deva

Transliteration of Sanskrit देव (deva, “deity, god”). Doublet of daeva.

translit

Coordinate term: devi

A god in Vedic mythology, Hinduism and Buddhism.


Hanuman

A Hindu demi-god who was a devotee of Lord Rama. He was born to Anjana and Vayu, plays the role of a god’s servant in Ramayana, and is also known as the "monkey god". He represents loyalty to the Lord and Master.


Varuna

(Hinduism) A god of the sky, of rain and of the celestial ocean, as well as a god of law and of the underworld.

(astronomy) A Kuiper belt object, once thought to be possibly a dwarf planet.


Krishna

en-prop

Krishna (countable and uncountable, plural Krishnas)

(Hinduism) A deity worshiped across many traditions of Hinduism.


Rama

en:Rama (disambiguation)
en:Rendezvous with Rama

Borrowed from Sanskrit रमा (ramā).
* (Oumuamua): The nickname derives from the similarity of Oumuamua to the fictional object "Rama" in the story Rendezvous with Rama, where that fictional object is named for the goddess.

(Hinduism) A name of the goddess Lakshmi.

A female given name from Sanskrit mainly used in India.

Alternative form of Rāma (“an incarnation of the god Vishnu in Hinduism”).


Devi

Borrowed from Sanskrit देवी (devī́, “goddess, female deity”).

bor+

A title put at the end of any female deity's name within Hinduism (e.g. Lakshmi Devi, Saraswati Devi, Kali Devi).


Kali

From Sanskrit काली (kālī) or कालिका (kālikā).

Kālī is Śiva's "other" wife, as it were, provoking him and encouraging him in his mad, antisocial, often disruptive habits. It is never Kālī who tames Śiva but Śiva who must becalm Kālī.

1986, David R. Kinsley, Hindu Goddesses: Visions of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Tradition, published 1988, page 122:

To many Hindu Bengalis, Kālī is the most important divinity. Identified with the great Goddess, Devi Bhagavati, she subsumes all other goddesses.

2000, Sanjukta Gupta, “27: The Worship of Kālī According to the Toḑala Tantra”, in David Gordon White, editor, Tantra in Practice, published 2001, page 463:

A popular form of Kali worshiped in Calcutta is Adya Shakti Kali, or Kali as primordial power. Adya Shakti Kali is also present in some tantras, especially the Mahanirvana Tantra. Because she devours Kala or Time, she is Kali, the original form of all things, and because she is the origin and devourer of all things, she is called Adya Kali.

2011, June McDaniel, “2: Kali: Goddess of Life, Death, and Transcendence”, in Patricia Monaghan, editor, Goddesses in World Culture, volume 1, page 26:

(Hinduism) A goddess in Hinduism, one of the most significant figures within that religion, who destroys evil forces and bestows liberation.

A female given name from Sanskrit used especially in India.


Kali

(Hinduism) A male demon, lord of Kali Yuga and the nemesis of Kalki, tenth avatar of Vishnu.


Vishnu

Transliteration of Sanskrit विष्णु (viṣṇu).

translit

(Hinduism) One of the Trimurti (trinity) in Hindu mythology, and the most venerated god in Hinduism.


Ganesha

(Hinduism) A Hindu god of intellect, wisdom, gates, and beginnings, son of Parvati and Shiva.


Brahma

Borrowed from Sanskrit ब्रह्मा (brahmā).

(Hinduism) Hindu god (deva) of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva.


Shiva

From Sanskrit शिव (śivá, “the auspicious one”).

uder

(Hinduism) The god of destruction and transformation, and together with Brahma and Vishnu, one of the principal deities in Hinduism. Within Shaivism he is viewed as the Supreme deity, whereas in other branches of Hinduism such as the Smarta tradition he is worshipped as one of the six manifestations of the Divine.


naga

From an Australian Aboriginal language; cf. Wulna nākā (“dress, covering”)

Boys and many of the men wear the naga, akin to bathing trunks […]

1926 October 30, The Sydney Morning Herald:

[…] a young lubra wearing nothing but a naga of paper-bark rose and came forward shyly.

