Varuna in the context of "Makara (Hindu mythology)"

Ancient Iranian religions were a set of ancient beliefs and practices of the Iranian peoples before the rise of Zoroastrianism. The religion closest to it was the historical Vedic religion that was practiced during the Vedic period. The major deities worshipped were Ahura Mazda and Mithra from Iran to Rome, but Atar was also worshipped, as names of kings and common public showing devotion to these three exist in most cases. But some sects, the precursors of the Magi, also worshipped Ahura Mazda, the chief of the Ahuras. With the rise of Zoroaster and his new, reformatory religion, Ahura Mazda became the principal deity, while the Daevas were relegated to the background. Many of the attributes and commandments of Varuna, called Fahrana in Median times, were later attributed to Ahura Mazda by Zoroaster.

The Iranian peoples emerged as a separate branch of the Indo-Iranians in the 2nd millennium BC, during which they came to dominate the Eurasian Steppe and the Persian Plateau. Their religion is derived from Iranian religions, and therefore shares many similarities with the Vedic religion of India. Although the Persian peoples left little written or material evidence of their religious practices, their religion is possible to reconstruct from scant Iranian, Babylonian and Greek accounts, similarities with Vedic and other Indo-European religions, and material evidence.

In Hinduism, Adityas (Sanskrit: आदित्य, lit. 'of Aditi' IAST: Āditya Sanskrit pronunciation: [aːd̪ɪt̪jɐ]) refers to a group of major solar deities, who are the offspring of the goddess Aditi. The name Aditya, in the singular, is taken to refer to the sun god Surya. Generally, Adityas are twelve in number and consist of Vivasvan (Surya), Aryaman, Tvashtr, Savitr, Bhaga, Dhatr, Mitra, Varuna, Amsha, Pushan, Indra and Vishnu (in the form of Vamana).

They appear in the Rig Veda, where they are 6–8 in number, all male. The number increases to 12 in the Brahmanas. The Mahabharata and the Puranas mention the sage Kashyapa as their father. In each month of the year a different Aditya is said to shine.

Asuras (Sanskrit: असुर) are a class of beings in Indian religions. They are described as power-seeking beings related to the more benevolent Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhist context, the word is translated as "titan," "demigod," or "antigod".

According to Hindu texts, the asuras are in constant fear of the devas. Asuras are described in Indian texts as powerful superhuman demigods with good or bad qualities. In early Vedic literature, the good Asuras are called Adityas and are led by Varuna, while the malevolent ones are called Danavas and are led by Vritra. In the earliest layer of Vedic texts, Agni, Indra and other gods are also called Asuras, in the sense of their being "lords" of their respective domains, knowledge and abilities. In later Vedic and post-Vedic texts, the benevolent gods are called Devas, while malevolent Asuras compete against these Devas and are considered "enemy of the gods".

Tolkāppiyam, also romanised as Tholkaappiyam (Tamil: தொல்காப்பியம் listen , lit. "ancient poem"), is the oldest extant Tamil grammar text and the oldest extant long work of Tamil literature. It is the earliest Tamil text mentioning Gods, perhaps linked to Tamil deities.There is no firm evidence to assign the authorship of this treatise to any one author. There is a tradition of belief that it was written by a single author who is called Tolkappiyar based on the name of his work.

The surviving manuscripts of the Tolkappiyam consists of three books (Tamil: அதிகாரம், romanized: Atikāram, lit. 'Chapter or Authority'), each with nine chapters (Tamil: இயல், romanized: Iyal), with a cumulative total of 1,610 (483+463+664) sutras in the Tamil: நூற்பா, romanized: nūṛpā, lit. 'verse' meter. It is a comprehensive text on grammar, and includes sutras on orthography, phonology, etymology, morphology, semantics, prosody, sentence structure and the significance of context in language. Mayyon as (Vishnu), Seyyon as (Kanda), Vendhan as (Indra), Varuna as (Varuna) and Kotṟavai as (Devi or Bagavathi) are the gods mentioned.

Aryaman (Sanskrit: अर्यमन्‌) is one of the early Vedic Hindu deities. His name signifies "Life-Partner", "Close Friend", "Sun", "Play-Fellow" or "Companion". He is the third son of Kashyapa and Aditi, the father and mother of the adityas, and is depicted as the mid-morning sun disc. He is the deity of the customs that rule the various Vedic tribes and people.

In the Rigveda, Aryaman is described as the protector of mares and stallions, and the Milky Way (aryamṇáḥ pánthāḥ) is said to be his path.Aryaman is commonly invoked together with Mitra-Varuna, Bhaga, Bṛhaspati, and other adityas and asuras.

Mitra (Sanskrit: मित्र IAST: Mitrá) is a Hindu god and generally one of the Adityas (the sons of the goddess Aditi), though his role has changed over time. In the Mitanni inscription, Mitra is invoked as one of the protectors of treaties. In the Rigveda, Mitra appears primarily in the dvandva compound Mitra-Varuna, which has essentially the same attributes as the god Varuna alone, e.g. as the principal guardian of ṛtá "Truth, Order". In the late Vedic texts and the Brahmanas, Mitra is increasingly associated with the light of dawn and the morning sun (while Varuna becomes associated with the evening, and ultimately the night). In the post-Vedic texts – in which Mitra practically disappears – Mitra evolved into the patron divinity of friendship, and because he is "friend", abhors all violence, even when sacred.

Sindhi Hindus are ethnic Sindhis who practice Hinduism and are native to, or have origins in, Sindh, Pakistan. They are spread across Sindh, primarily concentrated in the eastern districts; with a significant diasporic population in India, mainly composing the descendants of partition-era migrants who fled from Pakistan to the Dominion of India, in what was a wholesale exchange of Hindu and Muslim populations in some areas. Some later emigrated from the Indian subcontinent and settled in other parts of the world.

According to the 2023 census, there are 4.9 million Sindhi Hindus residing within the Sindh province of Pakistan with major population centers being Mirpur Khas Division and Hyderabad Division that combined account for more than 2 million of them. Meanwhile, the 2011 census listed 2.77 million speakers of Sindhi in India, including speakers of Kutchi, a number that does not include Sindhi Hindus who no longer speak the Sindhi language. The vast majority of Sindhi Hindus living in India belong to the Lohana jāti, which includes the sub-groups of Amil, Bhaiband and Sahiti.