Thirty-three gods

The Thirty-three gods, or Trayastrimshaddevas (), is a pantheon of Rigvedic deities of the current manvantara.Mani pp. 654–5 The Samhitas, which are the oldest layer of text in the Vedas, enumerate 33 deities classified as Devas, 11 each for the three worlds. They are grouped as 12 Adityas, 11 Rudras, eight Vasus and two Ashvins in the Brahmanas.George Williams (2008), A Handbook of Hindu Mythology, Oxford University Press, , pp. 90, 112Monier Monier-Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary" Etymologically and Philologically Arranged to cognate Indo-European Languages, Motilal Banarsidass, p. 492

List Vedic Divya (celestial): Dyaus (Sky), Surya (Sun), Naktoshasa (Night and Dawn), Tarkshya, Daksha, Mitra, Varuna, Bhaga, Amsha, Aryaman, and Martanda. Pārthiva (terrestrial): Agni (Fire), Vayu (Wind), Vishnu, Indra, Rudra, Maruts, Tvashta, Savita, Dhata, Pushan, Yama. Apya (aquatic): Ganga, Yamuna, Sarasvati, Sindhu (Indus), Soma, Apam Napat, Parjanya, Aja Ekapad, Ahi budhnya, Trita, Ghrita. Brahmana-Itihasa-Puranic Eight Vasus (deities of material elements) – Dyaus (sky), Prithvi (earth), Nakshatra (stars), Varuna (water), Surya (sun), Chandra (moon) Twelve Adityas (personified deities) – Indra (Shakra), Aryaman, Tvashtr, Varuna, Bhaga, Savitr, Vivasvat, Amsha, Mitra, Pushan, Daksha, Vishnu (this list sometimes varies in particulars) Eleven Rudras, consisting of Aja, Ekapada, Ahirbudhanya, Tvasta, Rudra, Hara, Sambhu, Trayambaka, Aparajita, Ishana, and Tribhuvana Two Ashvins (or Nasatyas), twin solar deities

Variations The list of deities varies across the manuscripts found in different parts of South Asia, particularly in terms of the Ashvins and the personified devas. One list based on Book 2 of the Aitereya Brahmana is:Hermann Oldenberg (1988), The Religion of the Veda, Motilal Banarsidass, , pp. 23-50AA MacDonell, , Oxford University Press, pp. 19-21 Devas personified: Indra (Shakra), Varuna, Mitra, Aryaman, Bhaga, Amsha, Vidhata,Francis X Clooney (2010), Divine Mother, Blessed Mother, Oxford University Press, , p. 242 Tvashtr, Pushan, Vivasvat (Surya), Savitr (Dhatr), Vishnu Devas as abstractions or inner principles: Ananda (bliss, inner contentment), Vijnana (knowledge), Manas (mind, thought), Prana (life-force), Vac (speech), Atma (Self), and five manifestations of Rudra – Ishana, Tatpurusha, Aghora, Vamadeva, Sadyojata Devas as forces or principles of nature – Prithvi (earth), Agni (fire), Antariksha (atmosphere, space), Jala (water), Vayu (wind), Dyaus (sky), Surya (sun), Nakshatra (stars), Soma (moon) Devas as guides or creative energy – Vasatkara, Prajapati

The reported identity of the two Ashvins sometimes varies:

The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad describes the existence of these deities with a different lineup: It was described by Yajnavalkya at the Bahudakshina Yajna organised by the King Janaka of Mithila at his court.

See also Trāyastriṃśa, the Buddhist equivalent

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