1938, Xavier Herbert, chapter II, in Capricornia, page 22:

PAUL RUNDLE: Backstage, they were just asking us, "Where are you from," and all that. And they were touching us and all that there, and I was just there with my little naga and, yeah. And plus we had no ochre, so we had to use sunscreen.

2006, Message Stick, ABC1, Friday, 30 June, 2006

2008, Derrick Tomlinson, "Too white to be regarded as Aborigines: An historical analysis of policies for the protection of Aborigines and the assimilation of Aborigines of mixed descent, and the role of Chief Protectors of Aborigines in the formulation and implementation of those policies, in Western Australia from 1898 to 1940" (Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)). University of Notre Dame Australia.
They doesn’t dress like people doing the Law this time, walking in shirt and tie, they used to have naga and really truly paint up, real tribal way, you know?


Lakshmi

From Sanskrit लक्ष्मी (lakṣmī, “mark, sign”).

The Hindu goddess of wealth, the consort of Vishnu and married to Rama (in her incarnation as Sita) and Krishna (as Radha and Rukmini).


Dhanalaxmi

On the following day, the woman-folk worship Goddess Dhanalaxmi for prosperity.

1980, T. Vedantam, J. K. Barthakur, Census of India, 1971: Series 2: Andhra Pradesh, India Office of the Registrar General, page 138:

2004, http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/nov112004/deep2.asp
Goddess Dhanalaxmi is propitiated on the Amavasya night in Hindu homes. Goddess Laxmi is said to have emerged from the ocean during the 'samudra manthan'. Her birth is celebrated with pujas, illuminations and crackers and festivity in every Hindu home.

(Hinduism) A Hindu goddess, one of the eight forms of Laxmi, the Hindu goddess of wealth, fortune and prosperity.


Radha

(Hinduism) Hindu goddess of love and devotion, Grand Consort of god Krishna, Avatar of Lakshmi.

A female given name from Sanskrit used in India.


Govinda

From Sanskrit गोविन्द (Govinda, “finder of cows”).


Ganga

Transliteration of Hindi गंगा (gaṅgā) or Sanskrit गङ्गा (gaṅgā). Doublet of Ganges.

The river Ganges, especially as a deity.


Asura

Transliteration of Sanskrit असुर (asura). Doublet of Ahura. Compare English Æsir.

translit

(Hinduism) Power-seeking deities involved in constant conflict with the more benevolent Devas.


Shani

(Hinduism) The Hindu god associated with the planet Saturn


Vayu

(Hinduism) The god of wind in Hindu and Vedic religion. A primary deity, father of Bhima and the spiritual father of Lord Hanuman.


Vasuki

(Hinduism) The goddess of snakes in Hindu mythology.


Balarama

Borrowed from Sanskrit बलराम (balarāma).

(Hinduism) Balarama, son of Vasudeva, and Rohini, brother of Subhadra, and Krishna, who uses a plough as his weapon.


Agni

(Hinduism) A Hindu and Vedic deity of fire.


Indra

Transliteration of Sanskrit इन्द्र (índra).

(Hinduism, Vedic religion) The god of war and weather; also the King of the Gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hinduism.


Sarasvati

The Hindu goddess of knowledge and the arts.


Parvati

(Hinduism) A Hindu goddess, the goddess of love, devotion and power; nominally the second consort of Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction and rejuvenation.


Yama

Borrowed from Sanskrit यम (yamá). Doublet of Enma.

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The Hindu lord of death, who rides a buffalo.


Aditya

A male given name from Sanskrit mainly used in India and Nepal.


Bhaga

(Hinduism) One of the Adityas, a god of wealth and marriage in Hinduism. In the Rigveda Bhaga is the god who supervises the distribution of goods and destiny to each man corresponding to his merits.


Shakti

From Sanskrit शक्ति (śákti, “power, energy”).

