The maharajikas () refers to a

class Class or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differentl ...

of minor

deities A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greate ...

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

, numbering 220 or 236 members.

Description

The

Puranas Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...

feature the maharajikas among the nine classes (''gaṇas'') of deities, among the

adityas In Hinduism, Adityas ( sa, आदित्य, Āditya, of Aditi, ), refers to the offspring of Aditi, the goddess representing the infinity. The name ''Aditya'', in the singular, is taken to refer to the sun god Surya. Generally, Adityas are ...

rudras Rudras refer to the forms of the god Rudra, whose traditions have since been associated with Shiva. They make up eleven of the thirty-three gods in the Vedic pantheon.Hopkins pp. 172-3 They are at times identified with the storm deities referred ...

vasus The Vasus () refers to a group of deities in Hinduism associated with fire and light. They are described to be the attendant deities of Indra, and later Vishnu. Generally numbering eight and classified as the Ashtavasu, they are described in the R ...

visvedevas The Visvedevas () ( ' "all-gods") are the various Vedic gods taken together as a whole. In the Rigveda a number of hymns are addressed to them, including (according to Griffith) 1.3,1.89, 3.54-56, 4.55, 5.41-51, 6.49-52, 7.34-37, 39, 40, 42, 43, ...

, tushitas,

abhasvaras Abhasvaras () is a term used in Buddhism to refer to a heaven and in Hinduism to refer to a class of Devata, deities. Buddhism In Buddhism, Abhasvaras is the name of a heaven. The words roots are Sanskrit (from "a" near to, towards + the verbal r ...

, anilas, and the

sadhyas The sadhyas () refers to a class of minor deities in Hinduism. According to the Puranas, they are the sons of Dharma and Sadhya, a daughter of Daksha. Numbering either twelve or seventeen according to various texts, the sadhyas are described to b ...

. They are sometimes referred to as a class of the devas, or the gaṇadevas. According to the Shiva Purana, the maharajikas serve as the attendants of Shiva, under the command of Ganesha. They are regarded to reside on the Gaṇaparvata mountain, situated on Kailasha.

References

Rigvedic deities Hindu deities {{Hindu-myth-stub