Unsolved:Vāc

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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] Because of this, Goddess Saraswati is also known as Goddess Vaceshwari.

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

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)