In yoga the feminine principle is Shakti, the Great Goddess experienced by all initiates of the Tantric process of transformation.

1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 115:

(Hinduism) The Hindu concept or personification of the divine feminine aspect, sometimes referred to as 'The Divine Mother'. Shakti represents the active, dynamic principles of feminine power.


rakshasa

A race of one-eyed beings / All feared and shunned / Rakshasa demon

2006, Mastodon (lyrics and music), “Circle of Cysquatch”:

(Hinduism) A member of a race of mythical fanged demons that eat human flesh and blood, somewhat like vampires.


Savitr

From Sanskrit सवितृ (savitṛ, “stimulator, rouser, vivifier”).

bor

However, Savitṛ represents, as has been rightly pointed out by Sāyaṇa, the natural phenomenon of the setting and rising sun, whereas Sūrya represents the sun after it is risen and before it approaches the setting frame.

2003, Malati J. Shendge, The Civilized Demons: The Harappans in Rigveda, Abhinav Publications, →ISBN, page 319:

(Hinduism) A solar deity (Deva) and one of the Adityas. He is sometimes identified with, and at other times distinguished from, the chief Sun deity Surya.


Surya

From Sanskrit सूर्य (sū́rya, “the sun or its deity”). Doublet of sun.

(Hinduism) The chief solar deity, one of the Adityas, son of Kasyapa and one of his wives Aditi, of Indra, or of Dyaus Pita (depending by the versions). Portrayed with golden arms and hair, Surya drives through the heaven in his triumphal chariot harnessed by seven horses or one horse with seven heads, which represent the seven colours of the rainbow or the seven chakras.


Rāhu

Transliteration of Sanskrit राहु (rāhu).

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The ascending lunar node. An asura and god of the solar eclipse.

(Tibetan Buddhism) A supernatural being in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, particularly the Nyingma lineage. Usually depicted as dark blue in colour and having nine heads one of which is that of a raven. He has a face in his belly the mouth of which swallows up the moon or sun during eclipses. He is master of the nine planets and the god of solar and lunar eclipses.


Ketu

(Hinduism) The descending lunar node. In Hindu mythology, Ketu is generally referred to as a "shadow" planet, believed to have a tremendous impact on human lives and also the whole creation.


Kamadeva

Borrowed from Sanskrit कामदेव (kā́ma-deva).

bor+

(Hinduism) The Hindu deity of love, son of the goddess Sri and the incarnation of Pradyumna, Krishna's son.


Vasu

Borrowed from Sanskrit वसु (vásu, “dwelling, dweller”).

bor

(Hinduism) Any of the attendant deities of Indra, and later Vishnu. They are eight elemental gods representing aspects of nature.


Swaminarayan

(Hinduism) A deity worshiped in the Swaminarayan faith of Hinduism.


Kamala

en-prop

Kamala (countable and uncountable, plural Kamalas)

Transliteration of Sanskrit कमला (kamalā). Doublet of Kamal.

translit

(Hinduism) An epithet of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi.

কমলা

Hinduism: an epithet of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi


Sita

Borrowed from Sanskrit सीता (sītā, “furrow”).

It is only this late in the day, and possibly only in Willesden, that you can find best friends Sita and Sharon, constantly mistaken for each other because Sita is white (her mother liked the name) and Sharon is Pakistani (her mother thought it best — less trouble).

2000, Zadie Smith, White Teeth, London: Hamish Hamilton, →ISBN, pages 282–283:

A female given name from Sanskrit mainly used in India.


Durga

A female given name from Sanskrit, common in India. Another name of Parvati


Saci

(Hinduism, mythology) The goddess of wrath and jealousy in Hindu mythology.


yaksha

Suvarnabhumi International Airport
yaksha

(Hindu mythology) A kind of supernatural being; can be a malevolent demon or a beneficent tutelary deity.

(Southeast Asia mythology) A kind of supernatural being, often depicted as having supernatural power, great strength, and frightening appearance; can be a malevolent demon or a beneficent tutelary deity.


