Thirty Three Million Gods

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Thirty Three Million Gods

 

The four primary Vedas represent the accomplishment of a highly

developed religious system and encourage satisfaction of material

desires through worship of the demigods. They contain many directions

for increasing one's power and position, or for reaching the heavens

in one's future by properly performing particular sacrifices in

worship to the devas (demigods), and so on.

 

Some people ask why there seems to be so many gods within Hinduism or

Vedic culture. Yet, if we properly analyze the situation, we will

understand that there is but one Supreme Being who has many agents or

demigods who assist in managing the creation and the natural forces

within. And, like anyone else, if they are properly approached with

prayer or worship, they may help facilitate the person by granting

certain wishes that may be within the jurisdiction of that demigod.

 

In some places in the Vedic literature it is explained that there are

33 Vedic gods, or even as many as thirty-three million. The 33 gods

are calculated as being eight Vasus, eleven Rudras (forms of Shiva),

twelve Adityas, along with Indra and Prajapati (Brahma). Then there

are also other positions that are considered major or minor devas.

According to the Vedas, the devas are not imaginary or mythological

beings, but are agents of the Supreme Will to administer different

aspects of the universal affairs. They also represent and control

various powers of nature. Thus, they manifest in the physical, subtle

or psychic levels of our existence both from within and without. In

this way, a transcendentalist sees that behind every aspect of nature

is a personality.

 

The names of these gods are considered offices or positions, rather

than the actual name of the demigod. For example, we may call the

president of the country by his personal name, or simply Mr.

President. It's the position itself that allows for him to have

certain powers or areas of influence. In the case of the devas, it is

only after accumulating much pious credit that a living being can

earn the position of being a particular demigod. Then a person may

become an Indra, or Vayu, or attain some other position to assume

specific powers, or to control various aspects of material energy.

 

Another example is that when you walk into a big factory, you see so

many workers and all that they are doing. You may initially think

that these workers are the reason for whatever goes on in the

factory. However, more important than the workers are the foremen,

the managers, and then the executives. Amongst these you will find

people of varying degrees of authority. Someone will be in charge of

designing the products. Another may be the Chief Financial Officer or

main accountant. Another may be in charge of personnel, while someone

else may be in charge of maintenance in the factory itself. Finally,

a chief executive officer or president of the company is the most

important of all. Without him there may not even be a company. You

may not see the president right away, but his influence is everywhere

since all the workers are engaging in projects according to his

decisions. The managers and foremen act as his authorized agents to

keep things moving accordingly. The numerous demigods act in the same

way concerning the functions of nature, all of whom represent some

aspect or power of the Supreme Will. That's why it is sometimes said

there are 33 million different gods in Hinduism. Actually, there may

be many forms, avataras, or aspects of God, but there is only one

God, or one Absolute Truth.

 

This is often a confusing issue to people new to Vedic philosophy. We

often hear the question among Westerners that if Hinduism has so many

gods, how do you know which ones to worship? The point is that the

devas affect all levels of universal activities, including the

weather, or who is bestowed with particular opulences such as riches,

beautiful wife or husband, large family, good health, etc. For

example, one could worship Agni for getting power, Durgadevi for good

fortune, Indra for good sex life or plenty of rain, or the Vasus for

getting money. Such instruction is in the karma-kanda section of the

Vedas which many people considered to be the most important part of

Vedic knowledge. This is for helping people acquire the facilities

for living a basic material existence.

 

There are, of course, various actions, or karmas, prompted by our

desires to achieve certain results, but this is not the complete

understanding of the karma-kanda section of the Vedas. The karma-

kanda section is meant to supply the rituals for purifying our mind

and actions in the pursuit of our desires, and not merely to live

with the intent of acquiring all of one's material wants and

necessities from the demigods. By having faith and steadiness in the

performance of the ritual, one establishes purification in one's

habits and thoughts. This provides a gradual process of acquiring

one's needs and working out one's desires while simultaneously

becoming purified and free of them. Such purification can then bring

one to a higher level of spiritual activity. This was the higher

purpose of the karma-kanda rituals. Without this understanding, one

misses the point and remains attached to rituals in the pursuit of

material desires, which will drag one further into material

existence.

