Identifier: hindumythologyve00wilk (find matches)
Title: Hindu mythology, Vedic and Purânic
Year: 1882 (1880s)
Authors: Wilkins, William Joseph, 1843-1902
Subjects: Mythology, Hindu Legends, Hindu
Publisher: Calcutta, Thacker, Spink & co. London, W. Thacker & co. (etc., etc.)
Contributing Library: Princeton Theological Seminary Library
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN

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SIVA. . Siva. 219 •!/■ /
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2 2o The Puranic Deities. him, which certainly would not have been the case had he beenregarded as the destroyer in the ordinary meaning of that term. In the later Hinduism, as taught in the Epics and Puranas,Siva plays a most important part, several books having beenwritten for the special purpose of celebrating his praise ; yethis name even, as that of a god, does not occur in the Vedas.But in order to gain for him greater reverence amongst men, heis declared to be the Rudra of the Vedas. In some passagesin the Vedas, Rudra is identified with Agni ; yet the distinctiveepithets applied to Rudra in the Rig-Veda appear sufficientlyto prove that he was generally discriminated from Agni by hisearl\ worshippers. * Between the texts from the Brahmanas relative to Rudra,and the earliest descriptions of the same deity which we discoverin the Epic poems, a wide chasm intervenes, which, as far as Iam aware, no genuine ancient materials exist for bridging over.The Rudra of the Mahabharata is no

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