Uma

(Hinduism) One of the names of Hindu goddess Parvati.


devata

(Hinduism) A kind of good spirit, similar to a guardian angel or a lesser deity.


Murugan

A Hindu deity, especially popular among Tamils, worshipped in areas of South India.


apsara

Borrowed from Hindi अप्सरा (apsarā), descended from Sanskrit अप्सरस् (apsaras).

But the boy's relatives don't sit on their behinds and wait for a pari or an apsara to drop out of the heavens.

1997, Kiran Nagarkar, Cuckold, HarperCollins, published 2013, page 40:

But here was an apsara rising out of the waters of a holy Ganga, raising her arms in salutation to the sun rising above the range of hills and offering her behind to him to marvel at and worship.

2004, Khushwant Singh, Burial at Sea, Penguin, published 2014, page 102:

Don't burn us with your fierce austerities, O master. I'll have to send apsaras to distract you.

2006, Vikram Chandra, Sacred Games, volume 1, Penguin, published 2007, page 17:

(Indian mythology, Hinduism, Buddhism) A female spirit of the clouds and waters.

অপ্সরা

a female spirit of the clouds and waters


Rāma

(Hinduism) A mythological king of Ayodhya in ancient India, considered as the seventh avatar of Vishnu and a lila-avatara described in Bhagavata Purana; one of the most worshipped Hindu deities.


Hari

(Hinduism) A name or epithet given commonly to Vishnu, but also to Indra and Yama.

A male given name from Sanskrit used in India.


Jagannath

From Sanskrit जगन्नाथ (jagannātha). Doublet of juggernaut.

A male given name from Sanskrit used commonly in India.


Hiranyagarbha

From Sanskrit हिरण्य (hiraṇya, “gold”) + गर्भ (garbha, “child, offspring”).

(Hinduism) A name of Brahma, so called because he was born from a golden egg (Manu Smṛti 1.9).


Ananta

From Sanskrit अनन्त (ananta, “endless”).

(Hinduism) One of the names of Lord Vishnu.

In the Mahabharata, the serpent, or Vasuki, is the son of Kasyapa, through Kadru as her eldest son.

A male given name from Sanskrit, commonly used in India.


Rudra

(Vedic religion) A Rigvedic deity, associated with wind or storm and the hunt.


Hayagriva

(Hinduism) An avatar of the Lord Vishnu in Hinduism.


Chakrapani

Transliteration of Sanskrit चक्रपाणि (cakrapāṇi, “chakra-handed”); ultimately from चक्र (cakra, “chakra”) + पाणि (pāṇi, “hand”).

Name of Vishnu, bearer of the Sudarshana Chakra.


Chitragupta

A Hindu god assigned with the task of keeping complete records of actions of human beings on the earth.


kinnari

It’s a small sculpture in the form of a bird with the head of a woman, a type of mythical creature known as a kinnari.

2015 September 24, Ken Johnson, “Review: ‘Philippine Gold: Treasures of Forgotten Kingdoms’”, in New York Times:


kinnara

Transliteration of Sanskrit किन्नर (kinnara).

(Indian mythology) A celestial lover and musician, half-human and either half-horse or half-bird.


Bhavani

A Hindu goddess, Durga in her amiable form.


Kamakshi

Borrowed from Sanskrit कामाक्षी (kāmākṣī).


Chakradhar

From Sanskrit चक्रधर (cakradhara), literally "discus-bearer".


gandharva

Borrowed from Sanskrit गन्धर्व (gandharva).

(Indian mythology) A spirit, usually depicted as a singer or musician.


Kartikeya

Borrowed from Sanskrit कार्त्तिकेय (kārttikeya).

(Hinduism) A son of Shiva and Hindu god of war.


Heramba

From Sanskrit हेरम्ब (heramba, “buffalo”).

(Hinduism) A form of the Hindu god Ganesha.


