from PIE , cognate to Greek Eos and Latin Aurora....
21
- Vayu
Vāyu is a primary Hindu deity, the Lord of the winds, the father of Bhima and the spiritual father of Lord Hanuman...
(Wind) 12
- Savitr
Savitr IAST: savitrIn Vedic religion, Savitr , Savitā is a solar deity and one of the Adityas i.e. off-spring of Vedic deity Aditi. His name in Vedic Sanskrit connotes "impeller, rouser, vivifier"...
11
- the Rbhus
The Ribhus are three semi-divine beings of the Rigveda and the Atharvaveda, Ribhu, Vaja and Vibhvan, collectively called by the name of their leader. In later Hindu mythology , Ribhu is a son of Brahma....
11
- Pushan
Pushan is a Vedic solar deity and one of the Adityas. He is the god of meeting. Pushan was responsible for marriages, journeys, roads, and the feeding of cattle. He was a psychopomp, conducting souls to the other world. He protected travelers from bandits and wild beasts, and protected men from...
10
- the Apris
Apri in Sanskrit means "conciliation, propitiation" and refers to special invocations spoken previous to the offering of oblations. RV 1.13 is known as the Apri-hymn of the Kanvas, and Sayana in the context of this hymn enumerates twelve Apris propitiating twelve deities, also known as Apris...
9
- Brhaspati 8
- Surya
Surya Suraya or Phra Athit is the chief solar deity in Hinduism, one of the Adityas, son of Kasyapa and one of his wives, Aditi; of Indra; or of Dyaus Pitar . The term Surya also refers to the Sun, in general. Surya has hair and arms of gold...
(Sun) 8
- Dyaus and Prithivi (Heaven and Earth) 6, plus 5.84 dedicated to Earth alone
- Apas
Ap is the Vedic Sanskrit term for "water", in Classical Sanskrit occurring only in the plural, , whence Hindi . The term is from PIE hxap "water"....
(Waters) 6
- Adityas
In Hinduism, Āditya , meaning "of or related to Aditi", refers to the offsprings of Aditi. Adityas are solar class deities. In later Hinduism, Aditya is used in the singular to mean the sun.-Vedas:...
6
- Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
6
- Brahmanaspati 6
- Rudra
' is a Rigvedic God, associated with wind or storm, and the hunt. The name has been translated as "The Roarer", or "The Howler"....
5
- Dadhikra
is the name of a divine horse, personification of the morning Sun, addressed in the Rigveda, hymns RV 4.38-40, RV 7.44, RV 3.20, RV 10.101....
s 4
- the Sarasvati River
The Sarasvati River is one of the chief Rigvedic rivers mentioned in ancient Hindu texts. The Nadistuti hymn in the Rigveda mentions the Sarasvati between the Yamuna in the east and the Sutlej in the west, and later Vedic texts like Tandya and Jaiminiya Brahmanas as well as the Mahabharata...
/ Sarasvati 3
- Yama
Yama , also known as Yamarāja in India and Nepal, Shinje in Tibet, Yanluowang or simply Yan in China, Yeomla Daewang in South Korea and Enma Dai-Ō in Japan, is the lord of death, in Hinduism and then adopted into Buddhism and then further into Chinese mythology and Japanese mythology. First...
- Parjanya
Parjanya, according to the 1965 Sanskrit–English dictionary by Shri Vaman Shivram Apte gives the following meanings:* Rain-cloud, thunder cloud, a cloud in general* Rain...
(Rain) 3
- Vāc
VAC or Vac may refer to:In arts and entertainment* Velvet Acid Christ, an industrial band* Video Appeals Committee in the United Kingdom, responsible for hearing appeals against decisions by the British Board of Film Classification...
(Speech) 2 (mentioned 130 times, deified e.g. in 10.125)
- Vastospati 2
- Vishvakarman
Viśvákarma is the Hindu presiding deity of all craftsmen and architects...
2
- Manyu
, Vedic Sanskrit for "spirit, temper, ardour, passion, anger" is war god,wielder of thunder,slayer of foes,of Dasyus. He is fierce,queller of the foe and is self-existent. He is beseeched to bring health and wealth...
