Krishna
Krishna is considered to be the Supreme Personality of Godhead by Vaishnavas. He is the son of Vasudeva and Devaki. His complexion is blackish, the color of a new rain cloud. He stands in a threefold bending form, and plays on a flute. When worshiped in a temple, he will often be seen with his consort, Radha. In paintings, he may be seen dancing with the cowherd girls (gopis), playing with the cowherd boys, or as the chariot driver of Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra. He is also seen with cows because he was born as a cowherd boy. He is often seen in Deity form as a small baby crawling, with a sweet in one hand.

He appeared in Mathura in Uttar Pradesh about 5,000 years ago. He performed many of his pastimes in Vrindavan. Both of these places still exist and are located about 150km from Delhi, between Agra and Delhi.

In order to protect his devotees he killed the evil king Kamsa and many other demons. He is the speaker of the Bhagavad Gita, which is like the “Bible” of Indian philosophy. Krishna was married to 16,108 wives in Dwarka. His main consort in Dwarka is Rukmini, an incarnation of Lakshmi, the goddess of fortune. Krishna is unborn and eternal as confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita and other Vedic literatures.

Krishna’s Pastimes
Krishna was born of Devaki, the wife of Vasudeva, while they were imprisoned in Mathura. They were imprisoned because their eighth son, Krishna, was destined to kill the evil King Kamsa. When Krishna was born, the doors of the prison mystically opened and the guards fell asleep. Vasudeva walked out of the prison and took Krishna across the Yamuna River to Gokula to be cared for by his foster parents, Nanda and Yasoda. When Vasudeva arrived in Gokula, he found Yasoda asleep after having just delivered a baby girl. He exchanged babies and returned to the prison. When Kamsa found out that Devaki’s eighth child had been born, he rushed to the prison. He seized the baby, but the baby slipped from his hands and flew into the air, as a goddess. She said, “Fool, you cannot kill me. The baby that is destined to kill you has already been born elsewhere.”

Krishna spent his childhood with Nanda and Yasoda in Vrindavan. Kamsa sent many demon followers to Vrindavan to kill him. First he sent Putana, a child-killing witch, who assumed the form of a beautiful woman. She offered to nurse baby Krishna after covering her breast with poison, but Krishna sucked both her breast and her life-airs, killing her.

He then killed Trinavarta, the wind demon, who grabbed Krishna and flew away with him. Krishna made himself so heavy that the demon fell to the ground and died. The Aghasura demon, in the form of a gigantic snake, swallowed Krishna and his cowherd boy friends. Krishna then expanded himself and killed Aghasura. Aristasura, the bull demon and Keshi, the horse demon, both fought with Krishna and were killed.

He also punished Kaliya, a many-hooded serpent. This snake had poisoned the Yamuna River. Krishna danced on his head and eventually the Kaliya snake surrendered to him, realizing that he was the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
He also carried out many pastimes with the cowherd boys, cows, and gopis (cowherd girls). There are many paintings of Krishna dancing with the cowherd girls. This dance is called the Rasa Dance. Krishna expanded himself into many forms and it appeared to each girl that he was dancing only with her.

One day Krishna told his father, Nanda Maharaja, to stop worshiping Indra, the god of rain, and instead to worship Govardhan Hill, a sacred hill in Vrindavan. Nanda Maharaja did this and Indra became so angry that he sent torrential rains. Krishna lifted Govardhan Hill and held it over the residents of Vrindavan like an umbrella, thus protecting them. This pastime has been depicted in many paintings and sculptures.

Krishna then went to Mathura to kill Kamsa. He stayed in Mathura until he was 28. At the age of 28 he moved to Dwarka. In Dwarka he married 16,108 wives. His chief wife was Rukmini. He became Arjuna’s charioteer during the battle of Kurukshetra, and this is when he spoke the famous Bhagavad-gita.

Vishnu
Vishnu is the maintainer of the material creation. Another name for Vishnu is Narayana. He is one of the Hindu trinity, along with Lord Siva and Lord Brahma, and superintends the mode of goodness. He is full in all six opulences—wealth, influence, beauty, fame, strength, and renunciation. He is renounced because he is not attached to anything in the material world. Lord Vishnu is considered to be the Supreme Personality of Godhead by Vaishnavas.

As Garbhodakashayi Vishnu, Brahma appears from his navel and creates the universe. His consort is Lakshmi (also called Shridevi). Lakshmi usually holds a lotus flower with the petals open. His other consort is xe "Bhudevi" Bhudevi, who carries a blue lotus flower (sometimes the petals are closed). If both consorts are with Lord Vishnu, Lakshmi is on his right and Bhudevi on his left.

He usually has four hands, which hold a conch shell (sankha), a disc (chakra), a club (gada), and a lotus flower (padma). He has a blue complexion and wears yellow garments. He wears a jewel on his chest called kaustubha.

