Identify the principal deities of the Vedic pantheon?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Agni and Indra
The Vedic pantheon means the group of gods worshipped in the Vedas. Its principal deities were Agni, the god of fire, Indra and Soma; the option names the first two of these three. In the later Puranic traditions these Vedic gods became marginal figures, and deities such as Vishnu, Shiva and the goddess became central, even though the Vedas were still revered.
NCERT (2025-26): “1.2 Difference and conflict … All of these somewhat divergent and even disparate beliefs and practices would come to be classified as Hindu over the course of the next millennium. The divergence is perhaps most stark if we compare Vedic and Puranic traditions. The principal deities of the Vedic pantheon, Agni, Indra and Soma, become marginal figures, rarely visible in textual or visual representations. And while we can catch a glimpse of Vishnu, Shiva and the goddess in Vedic mantras, these have little in common with the elaborate Puranic mythologies. However, in spite of these obvious discrepancies, the Vedas continued to be revered as authoritative.…” |