2
- Kapinjala (the Heathcock, a form of Indra) 2
Minor deities (one single or no dedicated hymn)
- Manas
Manas may refer to one of the following:*Manas, a Kyrgyz epic poem with 500,000 lines.*The Pali and Sanskrit term for "mind"; see**Manas **Manas-vijnana, one of the eight consciousnesses taught in Yogacara Buddhism...
(Thought), prominent concept, deified in 10.58
- Dakshina
Dakshina in the historical Vedic religion is the term for the recompense paid by the sacrificer for the services of a priest, originally consisting of a cow...
(Reward for priests and poets), prominent concept, deified in 10.107
- Jnana
Jñāna or gñāna is a Sanskrit and Pali word that means knowledge. It has various nuances of meaning depending on the context. The idea of jnana centers around a cognitive event which is recognized when experienced...
m (Knowledge), prominent concept, deified in 10.71
- Purusha
In some lineages of Hinduism, Purusha is the "Self" which pervades the universe. The Vedic divinities are interpretations of the many facets of Purusha...
("Cosmic Man" of the Purusha suktaPurusha sukta is hymn 10.90 of the Rigveda, dedicated to the Purusha, the "Cosmic Being". One version of the Suktam has 16 verses, 15 in the meter, and the final one in the meter...
10.90)
- Aditi
Aditi in Sanskrit, an ancient Indian language. In the Vedas Aditi is mother of the gods from whose cosmic matrix the heavenly bodies were born...
- Bhaga
Sanskrit is a term for "lord, patron", but also for "wealth, prosperity". The cognate term in Avestan and Old Persian is , of uncertain meaning but used in a sense in which "lord, patron" might also apply. A Slavic cognate is "god"...
- Vasukra
is the name of a rishi with patronymic Aindra, author of RV 10.27, 29, and part of 28, and the name of another rishi, son of Vasishtha, author of two verses, RV 9.97.28-30....
- Atri
This article is about the sage named Attri. See also the gotra named Atri. For the Italian city, see Atri, AbruzzoIn Hinduism, Attri or Atri is a legendary bard and scholar and was one of 9 Prajapatis, and a son of Brahma, said to be ancestor of some Brahmin, Prajapatis, kshatriya and Vaishya...
- Apam Napat
Apam Napat is an eminent figure of the Indo-Iranian pantheon. In Hinduism, Apām Napāt is the god of fresh water, such as in rivers and lakes...
- Ksetrapati
- Ghrta
- Nirrti
In Hinduism, ' is the goddess of death and corruption, one of the dikpāla , representing the southwest . The name has the meaning of "absence of ṛta, lawless"...
- Asamati
is a minor deity invoked in RV 10.60. According ot the Anukramani, it is also the name of a king, with the patronymic Râthaprośṭha....
- Urvasi
Urvashi Urvashi Urvashi in Hindu legend. She was a celestial maiden in Indra's court and was considered the most beautiful of all the Apsaras....
- Pururavas
Pururavas was the first king of the Aila dynasty or the Somavamsha. According to the Vedas, he is a mythological entity associated with the Surya and Usha , and is believed to resided in the middle region of the cosmos. The Rig Veda states that he was a son of Ila and was a pious king...
- Vena
In Hindu mythology, Vena was a great king. However, he became evil and corrupt. The world became so gloomy and dark that the earth-goddess Bhumidevi decided that she would not provide crops to humans anymore. She took form as a cow and went into hiding. Meanwhile, a group of Rishis killed Vena out...
- Aranyani
In Hinduism, Aranyani is a goddess of the forests and the animals that dwell within them.Aranyani has the distinction of having one of the most descriptive hymns in the Rig Veda dedicated to her, in which she is described as being elusive, fond of quiet glades in the jungle, and fearless of remote...
- Mayabheda
- Tarksya
- Tvastar
In Vedic religion,' , is the first born creator of the universe. In Yajurveda purusha suktha and in 10 mandala of Rg veda his character and attributes are merging with the concept like Hiranyagharbha/Prajapathy or Brahma.The term also transliterated as Tvaṣṭr, nominative , is the heavenly...
- Saranyu
Saranya or Saraniya is the wife of Surya, and a goddess of the dawn and the clouds in Hindu mythology, and is sometimes associated with Demeter, Greek goddess of agriculture. According to Max Müller and A...