The club and the wheel are the Lord’s symbols of punishment for the demons and miscreants. The lotus flower and conchshell are used to bless the devotees. When his incarnation is present on this planet, Lord Vishnu kills the demons and protects his devotees simultaneously.

Garuda" Vishnu’s carrier is known as Garuda, who is half-bird (eagle) and half-man. Garuda is seen in many Vishnu temples kneeling reverently in front of the temple.

Lord Vishnu is often seen reclining on a bed made up of the coils of the serpent Ananta Shesha (Shesha-naga) with Lakshmi and Bhudevi at his feet. There are unlimited incarnations of Lord Vishnu, but there are ten major incarnations.

A Deity of Lakshmi-Narayana may be seen with Lord Narayana (Vishnu) sitting down, with Lakshmi sitting on his lap. Narayana may have a disc and lotus in his hands.

Incarnations of Vishnu
An incarnation of Lord Vishnu is called an avatara. Vishnu descends on earth whenever there is a decline in religious practice and a predominant rise of irreligion. In the Vedas it is said that the Lord, although one without a second, manifests himself in innumerable forms. Each and every incarnation has a particular mission, and all these forms and their missions are described in the revealed scriptures. Still, the essence of the mission is always the same—to lead people to God consciousness and obedience to religious principles. Sometimes Vishnu descends personally, and sometimes he sends his bona fide representative in the form of his son or servant, or he comes himself in a disguised form.

The Lord descends from his abode to this world, and therefore he is called avatara, which means “one who descends.” Sometimes people may think an avatara is an incarnation who assumes a material form of flesh and bones, but avatara actually refers to one who descends from a higher region. The Lord’s abode is situated far above this material world, and he descends from that higher position; thus he is called avatara.

Vishnu has ten major incarnations who are collectively known as the Dasavatara. They are Matsya, the fish; Kurma the tortoise; Varaha, the boar (who killed Hiranyaksa and saved the earth); Narasimha, the half-man, half-lion (Narasimha killed the demon Hiranyakasipu and saved his pure devotee Prahlada); Vamana, the dwarf Brahmin (who begged three paces of land from Bali Maharaja, the king of the demons, and in so doing reclaimed the universe for the demigods);

Parasuram, the ax-bearing warrior (who although born a Brahmin, killed twenty-one generations of ksatriyas (warrior caste) because of their failure to follow religious principles); Rama, the ideal king (who saved his wife from Ravana, king of Lanka. The Ramayana narrates his activities); Balarama, Krishna’s brother; Lord Buddha; and Kalki, the killer of the demoniac population at the end of Kali-yuga.

Besides the major incarnations there are innumerable others. The Lord manifests in many species of life to maintain the faithful and to annihilate the unfaithful.

Sometimes Lord Vishnu appears in person as Lord Krishna or Lord Rama. Sometimes He appears as a shaktavesha-avatara such as Lord Buddha. (Shaktavesha-avataras are incarnations of Vishnu’s power invested in a living entity.) Living entities are also part and parcel of Lord Vishnu, but they are not as powerful; therefore when a living entity descends as an incarnation of Vishnu, he is especially empowered by the Lord.

Matsya
The first incarnation of Lord Vishnu is Matsya, the fish incarnation. Matsya’s lower body resembles a fish and his upper body a man. He has four hands, in which he holds a club, lotus, disc, and club. Sometimes his hands are depicted with the palm held outward, indicating blessings for his devotees. In pictures he is often depicted as fish.

At night when Brahma sleeps, the three worlds are flooded with the waters of the Causal Ocean and all beings inhabiting them are annihilated. At the end of the past millennium (the end of Brahma’s day) Brahma felt tired and desired to lie down. The Vedas were emanating from his mouth and a great demon named Hayagriva stole them. Understanding this, Lord Vishnu assumed the form of a fish to save the Vedas and kill the demon.

When the entire world was covered with water, the Lord again took the form of a fish and saved King Satyavrata, who lived on a boat attached to the fish’s horn.

Once King Satyavrata was practicing austerity on the bank of the Kritamala River, drinking only water. Cupping his palms to scoop up some water from the river to offer as an oblation, he inadvertentlyxe "Satyavrata, King" scooped up a small fish. The fish appealed to the king for protection, asking to be provided with a safe place. The king then put the fish in a water jug. The fish immediately expanded his body and became too big for the jug. King Satyavrata then placed the fish in a large well, but that was soon not large enough. The King then placed the fish in a lake, but the fish again expanded and the lake became too small. Finally, the king placed the fish in the sea, but that also became too small. The king then realized that the fish was an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

The fish then told the King that there would be an inundation throughout the universe within a week and that he would protect the king. As the fish predicted, the Ocean rose and the king saw a boat coming toward him. He got into the boat along with the saintly people, herbs, seeds, and representatives of other living entities. He then offered prayers to Matsya. Matsya taught King Satyavrata and the saintly persons Vedic knowledge.