Vinayaka

Borrowed from Sanskrit विनायक (vināyaka).


Ekadanta

From Sanskrit एकदन्त (ekadanta, “one-toothed”); ultimately from एक (eka, “one”) + दन्त (danta, “tooth, tusk”).


yakshini

From Sanskrit यक्षिणी (yakṣiṇī, feminine of यक्ष (yakṣa)).

There is also the Yakshini; who lies in wait for men and arouses their passions, with the ultimate object of delivering them over to demons or of feeding upon them as a vampire.

1936, Rollo Ahmed, The Black Art, London: Long, page 202:


Bhadrakali

Unadapted borrowing from Sanskrit भद्रकाली (bhadrakālī, “Bhadrakali”).

ubor

(Hinduism) Name of a Hindu goddess in South India.


Bhadra

From the feminine of Sanskrit भद्र (bhadrá).

(Hinduism) A goddess of the hunt and one of Shiva's Gana.


Amitābha

en-proper noun

Amitābha (usually uncountable, plural Amitābhas)

Amitābha
Five Dhyani Buddhas
Guimet Museum

Borrowed from Sanskrit अमिताभ (amitābha, “Immeasurable Light”), from अमित (amita, “unmeasured, boundless, infinite”) + आभा (ābhā, “splendor, light”).

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Devotion to Amitābha Buddha is found within most schools of the Mahāyāna, but is the essence of Pure Land practice, which centres on the ‘Buddha invocation’ (Ch. nien-fo, Jap. nembutsu). This is the repetition of ‘Nan-mo A-mi-t’o Fo’ (Ch.) or ‘Nama Amida Butsu’ (Jap.), translations of the Sanskrit ‘Namo Amitābhāya Buddhāya’, meaning ‘Hail to Amitābha Buddha’.

1990, Peter Harvey, “Buddhist Practice: Devotion”, in An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 187:

"Pure Land Buddhism" refers to a set of beliefs and practices that espouses for its aspirants the realization of the stage of non-retrogression (avaivartika; pu t'ui-chuan) either in the present life or through rebirth in a Buddha land or realm (Buddha-kṣetra; fo-kuo) called "Sukhāvatī" (Land of Bliss). […] The Buddha Amitāyus (Wu-liang-shou; Immeasurable Life) or Buddha Amitābha (Wu-liang-kuang; Immeasurable Light) is the 'transcendant' Buddha who presides over the Sukhāvatī world-realm.

1990, Kenneth K[en'ichi] Tanaka, “Pure Land Buddhist Development in India and China prior to Hui-yüan”, in The Dawn of Chinese Pure Land Buddhist Doctrine: Ching-ying Hui-yüan's Commentary on the Visualization Sutra (SUNY Series in Buddhist Studies), Albany, N.Y.: State University of New York Press, →ISBN, page 1:

The Shorter Sukhavativyuha Sutra is chiefly concerned with describing the wonders of Amitabha Buddha's Pure Land, although it also discusses in some detail the characteristics of Amitabha himself.

2004, Mark L. Blum, “Mahayana Scriptures”, in Kevin Trainor, editor, Buddhism: The Illustrated Guide, New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 202:

Less well recognized, however, is the central role played in much of early medieval Pure Land Buddhism by deathbed practices and accompanying beliefs about the radical salvific power of one's last nenbutsu, whether understood as the contemplation of the Buddha Amitābha (or Amitāyus, Jpn. Amida) or the invocation of his name.

2004, Jacqueline I. Stone, “By the Power of One's Last Nenbutsu: Deathbed Practices in Early Medieval Japan”, in Richard K[arl] Payne, Kenneth K[en'ichi] Tanaka, editors, Approaching the Land of Bliss: Religious Praxis in the Cult of Amitābha (Kuroda Institute Studies in East Asian Buddhism; 17), Honolulu, Hi.: University of Hawai‛i Press, →ISBN, page 77:

The overall programme of the Pure Land Hall represents the process of rebirth in Sukhāvatī, and the three standing Amitābhas in the shrine represent the three possible manifestations of Amitābha to the dying believer on earth, which is the beginning of that process.

