The sadhyas () 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 ...

. According to 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 ...

, they are the sons of

Dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

and Sadhya, a daughter of

Daksha In Hinduism, Daksha (Sanskrit: दक्ष, IAST: , lit. "able, dexterous, or honest one") is one of the '' Prajapati'', the agents of creation, as well as a divine king-rishi. His iconography depicts him as a man with a stocky body and a ha ...

. Numbering either twelve or seventeen according to various texts, the sadhyas are described to be the embodiments of the rituals and hymns of the

Vedas upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...

. They are stated to reside with the

devas Devas may refer to: * Devas Club, a club in south London * Anthony Devas (1911–1958), British portrait painter * Charles Stanton Devas (1848–1906), political economist * Jocelyn Devas (died 1886), founder of the Devas Club * Devas (band), ...

, or dwell in the region between

heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...

and earth.

Description

The

feature the sadhyas 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

maharajikas The maharajikas () refers to a class of minor deities in Hinduism, numbering 220 or 236 members. Description The Puranas feature the maharajikas among the nine classes (''gaṇas'') of deities, among the adityas, rudras, vasus, visvedevas Th ...

. They are sometimes referred to as a class of the

, or the gaṇadevas. The

Agni Purana The ''Agni Purana'', ( sa, अग्नि पुराण, ) is a Sanskrit text and one of the eighteen major Puranas of Hinduism. The text is variously classified as a Purana related to Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Shaktism and Smartism, but also co ...

offers a list of the twelve sadhyas: * Manas * Mantā * Prāṇa * Nara * Apāna * Vīrayān * Vibhu * Haya * Naya * Haṁsa * Nārāyaṇa * Prabhu

Literature

Upanishads

The

Mundaka Upanishad The Mundaka Upanishad ( sa, मुण्डक-उपनिषद्, ) is an ancient Sanskrit Vedic text, embedded inside Atharva Veda. It is a Mukhya (primary) Upanishad, and is listed as number 5 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads of Hin ...

describes the origin of the sadhyas from

Brahman In Hinduism, ''Brahman'' ( sa, ब्रह्मन्) connotes the highest universal principle, the ultimate reality in the universe.P. T. Raju (2006), ''Idealistic Thought of India'', Routledge, , page 426 and Conclusion chapter part X ...

, the Ultimate Reality.

Shiva Purana

According to the

Shiva Purana The ''Shiva Purana'' is one of eighteen major texts of the ''Purana'' genre of Sanskrit texts in Hinduism, and part of the Shaivism literature corpus. It primarily revolves around the Hindu god Shiva and goddess Parvati, but references and reve ...

, the sadhyas serve as the attendants of

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

, under the command of

Ganesha Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu d ...

. They are regarded to reside on the Gaṇaparvata mountain, situated on

Kailasha Mount Kailash (also Kailasa; ''Kangrinboqê'' or ''Gang Rinpoche''; Tibetan: གངས་རིན་པོ་ཆེ; ; sa, कैलास, ), is a mountain in the Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It has an altitude of ...

Mahabharata

The sadhyas fight with

Kartikeya Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Ganesha ...

in his battle against Tarakasura.

Bhagavad Gita

Arjuna Arjuna (Sanskrit: अर्जुन, ), also known as Partha and Dhananjaya, is a character in several ancient Hindu texts, and specifically one of the major characters of the Indian epic Mahabharata. In the epic, he is the third among Panda ...

mentions the sadhyas as one of the classes that are awed by

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...

vishvarupa Vishvarupa (, IAST: ) is an iconographical form and theophany of a Hindu deity, most commonly associated with Vishnu in contemporary Hinduism. Though there are multiple Vishvarupa theophanies, the most celebrated is in the '' Bhagavad Gita'', ...

form.

References

Rigvedic deities Hindu deities {{Hindu deities and texts