Kurma
The second incarnation, Kurma is Lord Vishnu in the form of a tortoise. Kurma means “tortoise.” He is sometimes seen in the form of a half-man, half-tortoise. He is often depicted with four arms. In his upper two hands he holds a disc and a conchshell. In his lower two hands he holds a club and a lotus. Sometimes these two hands are depicted in protection and boon-giving postures (mudras).

Kurma’s shell served as the pivot for Mandarachala Mountain, when the demigods and the demons used the mountain as a churning rod while churning the milk ocean (see Kumbha-mela story). The demons and demigods were producing nectar from the sea by using Mandara Mountain as the churning rod (the same nectar that is said to drop during the Kumbha-mela, giving eternal life). Because the churning rod needed support, Lord Vishnu accepted the form of a tortoise and allowed the demigods and the demons to rest the mountain on his back.

There is only one Kurma temple in India, at Srikurman (xe "Kurma-ksetra"Kurma-ksetra) in Andhra Pradesh.xe "Srikurman"

Varaha
Lord Varaha, the third incarnation, appeared as a giant boar to save the earth and to kill the demon Hiranyaksa, who had been terrifying the universe. Varaha is often depicted as half-man, half-boar, and is engaged in picking up the earth. He is also sometimes depicted entirely as a boar. He may be seen holding a conchshell, disc, lotus, and club. Sometimes he is lifting the earth planet and other times, fighting with Hiranyaksa. He may also be seen holding a club, and one hand may be in the protective or boon-giving postures.

Varaha dove to the bottom of the ocean to save the earth after Hiranyaksa put it there. Hiranyaksa was Hiranyakasipu’s brother, the demon who was killed by Lord Narasimha. Hiranyaksa was so proud, that he wanted to fight with Lord Vishnu in the form of a boar. Lord Varaha then got into a vicious club fight with Hiranyaksa. Hiranyaksa struck Varaha with his hard fist, but Varaha slapped Hiranyaksa indifferently at the root of his ear and killed him instantly.

Narasimha
In his fourth incarnation, Lord Vishnu appears in the form of half-man, half-lion, to kill the king of the demons, Hiranyakasipu, the older brother of Hiranyaksa. Narasimha is usually depicted with four hands. The upper hands hold a disc and lotus; the bottom hands are either seen tearing out Hiranyakasipu’s innards or in the boon-giving and protective postures.

Hiranyakasipu was powerful. After performing extreme austerities, he received a benediction from Lord Brahma. He asked to be immortal, but Brahma told him he could not grant such a wish because he himself was mortal. Hiranyakasipu then received the blessing that he could not be killed by man, beast, demigod, or any kind of weapon or hands. He would also not die in the air, in water, or on the ground, nor be killed either inside or outside, neither during the day nor at night.

The Lord assumed the incarnation of a half-man, half-lion and killed Hiranyakasipu. He killed him on his lap, so that he was killed neither on land nor in water. He was killed in the doorway of the assembly hall, which was neither inside nor outside. He was torn apart by Narasimha’s nails, which was neither not a weapon nor hands. He was killed at dusk, which was neither day nor night.

Prahlada Maharaja was the son of Hiranyakasipu, and because the boy was a great devotee of Lord Vishnu, his father tortured him. To save his devotee Prahlada Maharaja, Lord Narasimha appeared to kill Hiranyakasipu.

Vamana
Lord Vishnu appeared as Vamana, a dwarf-Brahmin, and attended Bali Maharaja’s sacrifice. Bali Maharaja was the grandson of Prahlada Maharaja, and due to being born in a demon family, was king of the demons. Bali had managed to overcome Indra, the king of heaven, and Indra approached Lord Vishnu for help.

Vamana begged three steps of land from Maharaja Bali. As it is the duty of a king to grant charity to Brahmins, Maharaja Bali replied, “Why take so little? I can give you much more than that.”
Lord Vamana replied “O my dear King, even the entirety of whatever there may be within the three worlds to satisfy one’s senses cannot satisfy a person whose senses are uncontrolled. One should be satisfied with whatever he achieves by his previous destiny, for discontent can never bring happiness. A person who is not self-controlled will not be happy even with possessing the three worlds.”

Vamana then expanded his body to take up the earth and all the heavens in his first two steps. There was nothing left for Bali Maharaja to give for the third step, so he offered his head. After taking everything from him, Lord Vamana made Bali king of the underworld.

Vamana holds a water-pot in one hand and an umbrella in the other. He wears either a loincloth or a deerskin. He wears a ring of kusa grass on his third finger and sometimes holds a book.

He is also called Trivikrama. Tri means “three,” and vikrama means “victory.” Vamana attained victory over Bali Maharaja by taking three steps. Lord Vishnu, as Vamana, may be seen stretching his leg to take a big step.

Parasuram
Parasuram, the sixth incarnation, was born as a Brahmin, but later acted as a ksatriya. He is seen in a human form holding a battle ax in one hand. Sometimes he is seen with four hands carrying a sword, ax, bow, and arrows. There are just a few temples dedicated to Parasuram in India. Parasu means “ax,” and thus his name means “Rama with an ax.” He was the son of the sage Jamadagni and Renuka. Siva showed Parasuram how to fight and also provided him with his ax.

