How many gods are worshiped in india

Bad actions result in bad karma, which leads one to lower incarnation and a step further from salvation. Coming to Allahabad has special significance for Hindus and tens of thousands come daily to take holy dips at the Sangam, believing doing this during the auspicious planetary conjugation will wash away all the sins of a lifetime and release them from the cycle of births and rebirths.

Before taking the dip, pilgrims offer milk and marigolds to the rivers in a purification ritual and later throw water with their hands toward the sky, believing that some drops will reach their ancestors in the heaven.

It is above logic. Nagas are the naked recluses of Hinduism and they have their own logic. Fifty-two different religious groups put up sprawling tent homes at the fair. These individuals are powerful beings that have been appointed by Krishna and have been bestowed with the necessary powers and abilities to manage and govern their area of creation.

They can be referred to as demigods. For example, there is someone responsible for the sun and his name is Surya.

The goddess Saraswati is the overseer of knowledge. The creator of the material universe is known as Brahma. The destruction of the universe is overseen by Shiva and Vishnu serves as the maintainer. There are individuals overseeing the oceans, the wind, and practically every facet of creations.

When seen from this perspective, 33 million is not that big a number. We take it completely for granted that the sun is always perfectly fixed in its position. If it were to move even slightly closer to the earth we would burn to a crisp and if it were to distance itself from us, we would become popsicles.

We also take it for granted that all day and all night, there is oxygen in the atmosphere for us to breathe. It's not by chance that all this is existing. It has been placed here and someone has been put in charge of each aspect of it. For example, we plug our electronic gadgetry into power outlets. That's not magic and it's not by chance. It was constructed into the building to facilitate our needs. If for some reason, there's a massive power outage, then the person in charge would have to take responsibility for its maintenance.

The material universe functions like a big governmental structure with heads of departments managing their respective affairs. At this time, too, the Brahmanas—lengthy Sanskrit texts expounding priestly ritual and the myths behind it—were composed. Between the 8th century BC and the 5th century BC , the Upanishads were composed; these are mystical-philosophical meditations on the meaning of existence and the nature of the universe.

The actual content of this canon, however, is unknown to most Hindus. No prohibition is made against improvising variations on, rewording, or challenging the Smriti.

The Smriti includes the two great Sanskrit epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana ; the many Sanskrit Puranas , including 18 great Puranas and several dozen more subordinate Puranas; and the many Dharmashastras and Dharmasutras textbooks on sacred law , of which the one attributed to the sage Manu is the most frequently cited.

The two epics are built around central narratives. The Mahabharata tells of the war between the Pandava brothers, led by their cousin Krishna , and their cousins the Kauravas. The Ramayana tells of the journey of Rama to recover his wife Sita after she is stolen by the demon Ravana.

But these stories are embedded in a rich corpus of other tales and discourses on philosophy, law, geography, political science, and astronomy, so that the Mahabharata about , lines long constitutes a kind of encyclopedia or even a literature, and the Ramayana more than 50, lines long is comparable.

Although it is therefore impossible to fix their dates, the main bodies of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana were probably composed between BC and AD Both, however, continued to grow even after they were translated into the vernacular languages of India such as Tamil and Hindi in the succeeding centuries. The Puranas were composed after the epics, and several of them develop themes found in the epics for instance, the Bhagavata-Purana describes the childhood of Krishna, a topic not elaborated in the Mahabharata.

The Puranas also include subsidiary myths, hymns of praise, philosophies, iconography, and rituals. Most of the Puranas are predominantly sectarian in nature; the great Puranas and some subordinate Puranas are dedicated to the worship of Shiva or Vishnu or the Goddess, and several subordinate Puranas are devoted to Ganesha or Skanda or the sun. Philosophy Incorporated in this rich literature is a complex cosmology.

Hindus believe that the universe is a great, enclosed sphere, a cosmic egg, within which are numerous concentric heavens, hells, oceans, and continents, with India at the center. They believe that time is both degenerative—going from the golden age, or Krita Yuga, through two intermediate periods of decreasing goodness, to the present age, or Kali Yuga—and cyclic: At the end of each Kali Yuga, the universe is destroyed by fire and flood, and a new golden age begins.

