Whenever there is degeneration of thought and increase in sin, I shall incarnate in different forms — Lord Sri Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita

The Supreme Being has no form to protect the righteous and the virtuous. He has emerged in the many forms of gods and goddesses to guide and teach humanity to lead an ideal life.

No major religion in the world can claim to have as many gods and goddesses as Hinduism. At the same time, no other religion has as many forms of worship and places of pilgrimage as do the Hindus. The plurality of gods and goddesses are not evidence of different streams of thought, neither are they there to create confusion: they fulfil a definite purpose. Each god and goddess is assigned a special responsibility. In their own sphere of activity, they are benevolent.

Gods and goddesses emerge and thrive upon positive values like patience, tolerance, love and forgiveness and lead one to a path of truth, honesty and integrity.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Successful as an entrepreneur, Prem P Bhalla has traveled widely in India and abroad. Being a strong proponent of Hindu philosophy and way of life, his lectures have a profound effect on most who come across him during social, cultural and educational interactions.

He imbibed cultural and spiritual wisdom from saints and gurus five decades ago in the serenity of Haridwar and Rishikesh, both Holy centres of Hindu pilgrims from all over the world.

He is a much sought-after speaker on self-realisation and spiritual development based on the wisdom of value system prescribed by ancient Hindu texts.

Of the books that he has written, two of them, Hindu Rites, Rituals, Customs and Traditions and 50 Moral Tales from the Gurukul l have gone on to become bestsellers. Besides these, his other famous books are The Story of Sri Ram, 7 Steps to Self-realisation and Gems from the Ramcharitmanas.

Presently, Prem P Bhalla is engaged in developing two more projects on Hindoology for Pustak Mahal.

This is Prem P Bhallas\'s twentieth book.

CONTENTS:

Prologue

The Supreme Being

Sri Ganesh

The Hindu Trinity

Brahma — The Creator

Vishnu — The Preserver

Shiva — The Destroyer

Saraswati — The Goddess of Learning and Knowledge

Lakshmi — The Goddess of Good Fortune and Prosperity

Parvati - Durga, Shakti and Kali — The Goddesses of Power

Sri Ram — The God of Virtues... 7th Incarnation of Vishnu

Hanuman — The God of Devotion

Sri Krishna — The Absolute... 8th Incarnation of Vishnu

Gautam Buddha — The Enlightened One... 9th Incarnation of Vishnu

The Navgrah
l Surya l Chandrama l Mangal
l Budh l Brihaspati l Shukra
l Shani l Rahu and Ketu
l Worship of the Navgrah

Indra and Companion Gods
Indra — The Chief of Gods
Agni — The God of Fire
Vayu — The God of Wind
Varun — The God of Oceans
Kama — The God of Love
Kuber — The God of Wealth
Vishvakarma — The Engineer God
Yama — The God of Death

The Eternal Ganga

Divinity In Animals
l Mouse l Swan l Snake
l Garuda l Monkey l Owl
l Bull l Lion l Elephant
l Peacock l Horse l Vulture
l Buffalo l Cow l Dog

Divinity In Plants
l Peepal l Banyan l Banana
l Parijat l Ashok l Amla
l Mango l Tulsi

Divinity In Holy Scriptures
l The Ramayan
l The Bhagavad Gita

Pleasing the Gods and Goddesses

Epilogue

AN EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK

The Supreme Being
The creator and the sustainer of the universe is accepted as the Supreme Being, or God. Different people have varied perceptions of what God looks like. One visualizes and prays in whatever form one prefers to see Him. It is believed that God is eternal. He has no beginning and no end. He has no form. He is a being of light, a tiny spark, a storehouse of eternal energy. He is Brahman to Hindus.

Does this description not liken God to the sun? It is true that the sun provides light and energy. However, if God has created the entire cosmos, and the sun is only a part of the whole creation, how can God be what He has created and sustains? His attributes are undoubtedly beyond all limits.

In the Swateshwar Upanishad, it is said:
There is one God. He resides within everyone. He is universal. He is present as the soul in every living being.

In the Bhagavad Gita, 13/13, it is said:
God is everywhere. He can touch and feel everything. He can see everywhere. He can hear everything. There is no place without Him. He can understand everything. There is nothing that He cannot see. There is nothing that He cannot accept. He can reach everywhere.

Again, in the Bhagavad Gita, 13/15, it is said:
The true supreme spirit resides within the body and the mind. However, it is so subtle that it cannot be perceived by the senses. It is close at hand, and yet far away.

In the Yajur-Veda, 40/1, it is said:
In this world God resides in all things.

In the Mundak, 2/2/11, it is said:
Like the nectar of immortality, the eternal spirit faces you. It is behind you. It is on your right and to your left side.
It is below you. It is above you. The entire cosmos is filled with the universal spirit of God.