One time, the powerful ksatriya king, Kartaviryarjuna, who had one thousand arms, stole Jamadagni’s kamadhenu (wish-fulfilling) cow. Parasuram then killed the king to regain the cow. After killing the king, xe "Jamadagni" Jamadagni, told him that killing a king is sinful, and that as a Brahmin he should have tolerated the offense. Jamadagni advised Parasuram to atone for his sin by traveling to various holy places.

While Parasuram was traveling, the king’s sons avenged their father by killing Jamadagni. Parasuram then killed twenty-one generations of the ksatriya race in order to purify the ksatriya race.

Lord Rama 
Lord Rama is the hero in the famous story, the Ramayana. He is also known as Raghunath and Ramachandra. Rama is the husband of Sita. He appeared in Ayodhya as the son of King Dasaratha.

Lord Rama is almost always worshiped with his consort Sita, his brother Laksman, and his monkey servant Hanuman. He is depicted with two arms, and in one hand he holds a bow. His wife Sita stands on his left, and she is often depicted holding a blue lotus. On his right side stands Laksman, who usually holds a bow and arrows. Hanuman usually kneels in front of Lord Rama.

His father, Maharaja Dasaratha, had three wives. From these three wives Maharaja Dasaratha had four sons. One of his wives, Kaikeyi, served Dasaratha nicely and received a boon from him. She said she would ask for the benediction at another time. At the time of Ramachandra’s coronation, Kaikeyi asked her husband to enthrone her son Bharata and to send Ramachandra to the forest for fourteen years. Maharaja Dasaratha then ordered Ramachandra to go to the forest.

Rama went to the forest with Laksman and Sita. When Marici assumed the form of a golden deer, Lord Ramachandra wanted to capture the deer to please Sita. While he was chasing the deer, the ten-headed demon, Ravana, kidnapped Sita and carried her to Lanka. As Rama and Laksman searched the forest for Sita, they met the dying Jatayu, who had been fatally wounded while trying to rescue Sita.

Rama then killed the monkey Vali and made friends with Sugriva, the monkey king.
The monkeys were sent out to find Sita. Hanuman, Rama’s eternal servant, found Sita in Ravana’s capital on the island of Lanka. Hanuman jumped across the sea. When Lord Rama came with the monkey army, they built a bridge by floating boulders on the water. This happened at Rameswaram.

With Laksman’s help, along with the help of the monkey army, Rama was able to kill Ravana and his army. Rama then made Ravana’s brother, Vibhishana, king of Lanka. Rama then returned with Sita to his own kingdom in Ayodhya to become king.

Balarama
The eighth incarnation of Lord Vishnu, Balarama, is Krishna’s older brother. He is white and has two hands. He usually carries a plow or a club (and sometimes both). He is often seen in pictures with Krishna and with the cowherd boys. He usually wears a blue dhoti. He is also known as xe "Baladeva" Baladeva,Balabhadra and Halayudha or Haladhara.

Balarama is the son of Vasudeva. He first appeared in the womb of Vasudeva’s wife Devaki, but was mystically transferred to Rohini’s womb. Rohini is another of Vasudeva’s wives. This was done to prevent Kamsa from killing him at his birth. Kamsa was destined to be killed by Devaki’s eighth son, and to not take any chances he was killing all the sons born to Devaki at birth.
Balarama trained both Bhima and Duryodhana in club-fighting. Eventually, his students faced one another in the final combat of the Kurukshetra war. Because of this, Balarama chose to remain neutral during the conflict.

Buddha
Buddha is considered to be the ninth incarnation of Lord Vishnu. He is often seen sitting on a lotus, wearing yellow cloth.

Kalki
At the end of Kali-yuga (the present age), Kalki, the tenth incarnation, appears. He rides a white horse and carries a flaming sword raised above his head. With this sword, he kills the demoniac and atheistic population of the world. He appears at the time of Pralaya (the great deluge).

Other Vishnu Incarnations
Besides Lord Vishnu’s ten main incarnations, there are many others. There are also shaktavesha avataras (empowered incarnations). Twelve other main incarnations are: (1) the four Kumaras, (2) the sage Narada, (3) Nara and Narayana Rishis, (4) sage Kapila (who taught Sankhya philosophy), (5) Dattatreya, (6) Yajna, (7) Rishabhadeva, (8) King Prithu, (9) Dhanvantari (doctor), (10)Veda-Vyasa (author of Mahabharata and Srimad-Bhagavatam, who was empowered to present the Vedic scriptures), (11) Mohini Murti (who bewildered the demons and gave nectar to the demigods), (12) Hayagriva (who had a horse head and who killed the demons, Madhu and Kaitabha, then recovered the Vedas, which they had stolen).

