In the beginning of creation, the Lord of all creatures sent forth generations of men and demigods, along with sacrifices for Vishnu, and blessed them by saying, “Be thou happy by this yajïa [sacrifice] because its performance will bestow upon you everything desirable for living happily and achieving liberation.”
Bhagavad gita 3.10The Vedas have declared that there are thirty-three million demigods, each entrusted with a particular department of universal management. Nothing throughout the universe is happening by accident. Just like in a big business, the owner has his managers and they are entrusted to make things happen. In the same way throughout the creation things are going on under the direction of the supreme Lord. The demigods and goddesses have their individual services .They make sure that everything within the cosmic manifestation works perfectly and complies with the law and order of the universe.
I will attempt to list as many as possible knowing for certain that I cannot list all thirty three million. Demigods and goddesses are referred to throughout the Vedic literature as Deva's and Devi's and reside on swarga loka, the heavenly planets. Just as there are demigods, there are also demons who wander throughout the universe and at various times will fight with the demigods. At times Deva's will appear on this earth for a pastime and will behave like an ordinary person. After their mission is complete they return to their respective abodes.
When studying the Vedas, sages often refer to tri-murti, which means "the three deities." The three main personalities within the cosmic manifestation are: Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. Again as in a corporation you have top level management. They are administrative posts and entities assume the positions based on their qualification, with the exception of Vishnu - he always remains god himself. Sometimes owners of companies are their chief executive officers (C.E.O). The owner ( C.E.O ) expands the company, maintains it and may liquidate the assets as he desires.
The esoteric parts of the Vedic scriptures explain that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is Krishna. He resides in His abode in the spiritual world far beyond this material creation. His form has two arms, but to create the material world, He expands Himself into the four-armed form of Vishnu. Lord Vishnu is the maintainer of the cosmic order and supervisor of the other two main deities - Brahma and Shiva.
Lord Brahma, the first created living entity within each universal cycle, is born directly from Lord Vishnu. To create all the planets and life forms within this universe, Brahma first creates the main progenitor demigods, who in turn create further progeny to populate the universe. Therefore Brahma is the father of all living beings and the chief amongst the demigods.
Besides Lord Vishnu, Lord Shiva is probably the most popular Deva mentioned in the Vedas. He is born as a direct son of Lord Brahma, and he has a variety of functions and duties and therefore also a variety of names. For example, he is called Nataraja, "the lord of dance," because his cosmic dance at the time of the universal devastation destroys the planets. He is also called Rudra, "the angry one," and Bhutanatha, "the lord of the ghosts and spirits."
As with all deities, Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva each have:
A female consort (shakti, or "energy"), a personal vehicle (vahana) and characteristic symbols.Vishnu (maintainer of the universe) Laksmi (goddess of fortune) Garuda (eagle)
Brahma(creator of the universe) Sarasvati (goddess of wisdom, learning and music) Hamsa (swan)
Shiva (destroyer of the universe) Parvati, also called Durga or Kali (personification of the material world) Nandi (bull)
General Categories of Universal Management:
Lords of the elements:
Varuna, the lord of the seas and waters; Agni, the fire god; and Vayu, the lord of the wind and air.Lords of the planets:
Bhumi, the goddess of the earth; Surya the sun-god; Candra, the moon-god; Brihaspati, the lord of Jupiter and spiritual master of the demigods; and Shukra, the lord of Venus.Sages among the demigods:
Narada, the Kumaras, the Maruts, the Sapta-Rishis; and Vyasadeva, the compiler of the Vedas.Demigods with specific functions within the heavenly planets.
Indra, the king of the demigods and lord of the clouds and weather on earth; Kuvera, the treasurer of the demigods; the Ashvini-Kumaras, the gods of medicine; and Vishvakarma, the architect of the demigods.Demigods with specific functions in relationship to human beings.
Yamaraja, the god of death and justice; Skanda or Kartikeya, the god of war; and Kama, the god of lust.Gods and goddesses of mountains, rivers, and other natural phenomena.
Most of these demigods have a consort by their side and are riding on their personal vehicle.The demigods are nourished by the offerings of sacrifice poured in the sacrificial fire by the humans. When the demigods are satisfied with the sacrifice, they reciprocate by granting all the needs and wants of human society. In this way, the humans fully depend on the demigods for health, welfare, prosperity, and peace. In the Brhat Naradiya Purana it is mentioned; "in the Kali yuga the recommended process of sacrifice is to chant the holy names".
All religious traditions advise humans to respect these powerful personalities, the demigods, and to please them by serving the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vishnu, or Sri Krishna. If one satisfies Sri Krishna, the root of all creation, then all the demigods are also automatically satisfied and lavishly supply all mankind's needs. For example, when water is poured on the root of a tree, the leaves and branches are automatically nourished. Therefore there is no need to worship the demigods independently. By worshiping Sri Krishna by the chanting of His holy names, one's life will be perfect.
