The One Alone

The very first experience in the history of Indian thought is the thrill of wonder. This is expressed in the Rks or hymns found in Rig Veda, the earliest revelations of the Bharathiya mind. The Rks are all about the Gods or the Shining Ones (the Devas). Of these Devas, there are many; Indra, Varuna, Mitra, Parjanya - these are the names of a few. They appear in these Rks, one after the other. Of these, Indra with the Thunderbolt (vajra) as his weapon is the chief. He is the mighty One who confers rain upon the earth. Indra is called so, since he is the Master of the Indriyas (the senses) of man, that is to say, he is the Mind which handles the senses. He is also known as Puruhutha - puru meaning 'often' and hutha, 'invited' - the entire name meaning, 'the God who is most called upon'. The Mind (which is identified with Indriyas, since it masters them) is also adored in the Vedas as Rudra. The Mind contacts the objective world and experiences it through the instrumentality of the five senses; this aspect of the Mind is the Indra aspect. It has also another capability. It can master the senses, and become aware of the Universal Inner Truth of the multiplicity called the Objective world. This aspect of the Mind is designated as 'Rudra'. This is the reason why the Vedas describe Indra and Rudra as the One with two names.