Human life, too, is cyclic: After death, the soul leaves the body and is reborn in the body of another person, animal, vegetable, or mineral. This condition of endless entanglement in activity and rebirth is called samsara see Transmigration. The precise quality of the new birth is determined by the accumulated merit and demerit that result from all the actions, or karma , that the soul has committed in its past life or lives.

Hindus may thus be divided into two groups: those who seek the sacred and profane rewards of this world health, wealth, children, and a good rebirth , and those who seek release from the world. The principles of the first way of life were drawn from the Vedas and are represented today in temple Hinduism and in the religion of Brahmans and the caste system. The second way, which is prescribed in the Upanishads, is represented not only in the cults of renunciation sannyasa but also in the ideological ideals of most Hindus.

To the first three Vedas was added the Atharva-Veda. The first three classes Brahman, or priestly; Kshatriya, or warrior; and Vaisya, or general populace were derived from the tripartite division of ancient Indo-European society, traces of which can be detected in certain social and religious institutions of ancient Greece and Rome.

To the three classes were added the Shudras, or servants, after the Indo-Aryans settled into the Punjab and began to move down into the Ganges Valley. The three original ashramas were the chaste student brahmachari , the householder grihastha , and the forest-dweller vanaprastha. They were said to owe three debts: study of the Vedas owed to the sages ; a son to the ancestors ; and sacrifice to the gods.

The three goals were artha material success , dharma righteous social behavior , and kama sensual pleasures. Shortly after the composition of the first Upanishads, during the rise of Buddhism 6th century BC , a fourth ashrama and a corresponding fourth goal were added: the renouncer sannyasi , whose goal is release moksha from the other stages, goals, and debts.

Each of these two ways of being Hindu developed its own complementary metaphysical and social systems. Svadharma comprises the beliefs that each person is born to perform a specific job, marry a specific person, eat certain food, and beget children to do likewise and that it is better to fulfill one's own dharma than that of anyone else even if one's own is low or reprehensible, such as that of the Harijan caste, the Untouchables, whose mere presence was once considered polluting to other castes.

The primary goal of the worldly Hindu is to produce and raise a son who will make offerings to the ancestors the shraddha ceremony. The second, renunciatory way of Hinduism, on the other hand, is based on the Upanishadic philosophy of the unity of the individual soul, or atman , with Brahman, the universal world soul, or godhead. The full realization of this is believed to be sufficient to release the worshiper from rebirth; in this view, nothing could be more detrimental to salvation than the birth of a child.

Many of the goals and ideals of renunciatory Hinduism have been incorporated into worldly Hinduism, particularly the eternal dharma sanatana dharma , an absolute and general ethical code that purports to transcend and embrace all subsidiary, relative, specific dharmas. The most important tenet of sanatana dharma for all Hindus is ahimsa, the absence of a desire to injure, which is used to justify vegetarianism although it does not preclude physical violence toward animals or humans, or blood sacrifices in temples.

In addition to sanatana dharma, numerous attempts have been made to reconcile the two Hinduisms. The Bhagavad-Gita describes three paths to religious realization. To the path of works, or karma here designating sacrificial and ritual acts , and the path of knowledge, or jnana the Upanishadic meditation on the godhead , was added a mediating third path, the passionate devotion to God, or bhakti , a religious ideal that came to combine and transcend the other two paths.

Bhakti in a general form can be traced in the epics and even in some of the Upanishads, but its fullest statement appears only after the Bhagavad-Gita. It gained momentum from the vernacular poems and songs to local deities, particularly those of the Alvars, Nayanars, and Virashaivas of southern India and the Bengali worshipers of Krishna see below. Therefore, most Hindus are devoted through bhakti to gods whom they worship in rituals through karma and whom they understand through jnana as aspects of ultimate reality, the material reflection of which is all an illusion maya wrought by God in a spirit of play lila.

