Rig Veda

Aditi

Female creative force. she gives birth to the earth. She is Infinity. She gives birth to Daksha and at the same time Daksha gives birth to her. She then gives birth to 8 sons including Martanda, the sun.

Purusha

He is a cosmic giant or a sort of primeval male. He is killed and dismembered by creator god. His body parts are used to create the universe. the earth, sky, gods, and humans and animals are all formed from his body parts. Purusha as the very first sacrifice.

Pranjapati

He is a creator god. The Golden Embryo is a hymn for him. Prajapati is identical with the Golden Embryo. He is the one who propped up the sky and made the earth firm, and created the space between them. he also created the high shining water.

Golden Embryo

This hymn shows a more precise statement about how creation took place. Unknown creator god referred to as Hiranyagarbha which is a title given to him. his name is Prajapati.

Sanskrit

an Indo-european language.The Rig Veda collection of hymns is written in this language.

Hiranyagarbha

title given to the creator god Prajapati. Prajapati is a creator god.

Vritra

A dragon like serpent. Vritra is holding back all waters. Indra kills Vritra by thunderbolts and all the rivers are created. Indra defeats the great serpent, Vritra, who has been holding captive the rivers of India. When he kills Vritra, the waters flow again.

Three Days of Soma

A funerary ritual when the fire continued to burn after cremation for three days as the spirit made its way to the afterlife. Soma was burnt continually as an offering for the gods and was drunk by the priests as well.

Indra

Indra is the king of gods. He is also god of thunder and war (a storm god), rain, fertility. He is avid drinker of soma. He kills his father. Has an unusual birth, from his mother side. His mother's name is Aditi, his father's name is Tvashtar

Daksha

Male creative force. Adit gives birth to Daksha. He gives birth to Aditi.

Tiamat

Mesopotamian, binatural goddess of salt water.

Agni

One of the Vedic gods. Agni is a binatural god of fire. Agni is the sanskrit word for fire, and is also the Hindu god of fire. Fire in all its various senses. Fire, lightning, light of sun.

Vedic People

People who composed the hymns of Rig Veda. They would have called themselves Aryans.

Rig Veda

Rig Veda is a collection of over 1000 sacrificial hymns and prayers written in Sanskrit and collected in 10 books, dedicated to gods worshiped in India by around 1200 BCE. The hymns were transmitted orally over a long period of time and then were written down. They were the first text of the Hindu religion. hymns to the gods. oldest literary work of India. Rig Veda became a sacred text for Hindus.

River Rasa

River Rasa encircles heaven and earth. It is at the very edge of the earth.

Sarama

Sarama is Indra's dog. Sarama tracks down the stolen cattle and resists bribes from Panis, remains faithful to its master.

Soma

Soma is a mysterious intoxicating drink frequently offered to the gods and consumed at ceremonial occasions. sacred drink. Binatural god. hallucinogenic tree made from unknown plants which grows high up on mountains. Soma is thought to give you superpowers.

Panis

Specialized demons who live beyond river Rasa.They stole the cattle of the ancestors. They tried to bribe Sarama

Yama

The king of dead. He was originally mortal, and when he died, he was the first to reach the other world and thus served as a path maker for those coming after him. He has 2 dogs who guard the path to the death realm.

Martanda

The sun. He is the son of Aditi. He is rejected by Aditi because he is defective ( he disappears.)