Dictionary Of God And Godedesses

342 VinaVinaGoddess of music. Buddhist. The personificationof a lute. Color: yellow. Attribute: a lute.VirtusGod of military prowess. Roman. Known particularlyfrom the second century BC.VindhyaMountain god. Hindu. Personification of the hillsforming the northern edge of the Deccan area ofcentral India.Virabhadra (great hero)War god. Hindu (Epic and Puranic). Consideredto be a form of ŠIVA, and occasionally of VIŠNU,Virabhadra acts as a martial aspect of Šiva againstthe god DAKSA, who according to some accountsabused Šiva’s wife SATI and drove her to angry suicideby self-immolation to avenge the slight. Heis depicted bearing four arms. Attributes: arrow,bow, shield and sword. He sometimes wears anecklace of skulls. Three-eyed and three-headed.VirajPrimordial goddess. Hindu (Vedic). Identified asthe active female creative principle in the Rg Veda.Viraratri (night of courage)Hindu.See also CHINNAMASTAKA.VirbiusMinor chthonic god. Roman. A malevolentunderworld deity who was frequently invokedduring the worship of Diana in the Arician woodlandssurrounding her sanctuary at Nemi. Virbiuswas reputed to prowl these woods and to bean emanation of Hippolytus, a mortal who hadbeen trampled to death by his horses and madeimmortal by Aesculapius. For this reason the Aricianwoods were barred to horses.Virudhaka (sprouted)God. Buddhist. A dikpala or guardian of thesoutherly direction. Color: blue or green. Attributes:skin from the head of an elephant and sword.Also identified as the head of a group of demons,the kumbhandas.Virupaksa (misinformed eyes)1. God. Hindu. Epithet of ŠIVA and one of theEKADASARUDRAS or eleven RUDRA deities. Attributes:ax, bell, club, cup, drum, hook, knife, lotus,prayer wheel, rosary, Sakti and sword. Threeheaded.2. God. Buddhist. A dikpala or guardian of thewestern direction. God of snakes. Color: red.Attributes: jewel, snake and stupa or domedshrine.ViryaparamitaPhilosophical deity. Buddhist. Spiritual offspringof RATNASAMBHAVA. Color: green. Attributes: bluelotus and jeweled banner.VIŠNUORIGIN Hindu (Vedic, Epic and Puranic) [India].One of a triad of creator gods.KNOWN PERIOD OF WORSHIP possibly from circa1700 BC until the present day.SYNONYMS appearing as ten major incarnationsor avataras: MATSYA, KURMA, Varcha,Narashima, VAMANA, PARASURAMA, RAMA,KRSNA or BALARAMA, BUDDHA, and KALKI(N).Other epithets include Abjaja, Abjayoni,Adhoksaja, Anantasayana, Aniruddha.