Rigvedic deities are deities mentioned in the sacred texts of Rigveda, the principal text of the historical Vedic religion of the Vedic period (1500–500 BCE).
There are 1,028 hymns (sūkta) in the Rigveda. Most of these hymns are dedicated to specific deities.
Brahma (Sanskrit: ब्रह्मा, IAST: Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu and Shiva. He is associated with creation of everything, knowledge, and the Vedas. Brahma is prominently mentioned in creation legends. In some Puranas, he created himself in a golden embryo known as the Hiranyagarbha.
Brahma is frequently identified with the Vedic god Prajapati. During the post-Vedic period, Brahma was a prominent deity and his sect existed; however, by the 7th century, he had lost his significance. He was also overshadowed by other major deities like Vishnu, Shiva, and Mahadevi and demoted to the role of a secondary creator, who was created by the major deities.
In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Eos (/ˈiːɒs/; Ionic and Homeric Greek Ἠώς Ēṓs, Attic Ἕως Héōs, "dawn", pronounced [ɛːɔ̌ːs] or [héɔːs]; Aeolic Αὔως Aúōs, Doric Ἀώς Āṓs) is the goddess and personification of the dawn, who rose each morning from her home at the edge of the river Oceanus to deliver light and disperse the night. In Greek tradition and poetry, she is characterized as a goddess with a great sexual appetite, who took numerous human lovers for her own satisfaction and bore them several children. Like her Roman counterpart Aurora and Rigvedic Ushas, Eos continues the name of an earlier Indo-European dawn goddess, Hausos. Eos, or her earlier Proto-Indo-European (PIE) ancestor, also shares several elements with the love goddess Aphrodite, perhaps signifying Eos's influence on her or otherwise a common origin for the two goddesses. In surviving tradition, Aphrodite is the culprit behind Eos's numerous love affairs, having cursed the goddess with insatiable lust for mortal men.
In Greek literature, Eos is presented as a daughter of the Titans Hyperion and Theia, the sister of the sun god Helios and the moon goddess Selene. In rarer traditions, she is the daughter of the Titan Pallas. Each day she drives her two-horse chariot, heralding the breaking of the new day and her brother's arrival. Thus, her most common epithet of the goddess in the Homeric epics is Rhododactylos, or "rosy-fingered", a reference to the sky's colours at dawn, and Erigeneia, "early-born". Although primarily associated with the dawn and early morning, sometimes Eos would accompany Helios for the entire duration of his journey, and thus she is even seen during dusk.
Rudra (Sanskrit: रुद्र, IPA: [rud̪rɐ]) is a Rigvedic deity associated with Shiva, the wind or storms, Vayu, medicine, and the hunt. One translation of the name is 'the roarer'. In the Rigveda, Rudra is praised as the "mightiest of the mighty". Rudra means "who eradicates problems from their roots". Depending upon the period, the name Rudra can be interpreted as 'the most severe roarer/howler' or 'the most frightening one'. This name appears in the Shiva Sahasranama, and R. K. Sharma notes that it is often used as a name of Shiva in later languages. The "Shri Rudram" hymn from the Yajurveda is dedicated to Rudra and is important in the Shaivite sect. In the Prathama Anuvaka of Namakam (Taittiriya Samhita 4.5), Rudra is revered as Sadasiva (meaning 'mighty Shiva') and Mahadeva. Sadashiva is the Supreme Being, Paramashiva, in the Siddhanta sect of Shaivism.
Dyaus (Vedic Sanskrit: द्यौस्, IAST: Dyáus) or Dyauspitr (Vedic Sanskrit: द्यौष्पितृ, IAST: Dyáuṣpitṛ́) is the Rigvedic sky deity. His consort is Prthvi, the earth goddess, and together they are the archetypal parents in the Rigveda.
Aurora (/ɔːˈrɔːrə/ or /əˈrɔːrə/; Latin: Aurōra, Latin pronunciation: [au̯ˈroːra]) is the Latin word for dawn, and the goddess of dawn in Roman mythology and Latin poetry.Like Greek Eos and Rigvedic Ushas, Aurora continues the name of an earlier Indo-European dawn goddess, Hausos.
Originating in historical Vedic religion, 'Pravargya' (Sanskrit प्रवर्ग्य), also known as 'Ashvina-pravaya', is an introductory or preliminary ceremony to the Soma Yajña (of which there are several kinds, including but not limited to, the five-day Agnishtoma Soma Yagya forming the basic model).
In the Pravargya Yajña, an earthen pot is fashioned from clay dug up from the ground, placed on a fire-altar, and used to boil milk which is offered to the Ashvins, the twin Rigvedic gods of Ayurvedic medicine.