The Devatas with Nina Rao

Growing up, Nina was surrounded by the visual forms of the divine beings as well as hearing the names of these divine beings. These divine beings are devatas, and there are almost an infinite number in the Indian tradition. We first hear of the devatas in the vedas where every mantra invokes a specific devata by the sacred sound of the Name. The devatas are forms of cosmic forces that make up our environment, our body, our minds – our entire being – our true nature.

Chanting these mantras aligns us with the devatas, generating harmony all around. As time went on, the spiritual texts expanded into the puranas and itihasas, including the great sacred tales of Ramayana, Mahabharata, Devi Bhagavatam, Shiva Puranas and so many more. The visual images and legendary stories come from here and are the fabric of everyday life in India and many parts of south Asia. 

Nina will share her journey with some of these devatas alongside her time with her guru as a manifestation of these devatas on this plane.