Hindu Pantheon of Gods

Brahma• The creator of the

universe. He has four faces and is seated on a lotus. He holds a book, a rosary and a gourd. Although he is an important element of the Hindu Trinity, he is not as widely worshipped as Shiva and Vishnu. His Female counterpart is Saraswati.

Saraswati

• She is the goddess of learning and the arts, which is why she is depicted holding a book and a musical instrument called a veena. Her vehicle is a peacock or a swan. Although she is the consort of Brahma, she is often portrayed alone.

Vishnu• He is the preserver of the

universe and is, therefore, a loving and forgiving figure who brings salvation. Vishnu has four arms in which he holds a conch shell, a discus, a lotus, and a mace. His vehicle is a divine eagle. This god has many avatars, and appears on earth in the form of an animal or a human in order to conquer evil and establish righteousness.

Lakshmi

• She is the goddess of wealth, happiness, and good fortune. Lakshmi blesses her worshippers with wealth and liberation. She is often shown rewarding worshippers with gold.

Subrahmanya

• He is the second son of Shiva and Parvati. He is also called Kartikeya and is widely worshipped by the Tamil population in southern India.

Hanuman

• He is the monkey god. He is a model of devotion and everyone’s protector.

Shiva• He is the destroyer and restorer

of the universe and is associated with creative energy. He is considered a great yogi, or spiritually evolved individual, and holds a trident, a rosary, and a gourd in his hands. His vehicle is a a bull. Shiva is also depicted as Nataraj, the god of dance, and is shown holding a drum, serpent, and sacred fire in his hands while performing the dance of creation. He holds water from the sacred Ganges River in his hair. His wife is the goddess Parvati.

Parvati• She is a mother goddess

whom Hindus worship as Shakti, or female energy. She takes on many forms including that of Durga, the warrior goddess, in which she is portrayed riding a tiger and holding many weapons in her hands. She is also depicted as Kali, the fierce destroyer of evil

Ganesha• He is the son of Shiva

and Parvati. He has a human body and an elephant’s head with only one short tusk. The other tusk is used as a pen to write the wisdom of the scriptures.