ཆུ་ལྷ། | Glossary of Terms

A god.

The name of the deity of water, whose weapon is a noose. In the Vedas, Varuṇa is an important deity and in particular the deity of the sky, but in later Indian tradition he is the deity of the water and the underworld. The Tibetan does not attempt to translate his name but instead has “god of water.” The Sanskrit name has ancient pre-Sanskrit origins, and, as he was originally the god of the sky, is related to the root vṛ, meaning “enveloping” or “covering.” He has the same ancient origins as the ancient Greek sky deity Uranus and the Zoroastrian supreme deity Mazda.

The name of the deity of water, whose weapon is a noose. In the Vedas, Varuṇa is an important deity and in particular the deity of the sky, but in later Indian tradition he is the deity of the water and the underworld. The Tibetan does not attempt to translate his name but instead has “god of water.” The Sanskrit name has ancient pre-Sanskrit origins, and, as he was originally the god of the sky, is related to the root vṛ, meaning “enveloping” or “covering.” He has the same ancient origins as the ancient Greek sky deity Uranus and the Zoroastrian supreme deity Mazda.

A god.

In the Vedas, Varuṇa is an important deity and in particular the deity of the sky, but in later Indian tradition only of the water and the underworld. The Tibetan does not attempt to translate his name but instead says “god of water.” The Sanskrit name has ancient pre-Sanskrit origins, and as he was originally the god of the sky is related to the root vṛ, meaning “enveloping” or “covering.” He has the same ancient origins as the ancient Greek sky deity Uranus and the Zoroastrian supreme deity Mazda.

The Vedic deity understood in later periods to be the lord of waters; thus the Tibetans translate his name as “God of Water” (chu’i lha). In The Question of Mañjuśrī his image is the fiftieth of the eighty designs on the palms of the hand and feet of the Tathāgata.

One of the guardian deities.

Vedic deity of the sky, water, and ocean.

A nāga king. Varuṇa is also the name of one of the oldest of the Vedic gods and associated with the water and the ocean.

The name of one of the oldest of the Vedic gods, associated with the waters.

One of the oldest deities of the Vedic pantheon and one of the first to be considered a supreme deity or “king of the gods.” Varuṇa eventually came to occupy a lesser status in the Vedic pantheon as a god of the waters.

The god of waters.

Apart from the god of water, Varuṇa can be the name of several other figures, including a nāga king.

The Vedic god of the waters, he presides over the western direction.

Vedic deity of the waters (and sometimes the sky) who is also regarded as a protector of cosmic order.

The god of water.

The Vedic god of the waters; also the deity who governs the western direction.

One of the eight guardians of the directions, Varuṇa guards the northeast quarter.