 

The reciprocation between the demigods and society is explained in

Bhagavad-gita (3.10-12). It is stated that in the beginning the Lord

of all beings created men and demigods along with the sacrifices to

Lord Vishnu that were to be performed. The Lord blessed them saying

that these sacrifices will enable men to prosper and attain all

desirable things. By these sacrificial duties the demigods will be

pleased and the demigods will also please you with all the

necessities of life, and prosperity will spread to all. But he who

enjoys what is given by the demigods without offering them in return

is a thief.

 

In this way, it was recommended that people could perform sacrificial

rituals to obtain their desires. However, by the performance of such

acts they should understand their dependent position, not only on the

demigods, but ultimately on the Supreme Being. As further explained

in Bhagavad-gita (3.14-15), all living beings exist on food grains,

which are produced from rain, which is produced by the performance of

prescribed sacrifices or duties. These prescribed duties are

described in the Vedic literature, which is manifest from the Supreme

Being. Therefore, the Supreme is eternally established in acts of

sacrifice.

 

Although the demigods may accept worship from the human beings and

bless them with particular benedictions according to the sacrifices

that are performed, they are still not on the level of the Supreme

Lord Vishnu (who is an incarnation of Lord Krishna). The Rig-veda

(1.22.20) explains: " The demigods are always looking to that supreme

abode of Vishnu. " Bhagavad-gita (17.23) also points out: " From the

beginning of creation, the three syllables om tat sat have been used

to indicate the Supreme Absolute Truth (Brahman). They were uttered

by brahmanas while chanting the Vedic hymns and during sacrifices,

for the satisfaction of the Supreme. " In this way, by uttering om tat

sat, which is stressed in Vedic texts, the performers of the rituals

for worshiping the demigods were also offering obeisances to Lord

Vishnu for its success. The four Vedas mainly deal with material

elevation and since Lord Vishnu is the Lord of material liberation,

most sacrifices were directed toward the demigods.

 

In Bhagavad-gita, however, Lord Krishna points out that men of small

knowledge, who are given to worldly desires, take delight in the

flowery words of the Vedas that prescribe rituals for attaining

power, riches, or rebirth in heaven. With their goal of enjoyment

they say there is nothing else than this. However, Krishna goes on to

explain (in Bhagavad-gita 7.21-23) that when a person desires to

worship a particular demigod for the temporary and limited fruits he

or she may bestow, Krishna, as the Supersoul in everyone's heart,

makes that person's faith in that demigod steady. But all the

benefits given by any demigod actually are given by Krishna alone,

for without whom no one has any power. The worshipers of the demigods

go to the planets of the demigods, but worshipers of Krishna reach

Krishna's spiritual abode.

 

Thus, as one progresses in understanding, it is expected that they

will gradually give up the pursuit for temporary material pleasures

and then begin to endeavor for reaching the supreme goal of Vedic

knowledge. For one who is situated in such knowledge and is self-

realized, the prescribed duties in the Vedas for worshiping the

demigods are unnecessary. As Bhagavad-gita (3.17-18) explains, for

one who is fully self-realized, who is fully satiated in the self,

delights only in the self, there is no duty or need to perform the

prescribed duties found in the Vedas, because he has no purpose or

material desires to fulfill.

 

However, another view of the Vedic gods is that they represent

different aspects of understanding ourselves, especially through the

path of yoga and meditation. For example, the god of wind is Vayu,

and is related to the practice of yoga as the breath and its control

in pranayama. Agni is the god of fire and relates to the fire of

consciousness or awareness. Soma relates to the bliss in the samadhi

of yoga practice. Many of the Vedic gods also represent particular

powers of yoga and are related to the different chakras in the subtle

body. It is accepted that as a person raises his or her consciousness

through the chakras, he or she will attain the level of awareness and

the power and assistance that is associated with the particular

divine personality related to that chakra.

 

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