Siva
Siva is one of the Hindu trinity along with Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma. He is the destroyer. At the end of Kali-yuga (the present age), he will perform the dance of destruction and the entire universe will be destroyed. Lord Siva is in charge of tamo-guna, or the mode of ignorance. He may be depicted holding a trident, as do many of his followers. He may also hold a mace or battle-ax, an antelope, or an hour-glass drum known as a damaru. He may have two or four arms.
He has three eyes. The third one, situated between the eyebrows, is normally closed, except at the time of destruction. He has a crescent moon in his matted hair, and his body is smeared with ashes. He has three horizontal lines on his head, and he wears a cobra around his neck. He has fair skin. He wears a tiger skin, and he sometimes wears a garland of skulls. While he is meditating he sits on a tiger skin. He never accepts luxurious dress, garlands, ornaments, or ointments.

Lord Siva has a blue throat, because he once drank the poison produced from the churning of the milk ocean. He held the poison in his throat to save humanity from being destroyed.

Siva is worshiped in the form of the Siva-linga, or phallus, in most temples. His carrier is Nandi, the bull. Most Siva temples have a trident on top of the temple tower.

Siva is also known as xe "Gangadhara" Gangadhara, or one who bears the weight of the Ganges River as it falls to earth from the heavens. When the Ganges descended to earth, it fell on his head and through his jata (matted hair), forming many small streams. Eventually these streams combine and form the Ganges at Haridwar.

He resides at Mount Kailash, which is a mountain located in the Himalayas in Tibet. He sits facing south.

Siva is known as Nataraja, the cosmic dancer. He is also known by other names, such as Rudra, Mahadeva, Sankara, Pashupati (the lord of the animals), and xe "Bhairava" Bhairava, his terrible form. He is also known as xe "Ashutosha" Ashutosha, or one who is easily pleased, and Bhutanatha or lord of the bhutas, or ghosts and spirits. He is called Mahadeva, or the greatest of the demigods, because no one is equal to him in the material world. Hari Hara is a form that is half-Vishnu and half-Siva.

His consort is Parvati, also known as Kali or Durga. Lord Siva is the husband of xe "Durga" Durga, goddess of the material energy. Because Lord Siva is her husband, he is known as the controller of the material energy.

Lord Siva’s duty is dangerous because he has to employ the energy of goddess Durga. In pictures Goddess Kali (Durga) is sometimes seen standing on Lord Siva’s prostrate body, because Lord Siva has to fall flat in order to stop Kali from killing the demons. Since Lord Siva controls the material energy, worshipers of Lord Siva attain opulent positions within the material world. Durga is described as keeping all living entities in the darkness of ignorance.

He is also known as the husband of Sati (also called Gauri), who entered the fire at the sacrifice performed by her father, Daksha. She was then reborn as Uma, and again married Siva.

Parvati
Parvati is Lord Siva’s wife and the mother of his sons, Karttikeya and Ganesh. Parvati lives with Siva on Mount Kailash. Her carrier is a lion. She is seen as a beautiful woman with two arms. She is called the daughter of the Himalaya mountains. She also takes on other forms such as Durga and Kali.

Nataraja Siva
In this form Lord Siva is depicted in his famous Ananda Tandava dancing pose, with one leg in the air and he has four arms. Nata means “dance” and raja means “king.” Thus he is known as “king of the dance.” Lord Siva is depicted dancing on a dwarf named Apasmara, who is said to represent ignorance or false ego, which makes souls forget their true identity. Nataraja destroys false ego. He is encircled by a ring of flames and is holding a drum. One of his hands is in the Abhaya Mudra posture (“Fear not, I will protect you”).

One time, Siva went to a forest to subdue ten thousand holy men. The holy men became angry and sent a tiger to kill him, but Siva subdued the tiger and used its skin as a cape. The sages then sent a poisonous snake, which he restrained and used as a garland. They then sent a black dwarf armed with a club. Lord Siva danced on the dwarf’s back with his leg in the air. This dance was so splendid that the holy men had to accept Lord Siva as their master.

Sabhanayaka Nataraja Temple in Chidambaram is the original temple dedicated to the Nataraja form (Celestial Dancer) of Lord Siva. The Nataraja deity there has been the model for innumerable bronze statues of Siva performing this dance.

Brahma
Brahma is the god of creation. He is one of the three main Hindu gods, which include Lord Vishnu and Lord Siva. He sits on a lotus which has sprouted from Lord Vishnu’s naval. He has four heads, usually bearded, four arms, and matted hair. He holds a spoon, a pot of holy water, a scepter, beads (rosary), and a part of the Vedas (a book). He may also hold a bow, lotus, or scepter. Sometimes two of his hands are in a protective and boon-giving mode.

is four faces represent the four Vedas and his four hands the four directions. He is the father of Lord Siva. He may wear a tiger skin or the skin of a black antelope. He rides on a swan or sits in the lotus position on a chariot pulled by seven swans. If he is colored, he is pink or red.