If the Supreme Being is within each one of us, why can we not see or feel Him? Why can we not feel and enjoy the happiness, peace and bliss that are attributes of God? We fail to enjoy the many attributes of God as, due to degeneration over several births, we have overlooked the presence of God within us. Just as we cannot see our image in a mirror covered with dust, we cannot see God within us because the virtues are hidden by ignorance. Negative attributes like greed, anger, jealousy, hypocrisy and pride, that are like demons, prevent us from meeting the God within.

In the Narad Purana, Purvkhand, 11/57-64, it is said that people who give up attachment, maliciousness and hypocrisy can experience the God within. Similarly, those who are free of greed and jealousy, are honest and sincere, respect their parents, teachers and elders, are kind and hospitable to guests, live in the company of good people, go on pilgrimage, and offer food and charity will always find God within them.

To experience God, one needs to be pure and virtuous. As we have seen, one fails to remain pure and virtuous because of slow degeneration over past births. To regain purity, one needs to shed negative attributes and develop latent virtues. This is possible when the soul takes control of the physical body. This is not easy because while the soul directs the body in one direction, the body pulls the soul to the easier and pleasurable path where the senses enjoy the world around them.

It is equally significant that God has given every individual the freedom of thought and action. It is a personal choice whether one accepts the more difficult path of virtue, or follows the vast majority on the path of pleasure and enjoyment. It is this choice that can either raise humanity to divinity, or drag it down to gross depravity, suffering and pain. We notice a cyclic action not only in the lives of individuals but also in the environment and humanity when we see that the golden era degenerates to the silver, copper and iron eras to be followed once again by the golden era.

What happens when humanity degenerates to the level of no return, and there is
universal suffering?

Sri Krishna answers this question in the Bhagavad Gita, 4/7-8:
O people of Bharat, whenever there is degeneration of thought and increase in sin, I shall incarnate in different forms… I will protect and support honest and virtuous people, and destroy those who live in sin. I shall incarnate era after era to establish righteousness.

Since God has no form, to protect the righteous and the virtuous, God has emerged in the world in many forms to guide and teach humanity to live an ideal life. Individuals believe and follow whatever they can comprehend personally, or through experience handed down to them by others. This explains the emergence and acceptance of many gods and goddesses, who ended suffering and became dear to their devotees.

The Hindu Trinity

Hindu religious thought is based upon three principal gods — Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. The three support the Supreme Being, and are responsible for creating, preserving and destroying the universe.

Brahma is the first member of the Hindu Trinity. He is said to have created the universe and everything in it. He is also known as Prajapati. The word praja means populace and pati means master. Together they mean master of the populace. It is also believed that he created ten Prajapatis who helped in creating the universe. Brahma had five heads. Shiva cut off one. The four heads are symbolic of the four Vedas, of the four yugas (ages or eras) and also of the four castes amongst Hindus.

Vishnu is the second god of the Hindu Trinity. He has a thousand names and several incarnations. Of these, ten hold special significance. The last one, Kalki, is yet to come.

Shiva is the third god of the Hindu Trinity. He represents both death that destroys, and reproduction that follows destruction. He destroys and disintegrates. After destruction, he helps in reproducing again. He is also known by many names. As a benevolent god, he is known as Shankar, Mahadev and Vishwanath. As one who destroys he is known as Rudra, Mahakal, Virbhadra and Bhairav.

If the Hindu trinity is revered, the wives are equally revered. As the creator, Brahma created Saraswati. He married her and, therefore, she is revered as his wife. She is the goddess of speech, learning and knowledge. Those who pursue learning hold her in high reverence and seek her blessings.

Vishnu\\\'s wife Lakshmi is revered as the goddess of beauty, good fortune and prosperity. She went through several incarnations to be with Vishnu. Almost every Hindu home has her image. Businessmen specially revere her.

Parvati is an incarnation of Gauri, the daughter of Daksh. She could marry Shiva only after severe penance. All Hindu women aspire to have a married life like that of Parvati. For a good partner and a happy married life, unmarried youth, particularly women, pray to Shiva and Parvati. Just as Shiva changed forms to be both benevolent and destructive, Parvati too changed forms. As the divine universal power, she is called Shakti. In her destructive form, she is Kali.

Brahma\\\'s role was that of a creator. After he created the universe and humankind, the role of preserving it was that of Vishnu. He fulfilled this role by taking several forms through incarnations. Shiva fulfils the role of destruction and regeneration.