Gods Although all Hindus acknowledge the existence and importance of a number of gods and demigods, most individual worshipers are primarily devoted to a single god or goddess, of whom Shiva, Vishnu, and the Goddess are the most popular.

Shiva embodies the apparently contradictory aspects of a god of ascetics and a god of the phallus. Shiva is also the deity whose phallus linga is the central shrine of all Shaiva temples and the personal shrine of all Shaiva householders; his priapism is said to have resulted in his castration and the subsequent worship of his severed member. In addition, Shiva is said to have appeared on earth in various human, animal, and vegetable forms, establishing his many local shrines.

To his worshipers, Vishnu is all-pervasive and supreme; he is the god from whose navel a lotus sprang, giving birth to the creator Brahma. Vishnu created the universe by separating heaven and earth, and he rescued it on a number of subsequent occasions. Several of these are animals that recur in iconography: the fish, the tortoise, and the boar. Others are the dwarf Vamana, who became a giant in order to trick the demon Bali out of the entire universe ; the man-lion Narasimha, who disemboweled the demon Hiranyakashipu ; the Buddha who became incarnate in order to teach a false doctrine to the pious demons ; Rama-with-an-Axe Parashurama, who beheaded his unchaste mother and destroyed the entire class of Kshatriyas to avenge his father ; and Kalki the rider on the white horse, who will come to destroy the universe at the end of the age of Kali.

Most popular by far are Rama hero of the Ramayana and Krishna hero of the Mahabharata and the Bhagavata-Purana , both of whom are said to be avatars of Vishnu, although they were originally human heroes.

Along with these two great male gods, several goddesses are the object of primary devotion. They are sometimes said to be various aspects of the Goddess, Devi. In some myths Devi is the prime mover, who commands the male gods to do the work of creation and destruction. As Durga, the Unapproachable, she kills the buffalo demon Mahisha in a great battle; as Kali, the Black, she dances in a mad frenzy on the corpses of those she has slain and eaten, adorned with the still-dripping skulls and severed hands of her victims.

The Goddess is also worshiped by the Shaktas, devotees of Shakti, the female power. This sect arose in the medieval period along with the Tantrists, whose esoteric ceremonies involved a black mass in which such forbidden substances as meat, fish, and wine were eaten and forbidden sexual acts were performed ritually. In many Tantric cults the Goddess is identified as Krishna's consort Radha.

More peaceful manifestations of the Goddess are seen in wives of the great gods: Lakshmi, the meek, docile wife of Vishnu and a fertility goddess in her own right; and Parvati, the wife of Shiva and the daughter of the Himalayas.

The great river goddess Ganga the Ganges , also worshiped alone, is said to be a wife of Shiva; a goddess of music and literature, Sarasvati, associated with the Saraswati River, is the wife of Brahma.

Many of the local goddesses of India—Manasha, the goddess of snakes, in Bengal, and Minakshi in Madurai—are married to Hindu gods, while others, such as Shitala, goddess of smallpox, are worshiped alone.

These unmarried goddesses are feared for their untamed powers and angry, unpredictable outbursts. Many minor gods are assimilated into the central pantheon by being identified with the great gods or with their children and friends.

Hanuman, the monkey god, appears in the Ramayana as the cunning assistant of Rama in the siege of Lanka. Skanda, the general of the army of the gods, is the son of Shiva and Parvati, as is Ganesha, the elephant-headed god of scribes and merchants, the remover of obstacles, and the object of worship at the beginning of any important enterprise.

Worship and Ritual The great and lesser Hindu gods are worshiped in a number of concentric circles of public and private devotion. Because of the social basis of Hinduism, the most fundamental ceremonies for every Hindu are those that involve the rites of passage samskaras. These begin with birth and the first time the child eats solid food rice. Later rites include the first haircutting for a young boy and the purification after the first menstruation for a girl ; marriage; and the blessings upon a pregnancy, to produce a male child and to ensure a successful delivery and the child's survival of the first six dangerous days after birth the concern of Shashti, goddess of Six.