2007, Amy McNair, “Salvation for One”, in Donors of Longmen: Faith, Politics, and Patronage in Medieval Chinese Buddhist Sculpture, Honolulu, Hi.: University of Hawai‛i Press, →ISBN, pages 151–152:

In East Asia, the cult of Amitābha eventually became so widespread that it transcended sectarian distinction, and Amitābha became the most popular buddha in the region. In Tibet, Amitābha worship dates to the early propagation of Buddhism in that country in the eighth century, although it never became as prevalent as in East Asia.

2013, Robert E[vans] Buswell Jr., Donald S[ewell] Lopez Jr., “Amitābha”, in The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, →ISBN, page 35, column 1:

(Buddhism) A particular buddha; an artistic depiction of this buddha.

In Pure Land Buddhism, a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism, the name of the principal buddha regarded as of celestial origin.

阿彌陀佛 /阿弥陀佛

Pure Land Buddhism: name of the principal buddha


Ambika

From Sanskrit अम्बिका (ambikā, “mother, good woman”).


Maheshwari

From Sanskrit महेश्वरी (maheśvarī); ultimately from महा (mahā, “great”) + ईश्वरी (īśvarī, “goddess”).


brahmarakshasa

From Sanskrit ब्रह्मराक्षस (brahmarākṣasa).

bor

ब्रह्मराक्षस

A brahmarakshasa had been pestering the rishi to give his daughter in marriage to him.

Buddhidan stood in his drawing room like a Brahmarakshas in a forest.

2015, Tridip Suhrud, translating Govardhanram Madhavram Tripathi, Sarasvatichandra I, Orient BlackSwan 2015, p. 83

(Hindu mythology) The spirit of an evil Brahmin; a demon, an evil spirit.


Adithya

A male given name from Sanskrit mainly used in India.


mahoraga

Transliteration of Pali mahoraga or Sanskrit महोरग (mahoraga).

(Indian mythology) A type of serpentine deity in Indian mythology, most notably Buddhism and Jainism.


Mahakala

(Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism) A deity in Buddhism, Hinduism, and Sikhism, sometimes considered a manifestation of Shiva.


Narakasura

Transliteration of Sanskrit नरकासुर (narakāsura). Related to Naraka and Asura.

translit

An Asura who established Pragjyotisha kingdom, killed by Krishna on the day before Diwali.


Pragjyotisha

Transliteration of Sanskrit प्राग्ज्योतिष (prāgjyotiṣa).

प्राग्ज्योतिष


Bhagadatta

Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂g-der.
Proto-Indo-Iranian *bʰagás
Sanskrit भग (bhaga)
Proto-Indo-European *deh₃-der.
Sanskrit दत्त (datta)
Sanskrit भगदत्त (bhagadatta)translit.
English Bhagadatta
Transliteration of Sanskrit भगदत्त (bhagadatta).

etymon

A king of Pragjyotisha kingdom and the son of Narakasura, who fought for the Kauravas in the Mahabharata; killed by Arjuna.


Juggernaut

(historical) The Hindu deity Vishnu's avatar Krishna.


Vāc

(Hindu mythology) The goddess of speech, the written word, and language.


Gauri

A female given name from Sanskrit used in India.


Sudalai Madan

Borrowed from Tamil சுடலைமாடன் (cuṭalaimāṭaṉ).

bor+

(Tamil religion) a Dravidian folk religion deity, considered to be a son of Shiva and Parvati.


Madurai Veeran

Borrowed from Tamil மதுரைவீரன் (maturaivīraṉ).


Annamar

(Hinduism, Tamil religion) a Tamil village deity of the Nalavar and Pallar castes


Khodiyar

Transliteration of Gujarati ખોડિયાર (khoḍiyār).

translit

A Hindu folk goddess worshiped in the Indian states of Gujarat and Rajasthan.