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Devata, god; deity; divinity. Vasavah, a group of eight gods whose chief is agni; sometimes indra and later visnu is also mentioned as their chief. In the Visnu Purana, vasus are enumerated : 1. आप: (waters), 2. ध्रुव (Pole star), 3. सोम (the moon), 4. धव or धर 5. अनिल (wind), б. अनल ог पावक (Fire), 7. प्रत्यूष (the Dawn) and 8. प्रभास (Light). In some other texts आप: is substitued by अहन् (the Day). According to Dayananda the vasus are: agni, prthivi, vayu, antariksa, dyauh, aditya, candramá and naksatra. Rudras, a group of new class of beings, eleven in number. In the Váyu Puràána their names are mentioned : 1. Aja Ekapad, 2. Ahirbudhnya, 3. Hara, 4. Nirrta, 5. I$vara, 6. Bhuvana, 7. Angaraka, 8. Ardhaketu, 9. Mrtyu, 10. Sarpa, 11. Kapalin. According to Dayananda eleven rudras are प्राणादय एकादश देवा:, the eleven gods Prana etc. These are : prdna, арапа, udana, samüna, vydna, devadatta, dhananjaya, krkala, दशमे पुरुषे प्राणा आत्मैकादश एते यदस्मात् मर्त्यात् शरीरादुत्क्रामंत्यथ रोदयंति तद् यद् रोदयंति तस्मादुद्रा इति,, these ten alongwith the àtman, зн eleven; when these quit this mortal body, they make people weep; therefore they are called rudras, those who cause others to weep. (Satapatha, XI. 6. 3. 7). Adityah, sons of Aditi. They are : Varuna, Mitra, Aryaman, Bhaga, Daksa, Ага, Sürya or Savitr, and Visnu. Sometimes they are eight in number, but later in Pauranic times there number increased to twelve, representing the twelve phases of the sun in the months of a year. Marutah, in the legend, they are the sons of Rudra and Práni. The storm gods (companions of Indra), they are described as armed with golden weapons, i. e. the lightning and thunderbolts, having iron teeth and roaring like lions, residing in the north and as riding in the golden cars drawn by ruddy horses. They are considered to be a hundred and eighty in number (3*60). In later literature they are shown as the children of Diti, the other wife of KaSyapa (the first being Aditi) and seven, and sometimes seven times seven (7х7 = 49) in number. Mātariśvan is their leader. ViSvedevah, all the gods, deities, divinities, bounties of Nature. In the legend, however, they are a particular class of gods, forming one of the nine ganas, enumerated under gana-devata. According to Visnu Purana, they were sons of Viśwā, a daughter of Daksa. Their names are : 1. Vasu, 2. Satya, 3. Kratu, 4. Daksa, 5. Kala, 6. Kama, 7. Dhrti, 8. Kuru, 9. Pururavas, 10. Madravas, 11. Rocaka, 12. Dhvanih and 13. Dhüri. They are particularly worshipped at sraddhas and vaisvadevya sacrifices. Sometimes it is difficult to decide wheter the expression visve devah refers to all the gods or to the particular troop of deities. (Monier Willjams). Brhaspati, in the legend, name of a deity in whom Piety and Religion are personified. He is the chief offerer of prayers and sacrifices and therefore represented as the type of priestly order, and the purohita (priest) of gods, with whom he intercedes for men. In the later times he is the god of wisdom and eloquence. Now agni is the presiding deity of the Earth, vata of midSpace, stirya of the sky, candramas of the night, indra of clouds and varuna of oceans.