His consort is Saraswati, but in Pushkar, Gayatri is also worshiped as his consort. His consort Saraswati is supposed to have cursed him at Pushkar. (This story can be read in the section about Pushkar.)

He was born from the lotus flower that emanated from Lord Vishnu’s navel. One day of Brahma is a thousand cycles of the four yugas (known as a kalpa), which equals 4.32 billion years. His night is the same. He lives for 100 years.

There are only a few Brahma temples in India. The one at Pushkar in Rajasthan is the main temple.

Lakshmi
Lakshmi is Lord Vishnu’s consort, and the goddess of wealth and good fortune. She may sit at Lord Vishnu’s feet or be depicted standing or sitting next to him. She is also seen reclining on Lord Vishnu’s chest. She usually has two arms when she is worshiped with Lord Vishnu, and four arms when she is worshiped alone. She appeared when the demigods and demons churned the milk ocean.

She sits or stands on a lotus, and often holds a lotus flower. When she has four arms, she holds lotuses in her two upper hands. Gold coins may be seen dropping from her lower two hands, or her lower hands may be in a boon-giving posture. She is normally a bright golden color.

There are no temples dedicated exclusively to Lakshmi, but she is usually worshiped as a side deity in Vishnu temples. She is also seen in deity form on the main altar of Vishnu temples, usually at the Lord’s feet. She is worshiped in most people’s homes—many Hindus have a picture of Lakshmi on their home altars—to attain wealth.
People do not generally know that Lakshmi is fickle, and that unless she is worshiped with her consort, Lord Vishnu, her mercy will only be temporary.

Durga
Durga is also known as Kali, Parvati, and Uma. Durga is sometimes seen as a beautiful woman. She has a yellow complexion. Durga means “impenetrable like a mountain fort.” As Durga, she is in her punishing or threatening mode. This is the darker form of Siva’s consort. Lord Siva is in charge of destruction, which he carries out with the help of his material energy, Durga. Her carrier may be a tiger or a lion. She may be seen seated in a yogic posture on a lotus throne. She is also seen carrying weapons to destroy the demons.
Durga is often worshiped in her own temples. She is known as the shakti energy of the Lord and is powerful. She is often worshiped to attain material boons. There are nine forms of Durga.

She may have four or eight arms, and holds knives and severed heads. With her other hands, she makes a gesture of “Fear not,” and grants boons. She may also hold a cup, a wheel, a conch shell, a bell, an arrow, a trident, a snake, a sword, a club, and a water pot.

She is also called Mahishasura-mardini, because she killed the buffalo demon. It is said that Durga took birth to kill Mahishasura, because he had received a boon from Brahma that neither man, woman, nor animal could kill him.

In the form of Chamundi she has a terrifying aspect and wears a garland of skulls. Snakes and scorpions adorn her body. Chamundi was created to kill the demons Chanda and Munda.

Kali
Kali is a fierce form of Lord Siva’s consort. She may ride a tiger, breathe fire, and wear a garland of human skulls and snakes. Kali means “black,” and thus her skin is black. In this form, she is also known as Bhadrakali or Mahakali. She has blazing eyes and is often depicted with her long tongue protruding. She wears snakes around her neck and carries weapons in each of her ten hands (sometimes she is depicted with only eight hands). If she has eight hands, she carries a bow, an arrow, a disc, a sword, a shield, a noose, a spear, and a conch. If she has ten hands, she also carries a skull and a moon disc.

Ganesh
Ganesh is the god of prosperity and wisdom. He is also the god of science and skills. Ganesh has an elephant head and is the eldest of Lord Siva and Parvati’s two sons. He is worshiped to remove obstacles one may face in an endeavor, and his worship is popular in India. He has two wives, Siddhi (achievement) and Riddhi (success).
He wears a snake-belt or a serpent across his chest, and he is usually depicted as red or yellow, with four to ten arms. He holds an ax, a goad, a rope, a dish of sweetballs, and other items. His fourth hand is offering a boon. His carrier is a rat, which can travel through the smallest hole or chew its way though obstructions.

He is worshiped in many temples dedicated solely to him. He is also found at the entrance of many temples because by worshiping him, one’s obstacles in worshiping the main deity in that temple can be removed. He is seen on the altar in many businesses and is worshiped in most Indian people’s homes.

When Lord Siva returned once from a long trip, he found Ganesh guarding Parvati’s door. Siva wanted to enter, but Ganesh refused him entrance. Not recognizing Ganesh as his son—Ganesh had grown up while he was away—he cut off his head. Parvati insisted that Siva bring her son back to life, so Siva replaced his son’s head with the head of the first living being he saw, an elephant.

When Vyasadeva recited the Maha-bharata, Ganesh recorded it. He told Vyasadeva that he would only write if Vyasa dictated continuously and did not hesitate. He is also called Ganapati, or Lord of the ganas (head of the army of dwarf-demons). In South India, he is known as Vinayaka.

