Indra

Indra, the name of one of those Hindu deities that were worshipped more especially in the Vedic period of the Hindu religion, but enjoyed a great legendary popularity also in the Epic and Puranic periods. In those R'ig-Veda hymns which form the oldest portion of Vedic poetry Indra is a mighty ruler of the bright firmament, and his principal feat is that of conquering the demon Vr'itra, a symbolical personification of the cloud which obstructs the clearness of the sky and withholds the fructifying rain from the earth. All his wonderful deeds are performed by him merely for the benefit of the good, which, in the language of the Veda, means the pious men who worship him in their songs, and invigorate him with the offerings of the juice of the Soma plant. He is therefore the 'lord of the virtuous,' and the 'discomfiter of those who neglect religious rites,' and at the same time he has all the attributes of a warlike god, and is invoked as the destroyer of citics. During the Epic and Puranic periods, where ethical conceptions of the divine powers prevail over ideas based on elementary impressions, Indra ceases to enjoy the worship he had acquired at the Vedic time, and his existence is chiefly upheld by the poets, who, in their turn, however, work it out in the most fantastic detail. A remarkable trait in this legendary life of Indra is the series of his conflicts with Krishna, an incarnation of Vishnu, which end, however, in his becoming reconciled with the more important god. When represented in works of art Indra is generally seen riding on his elephant; and where he is painted he is covered with eyes.