“How many gods does Hinduism believe in?” A standard question that many people ask and a standard answer someone gives is 33crores (करोड़) (~330million). A vague figure, which we have grown up hearing and giving as answer to this question. Usually, the person asking the initial questions is almost fainted hearing this answer. The answer of 330 million ensures that there are no following questions like “can you name them all?”
But there are some enthusiasts that cross this border and ask names and what we could muster up then is only few prominent names like Lord Ganesha, Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma, Krishna, Ram and goddesses Durga, Parvati, Laxmi, Saraswati, Sita etc. Rarely, a person could count beyond 20 names of gods, let alone 330 million.
So who are the rest of the gods? Why 330 million only? Not more or less?
Hinduism, believes in only in one super power known as Adi Parashakti (आदी परा शक्ती ) (Endless source of energy). However, the vedas (वेद ) and puranas (पुराण ) there is a mention of 33 koti deities. It is this word koti (कोटी ) that causes confusion. The word koti translates to two things
It is this word koti that in my opinion, causes the confusion. Rather I would say the way it is interpreted causes the confusion.
Many of us interpret the word as crore (10 million) that means 33*10 million=330 million. And what we pass on to next generations is that Hinduism believes in 33 crore (330 million) gods. If you look at the width and breadth of Hinduism, we will definitely find more deities/idols than 330 million.
Another view that exists in this regard is that at the time vedas were written, the population could have been roughly 330 million, which indicates god being a personal experience. This would potentially mean every person’s perception of god could be different from others, which in turn supports concept of 330 million gods. Though the population has increased many folds, we still continue to refer gods as 330 million.
However, the correct interpretation according to many scholars of the subject is “classes”. This means that the one super power (or endless source of energy) is depicted in 33 different classes or forms of this energy in the vedas. So each unique source of energy is depicted as a deity and is worshipped by many. In my opinion, this is also a very logical and scientific way to look at it.
So next time, if someone questions about how many gods Hinduism believes in, the correct answer should be one (1). Hinduism believes in only one super power (Adi Parashakti) which is represented in different forms and shapes and also named differently at different locations and times. For me, this implies the fundamental rule in science "Energy can neither be created nor be destroyed, however, it can take different forms and shapes".
Please note that this article is an honest attempt to find answer to intriguing question about number of gods in hinduism. This is not meant to harm sentiments of any caste, community, religion.
But there are some enthusiasts that cross this border and ask names and what we could muster up then is only few prominent names like Lord Ganesha, Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma, Krishna, Ram and goddesses Durga, Parvati, Laxmi, Saraswati, Sita etc. Rarely, a person could count beyond 20 names of gods, let alone 330 million.
So who are the rest of the gods? Why 330 million only? Not more or less?
Hinduism, believes in only in one super power known as Adi Parashakti (आदी परा शक्ती ) (Endless source of energy). However, the vedas (वेद ) and puranas (पुराण ) there is a mention of 33 koti deities. It is this word koti (कोटी ) that causes confusion. The word koti translates to two things
- Classes
- Crore (=10 million)
It is this word koti that in my opinion, causes the confusion. Rather I would say the way it is interpreted causes the confusion.
Many of us interpret the word as crore (10 million) that means 33*10 million=330 million. And what we pass on to next generations is that Hinduism believes in 33 crore (330 million) gods. If you look at the width and breadth of Hinduism, we will definitely find more deities/idols than 330 million.
Another view that exists in this regard is that at the time vedas were written, the population could have been roughly 330 million, which indicates god being a personal experience. This would potentially mean every person’s perception of god could be different from others, which in turn supports concept of 330 million gods. Though the population has increased many folds, we still continue to refer gods as 330 million.
However, the correct interpretation according to many scholars of the subject is “classes”. This means that the one super power (or endless source of energy) is depicted in 33 different classes or forms of this energy in the vedas. So each unique source of energy is depicted as a deity and is worshipped by many. In my opinion, this is also a very logical and scientific way to look at it.
So next time, if someone questions about how many gods Hinduism believes in, the correct answer should be one (1). Hinduism believes in only one super power (Adi Parashakti) which is represented in different forms and shapes and also named differently at different locations and times. For me, this implies the fundamental rule in science "Energy can neither be created nor be destroyed, however, it can take different forms and shapes".
Please note that this article is an honest attempt to find answer to intriguing question about number of gods in hinduism. This is not meant to harm sentiments of any caste, community, religion.
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