Hanuman
He is a monkey and Lord Rama’s eternal servant in the Ramayana. He represents the perfect servant of God. He was sent by Rama along with many other monkey warriors to find Sita. He jumped from the mainland of India to Lanka in one leap and there he found Sita. At this time Hanuman was captured and had his tail set on fire. He escaped and set Lanka on fire with his burning tail. He helped Rama defeat Ravana and save Sita. He is the son of Vayu, the wind-god. He was able to enlarge his body. He has a red face and yellow fur.

While the battle with Ravana was going on he flew to the Himalayas to collect medicinal herbs to help the wounded Laksman, the brother of Lord Rama. After the battle he was granted his wish to be the eternal servitor of Lord Rama.

He has many temples of his own and is also worshiped along with Sita and Rama. Every Rama temple has a Hanuman deity. Hanuman is a very popular deity. He is often painted bright orange. He is mostly seen with two arms with a monkey body. He also has other forms with five or ten heads.

Garuda
Garuda is depicted as half-man, half-eagle, and is Lord Vishnu’s carrier. Many times he is seen kneeling outside a Vishnu temple. He is the king of the birds and the enemy of snakes.

Karttikeya
Karttikeya is the god of war and the general leading the demigod’s army. He led the demigods in the war against the demon Taraka. He is Siva’s youngest son, and the brother of Ganesh. He is known as Subrahmanya, Kumar, Murugan, Skanda and Sena-pati (army commander). He is usually depicted with six heads and twelve arms, but may sometimes be seen with one head and two arms. He rides a peacock named Paravani and is yellow-colored.

In South India he is usually worshiped as Subrahmanya, the pious and sacred one. In South India there are six major temples in which Subrahmanya is worshiped. He is also worshiped as a side deity in many Siva temples.

Nandi
Nandi is Lord Siva’s bull carrier. He is found in almost all Siva temples and usually faces the Siva-linga. He is usually sitting, but may be presented standing. In paintings he is white with brown eyes, a black tail, and horns with red points. He has a thick neck and his horns are as hard as diamonds.

Universal Administrators

Indra
Indra is the king of the heavenly planets. He is the lord of the sky, rain, lightning, and thunder. Indra rides a white elephant known as Airavata, the king of the elephants. He may also ride on a golden chariot drawn by horses. He may be depicted either with two arms or four, and he holds a thunderbolt (vajra) in one hand. He may also carry a bow and arrows, conchshell, a net, or a hook. Indra is the god of the eastern direction. He may have a golden or reddish complexion. He can send rainstorms wherever and whenever he wishes. He is also known as Sahasraksha, “thousand-eyed.” He may be shown with eyes all over his body. He lives in the city called Indrapura, or heaven.

Indra figures in many of the Vedic stories, often in descriptions of battles between the demons and demigods, and at times when he is in difficulty, he is seen approaching Lord Vishnu for help.

Surya
Surya is the sun-god. He rides across the sky on a chariot drawn by seven red horses. His charioteer is Aruna, the dawn god, who holds a whip. Aruna is the older brother of Garuda, Lord Vishnu’s carrier. Surya may have two or four arms and may hold a lotus, a wheel, or a conchshell. The fourth hand may be offering protection. If he has two hands, both hands may be holding lotus flowers.
Because he is the sun-god and controls light and heat, he has much influence over agricultural production. Therefore, many people worship him. He is also glorified in the famous Gayatri mantra, which is chanted by Brahmins.

Surya is mentioned throughout the Vedic literatures. He is considered one of the most important deities. Figures of Surya can be seen in temples dedicated to other gods all over India. He does not usually have his own temple, except in a few cases. The most important such temple is the Sun temple at Konark, Orissa.

Kuvera (Kubera)
Kuvera is the god of wealth and the treasurer of the demigods. He watches over the world’s wealth, including gold, silver, jewels, pearls, etc. He carries a money bag and a bowl. He is the protector of the northern direction. He has a white, dwarfish body, and rides on the Pushpaka chariot, which was given to him by Brahma. He has eight teeth and three legs. He may have two or four hands. If he has two hands, he usually holds a money bag and a bowl. He may also hold a vase, a club, a bowl, and a piece of fruit.

He is the Lord of the Yakshas, minor forest gods. Yakshas usually have handsome human forms, but they may also appear ugly. Yakshas are usually good, but are occasionally wicked. They are mystical and can assume the form of trees or take other shapes.

Soma
Soma is the moon-god, and is also known as Chandra. It is said that he is the son of Atri Rishi and Anasuya. His son is xe "Budha" Budha, the planet Mercury. The Lunar dynasty descends from him. He is the deity for Monday. It is considered auspicious to be born on a full moon.

He is married to Rohini, daughter of Daksha, and Daksha’s other twenty-seven daughters. Because he showed his preference for Rohini, the other daughters complained to their father. Daksha cursed Soma and he became inflicted with leprosy. The daughters feeling this was too severe a punishment asked their father to lift the curse. This could not be done, but he agreed to mitigate it. Because of this, the moon gradually becomes grey-colored and disappears. Later, it again recovers and becomes full.

