One God - many Gods

One Supreme God: Hinduism has often been misunderstood and misinterpreted as a religion of many 'Gods'. But hindus believe in one Supreme Bhagwan(God). The Rig Veda clearly states 'Ekam Sat Vipraha bahudha Vadanti' - 'To What is one, sages give many names'. He is Sat-Chit-Anand (eternal, Consciouness and blissful). He is supreme, all-powerful, the all-doer and all-prevading. Bhagwan is the giver of the fruits of karma to all souls(Karma phal Pradata). He is also known as parabrahman, paramatma or parmeshwar. Bhagwan has a divine, personal form (sakar), however he is also believed by a portion of hindus to be formless or impersonal(nirakar). He comes on earth is human and other forms to liberate the pious souls, fulfill their devotional wishes and destroy evil. The 24 avatars or incarnations are the manifestations of Bhagwan. They are held in higher esteem than the devas. Bhagwan is believed to be supreme(savopari), the all-doer(sarva karta), to have a divine form(divya sakar) and to be ever present (prakat) on earth through a god-realized guru. By devoloping such conviction one becomes liberated from the bondage of maya and attains moksha. Devas or devatas are the minor gods, of which, according to the puranas, there are thousands(indra, agni, surya, varun, vayu, yama and many others). They are all minor deities who exercise their powers in accordance with the authority and instructions of supreme bhagwan. They are remembered and worshiped as devas. Hari Om.