Vāc

Short description: Vedic goddess associated with Saraswati

Vac (Sanskrit: वाच्, vāc) is a Vedic goddess who is a personified form of divine speech. She enters into the inspired poets and visionaries, gives expression and energy to those she loves; she is called the "mother of the Vedas" and consort of Prajapati, the Vedic embodiment of mind.[1] She is also associated with Indra in Aitareya Aranyaka.[2] Elsewhere, such as in the Padma Purana, she is stated to be the wife of Vision (Kashyapa), the mother of Emotions, and the friend of Musicians (Gandharva).[2]

She is identified with goddess Saraswati in later Vedic literature and post-Vedic texts of Hindu traditions. Saraswati has remained a significant and revered deity in Hinduism.[3]

Thomas McEvilley gives goddess Vac and the area of her divine purview treatment in 'Appendix E: Philosophy and Grammar' to his magnum opus The Shape of Ancient Thought.[4]

## See also

* Hindu deities
* Rigvedic deities
* Śabda

## References

1. ↑ Holdrege, Barbara A. (2012-02-01) (in en). Veda and Torah: Transcending the Textuality of Scripture. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-1-4384-0695-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=YlvikndgEmIC&q=Vac+Prajapati&pg=PA48.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Myths and Gods of India, Alain Daniélou, pages 260-261
3. ↑ David Kinsley (1987). Hindu Goddesses: Visions of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Tradition. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 55, 222. ISBN 978-81-208-0394-7. https://books.google.com/books?id=hgTOZEyrVtIC&pg=PA222.
4. ↑ McEvilley, Thomas (2002). The Shape of Ancient Thought: Comparative Studies in Greek and Indian Philosophies. Allworth Press: New York, N. Y., U. S. A. Source: https://archive.org/details/thomas-c.-mcevilley-the-shape-of-ancient-thought-comparative-studies-in-greek-an (accessed: Thursday 21 September, 2023.

## Further reading

* Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend (ISBN 0500510881) by Anna Dhallapiccola
* Hindu Goddesses: Vision of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Traditions (ISBN 8120803795) by David Kinsley
* Nicholas Kazanas, Vedic Vāc and Greek logos as creative power: a critical study (2009)

0.00

(0 votes)

Original source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vāc. Read more

|

Retrieved from "https://handwiki.org/wiki/index.php?title=Unsolved:Vāc&oldid=2623469"