Agni
Agni is the god of fire and is red-colored. He is depicted either with one or two heads, red eyes, three legs, and two to seven arms. It is said that he has seven arms to reach the seven worlds and that his three legs represent the three important fires of a person’s life: sacrificial, marriage, and funeral. His wife’s name is Svaha.

He rides on a ram and has a potbelly. Flames issue from his mouth to consume the butter which is offered by priests in the sacrificial fire. Agni is the friend of every household, as fire is needed for cooking.

Many Vedic verses address him. Priests performing sacrifices pour clarified butter on fire and chant “Svaha.”

Kamadeva
Kamadeva is the god of love, Cupid. He is handsome and fair. He carries a sugarcane bow strung with humming bees. He shoots arrows from his bow which have five flower-tipped shafts of desire. His carrier is a parrot or a peacock. His wife, Rati (passion), and his friend, Vasanta (spring), help him select what arrow will be used on his current victim. He roams the earth, especially during springtime, and fires his arrow often at sages, young girls, and married women.

Vayu
Vayu is the wind-god and the god of breath. He is the father of both Bhima from the Mahabharata and Hanuman.

Yamaraja
Yamaraja is the lord of death and judges people when they die. He carries a club in one hand and a noose in the other with which he catches his victims. He rides on a black buffalo. He is the god of the south.

People are afraid of Yamaraja because he awards punishment to the miscreants, but those who worship Vishnu (Krishna) have nothing to fear from him. To the devotees he is a cordial friend, but to the nondevotees he is fear personified. He is the twin brother of Yami, who became the river Yamuna.

Daily Gods

Ravi-var (Sunday)
This day is influenced by the Sun. Ravi is another name of xe "Surya" Surya, the xe "sun god" sun-god. He has a red complexion, and thus it is auspicious to wear red on this day. He rides on a chariot with one wheel pulled by seven horses. Sunday is a good day to start a new endeavor. Usually Ravi is an inauspicious planet in astrology.

Som-var (Monday)
Monday is under the influence of the moon planet (Soma). It is good to fast and wear white on Mondays. Someone who is born under the influence of Soma will be respectable, rich, powerful, have many friends, and be honored. This is usually an auspicious sign.

Mangal-var (Tuesday)
Mangala (Mars) has a red complexion. A person under the affect of this planet has a tendency to suffer, be accident-prone, to be robbed, attacked, put in prison, or have his good name ruined. This planet is usually detrimental and is often worshiped so that one can become free of its detrimental effects. One can wear red to help ward off the effects of this planet. If a king starts a war on this day, he will be victorious. One should not start an auspicious activity on this day.

Budh-var (Wednesday)
This is the day of Mercury (Budha) who has a light yellow complexion. Budha’s influence is normally neither favorable nor unfavorable. Budha exerts its influence in reference to the other planets.

Brihaspati-var (Thursday)
Brihaspati is the priest of the demigods, and he is also called Guruvara. He has four arms and holds beads (a rosary), a club, and a ball. He has a golden complexion. He usually sits on a lotus or rides on a chariot pulled by eight horses. Someone under the influence of Brihaspati will have a lot of wealth. Brihaspati rules the planet Jupiter.

Shukra-var (Friday)
Shukra is the planet Venus. Shukra means “bright.” Shukra is the teacher of the demons. He is usually seen sitting on a lotus, but sometimes may be seen riding on a chariot with many flags and pulled by eight horses. Shukra is the most auspicious planet. A person under the influence of Shukra will be honored across the land and will attain a high office.

Shani-var (Saturday)
Shani is the planet Saturn. This planet is potentially the most detrimental. If this planet is wrongly placed in a person’s chart, it can cause great misfortune, such as poverty and loss of loved ones. Shani is black-colored. He rides either a vulture or in an iron chariot.

There are several Shani temples found in temples of other gods in India. By worshiping Shani one can rid oneself of the misfortunes that this planet causes. To gain the ultimate benefit, this planet should be worshiped on Saturdays.

Due to his wife’s curse, Shani can cause destruction by just looking at someone. Therefore he is seen looking down, so as not to destroy anything.

Rahu
Rahu’s influence on a person’s chart usually means trouble. Rahu is the planet that causes eclipses and is the ruler of meteors. He is originally a Daitya (demon) and is shown as a monster demon. He has a dragon head and a tail like a comet. He at times devours the Sun and the Moon, causing eclipse.

When Mohini Murti was distributing soma nectar to the demigods, Rahu assumed the form of a demigod and drank nectar. The Sun and Moon realized what was going on and told Mohini Murti (actually Lord Vishnu), who immediately cut off Rahu’s head. Because he had drunk the nectar, but it had only reached his neck, his body died but his head remained alive and rose into the air. To avenge himself, Rahu attacks the Moon every month and occasionally eclipses the Sun.

 

Copyright ©2001 John Howley and Spiritual Guides