The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads v1.c20.s2.18

v1.c20.s2.18

The other agent gods are of very minor importance. Dhātṛ, the creator, is a development, only found about a dozen times, and only once outside the tenth book, of the epithet creator, applied to Indra or Viçvakarman, and often used of the priests as establishers of the sacrifice. He is the creator of the heaven, air, earth, sun and moon, is besought to grant offspring, a clear eye, and length of days, and in the post-Vedic period is a synonym of Brahman or Prajāpati as the all-god. Vidhātṛ, ‘disposer’, is used with Dhātṛ as an epithet of Indra and Viçvakarman once each: it in two enumerations ³ attains a slight existence. With Dhātṛ in its solitary occurrence in book vii is found Dhartṛ,⁴ ‘supporter’, elsewhere an epithet of Indra and other gods. The god Trātṛ, ‘protector’, is found five times ⁵ with other deities, referring perhaps to Savitṛ and Bhaga: the word is usually an epithet of Indra, Agni or the Ādityas. A leader god, Netṛ, is invoked in one hymn only, and asked to lead to prosperity in life.⁶ Of goddesses we have Deṣṭrī, who is invoked with Dhātṛ and Mātariçvan in the marriage hymn, and the class of protectors, Varūtrī, known from the Rigveda onwards.