There are many temples devoted to Vishnu and Shiva, and their many forms. But there is only one temple devoted to Brahma at Pushkar, near Ajmer in Rajasthan. It is human nature to seek what one does not have. It is easy to harbour thoughts, but difficult to sustain good thoughts and intentions. To enable us to do so, we seek the help of Vishnu. He helps us in our efforts. Similarly, it is easy to harbour negative thoughts but we cannot easily destroy them. We seek the help of Shiva to do so. We repeatedly need Vishnu and Shiva, and propitiate them through the many places of prayer. Since creation does not offer problems, we do not always seek the help of Brahma.
In everyday life, mankind seeks the favours of Vishnu and Shiva along with the three goddesses — Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati.

Boons by the Trinity

Each member of the Hindu Trinity fulfils special responsibilities, and are revered for their attributes and abilities. To gain from their special powers, many individuals have offered prayers and penance to seek their favours. Pleased with the devotion of these individuals, each of the three gods have been known to grant boons, most of which have been utilized positively. But there are several instances when individuals exploited the benevolence of the deity and sought boons that eventually became a nuisance for mankind.
In the Ramayan we read of Ravan, who sought a boon that he die neither in the day, nor at night. Kumbhkaran asked for a strange boon. He slept for six months and woke up only for a day. That single day was like hell for everyone around him. Meghnad sought a blessing that he could hide in the clouds and fight. Vali was so blessed that whoever faced him in battle lost half his strength. To end their tyranny, Vishnu incarnated as Sri Ram to kill Ravan, Kumbhkaran, and others of their kind. He also killed Vali. Lakshman killed Meghnad.

When blessings are utilized for the welfare of humankind, they grow. However, when pride takes root because of a special blessing, it gradually turns into arrogance, and becomes a misfortune for humankind. In every such instance, Vishnu, Shiva, or one or more of the three goddesses intervened to bring the situation under control.

There is a legend that pleased with the devotion of the demon Bhasmasura, Shiva once granted him a boon that any person or object he touched would be reduced to ashes. It was a strange request, but having agreed to grant a boon, Shiva could not refuse. Bhasmasura then used this powerful boon to spread terror. His pride then turned into arrogance and he decided to kill Shiva in the hope of taking his place. Shiva had never thought of such a consequence, and turned to Vishnu for help. Vishnu turned into a beautiful maiden, Mohini, and appeared before the demon. Bhasmasura fell for her beauty and wanted to marry her. She agreed — on the condition that he convince her about his fidelity. He asked how she would be convinced. Mohini said she was easy to please. All he had to do was touch his forehead and swear that he would always be faithful to her. In his enthusiasm he did just that… and was instantly reduced to ashes.

Vaishnavites and Shaivites

All Hindu religious literature confirms that the Hindu Trinity always worked as a perfect team. Since greater importance is placed on the responsibilities of Vishnu and Shiva, there are innumerable instances when Vishnu would invoke the blessings and support of Shiva, and whenever necessary Shiva would invoke the blessings of Vishnu. Yet we find that even amongst Hindus, there are two distinct groups. The followers of Vishnu and his many forms are known as Vaishnavites, and the followers of Shiva and his many forms are known as Shaivites. There is yet another group, known as Shakts, that believes in the power of the female energy described as Shakti.

Who is the Most Important?

The members of the Hindu Trinity fulfil specific, well-defined responsibilities. Many wonder whether the responsibility of one is more important than that of the other two. One day, sages and saints were perplexed on discussing this issue. They asked the sage Bhrigu, son of Brahma, to visit the three gods and present his observations.

Bhrigu decided to visit his father first. Brahma was happy to see his son, but since Bhrigu did not greet him appropriately, nor show any reverence, Brahma was angry and walked away without talking to Bhrigu.

Bhrigu next visited Kailash to meet Shiva, who was happy to see him and wanted to embrace him in welcome. However, Bhrigu was rude and said, I will not embrace you. You do not follow the rules of simple courtesy and good manners. This statement infuriated Shiva. He chased Bhrigu with his trident to punish him for this audacity.

Bhrigu then went to Vaikunth to meet Vishnu. Vishnu was sleeping at the time. Bhrigu waited impatiently near Vishnu\'s bed, hoping he would wake up but he did not. After waiting awhile, Bhrigu lost his temper and kicked Vishnu in the chest. Vishnu awoke with a start, and finding Bhrigu standing there, he touched Bhrigu\'s feet and gently said, Honoured sage, my chest is hard. Your feet are delicate. Did I hurt your foot? The sage felt ashamed at Vishnu\'s kind and gentle behaviour. Vishnu respectfully offered Bhrigu a comfortable seat to sit on. Bhrigu was flattered and content.

On returning to the sages and saints, Bhrigu conveyed that Vishnu was the most outstanding of the gods.

There is one definite lesson all humankind can learn from the working of the gods. It does not matter what the source of power is — physical strength, knowledge or a special ability. Power in all its forms needs to be used with caution. Well utilized, it grows. When misused, it destroys. This truth is equally valid for gods as well as human beings.