Last are the funeral ceremonies cremation and, if possible, the sprinkling of ashes in a holy river such as the Ganges and the yearly offerings to dead ancestors. The most notable of the latter is the pinda, a ball of rice and sesame seeds given by the eldest male child so that the ghost of his father may pass from limbo into rebirth.

In daily ritual, a Hindu generally the wife, who is thought to have more power to intercede with the gods makes offerings puja of fruit or flowers before a small shrine in the house. She also makes offerings to local snakes or trees or obscure spirits benevolent and malevolent dwelling in her own garden or at crossroads or other magical places in the village. The temple is also a cultural center where songs are sung, holy texts read aloud in Sanskrit and vernaculars , and sunset rituals performed; devout laity may be present at most of these ceremonies.

In many temples, particularly those sacred to goddesses such as the Kalighat temple to Kali, in Kolkata , goats are sacrificed on special occasions. The hands then rest against the pubic bone. The Brahma Mudra is a spiritual hindu yoga pose highly valued for its symbolic and healing properties. The second deity of the Hindu trinity, Vishnu is the Preserver of life. He sustains life through his adherence to principle, order, righteousness, and truth.

He encourages his devotees to show kindness and compassion to all creatures. This Hindu deity is a more esoteric god in comparison to those who rule over the natural world since. He is responsible for the divine essence that pervades the Universe. It is common to see Vishnu seated upon a coiled snake.

This symbolizes the ability to remain at peace in the face of fear or worry. Vrikshasana tree pose requires a sharp mental focus. This focus directs and concentrates the mind. Balancing yoga postures help you direct your energy inward. Keep your eyes focused on a focal point — your Drishti. Your Drishti enables you to focus on staying even keel.

Vishnu can maintain peacefulness and steadfastness in the face of fear. When practicing Vrikshasana, you build self-trust by overcoming the fear of falling. Rather than focusing on tipping over, this posture requires you to only focus on maintaining balance.

As you travel throughout India, you will see many lingams that represent Shiva. Shiva protects his followers from destructive vices such as greed, lust, and anger. He also guards them against illusion and ignorance. These are the forces that stand in the way of divine enlightenment, and therefore, prevent us from living a truly meaningful life. He is also considered to be responsible for the death, destroying to bring rebirth and new life. Shiva is often depicted with a serpent around his neck, which represents Kundalini, or life energy.

Natarajasana is one of the spiritual Hindu yoga poses inspired by Shiva. The pose represents the deity in one of his most beloved forms. The word Natarajasana comes from two words: nata, meaning acrobat, and raja, meaning king. Shiva, depicted as Nataraj, is often shown dancing to represent this meaning.

This dance is ever fluctuating and changing. This expression symbolizes the dynamic cultural expression of life. As in life, the external posture may be full of movement and much wobbling when we practice, it requires a still, calm mind to stay balanced.

Recognized for his elephant head, Ganesh of the most prevalent and best-known deities. Also known as Ganesha. His large, elephantine head symbolizes the wisdom and knowledge that he bestows upon his seekers. He is the ruler of astrology, mantra sound , and yoga and is associated with the arts and sciences.

It is especially common to pray to Ganesha before any significant venture such as a wedding or a new project because he removes obstacles to success and good fortune.

Some myths and stories explain how Ganesha came to have an elephant head. Still, it is thought that the humorous image stills the rational mind and its doubts. Therefore, in meditation , we practice looking beyond outer appearances and forms.

One of these postures is Virabhadrasana or Warrior II. Before embarking on your day or an adventure, you may want to practice this pose inspired by one of the most well-known Hindu gods. It will give you the strength, resilience, wisdom, and good fortune you need to succeed in all your endeavors.

Hanuman represents the ideal devotee of the gods. Meditate on Hanuman as a symbol of strength, perseverance, and devotion. To embody Hanuman is to embody absolute love and dedication.

Since the five senses are the gateway to the mind, Hanuman is the god of sensory control. His attributes are often associated with extraordinary strength, as long as he believes in the cause! Hanuman is often called upon in times of trouble. He teaches us about the unlimited power that lies within the human heart.