Various sections of the Hindu Society called this same Paramãtma by different names, but still He [or She] is the Supreme Truth, all-powerful Îswara or Îswari and "GOD" in all faiths. For the Saivites, He is Parasiva or Parameswara. The Vaishnavites referred to Him as Nãrãyana or Mahãvishnu who is Savisesha Brahmam [Here Nãrãyana is not formless but with a form beyond our comprehension]. For those following Sakthism, She is known as Parãsakthi, Devi or Durga and for the Smãrthas "It" is Para-Brahmam. This One Supreme God makes the various manifestations in the transcendental forms of Siva, Vishnu, and Brahma as well as Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswathi and many other Deities in the phenomenal universe as a relative Reality.

These various forms of Moorthis are different at this level, and They come down to our earth as Avathãrãs or manifestations to protect the pious and destroy the evil. The woodcutter who walks through the streets of Madurai and beaten by the king is different from the Lion headed man who comes out of the pillar for eleven minutes to tear up Hiranya. The Dwarf [Vãmana] who sets his two feet around the world and space asks for the head of Mahãbali for the third feet to show His universal form is different from the Durga as Mahishãsura-mardhini with 18 hands destroying the demon. So also, Ganesha is different from Krishna as much as Ayyappa from Rãma.

Many of us experience the communion with these Deities during our prayers or when we visit the Holy spots of the particular manifestations. If all are the same, one and the same God, we cannot explain how we get such experience at any time. The religion, while giving us the theory of One Supreme Paramãtma without a form also has given provisions for the several manifestations for each one to pray. The Supreme God Himself manifests in these limited forms to be understood by every one at various levels. Each one of these manifestations is thus a reality by Their own right for the individual who prays for that form. Hinduism is thus a concept that necessarily defies a 'one size fits all' brand of theology, which is nigh impractical for the simple reason that variety pervades all aspects of human existence. These cannot be compared to the Western thinking or brushed aside as non-truth for the Monotheistic principles.

In the Semitic faiths, the Judeo-Christian concept of "God" is a largely unexplained supreme divinity living in Heaven. There are sub-servient, duty-bound Angels and Messiahs invoked from time to time to uplift Human souls. Depending on the factional tenets, the Messianic 'event' is periodic (one or many Messiahs) or one apocalyptic colossus (Armageddon) culminating in the presiding Messiah screening Good from Evil. Human creations or souls are sinners to be 'saved' only by the grace of God, through the prayers and acceptance of the Messiah and the message. They need to follow the teachings of the Messiah as a solution to the ills they are enduring. Such saved Souls are to be rewarded with an entry into the choice world of the God on a judgment day or punished appropriately for not following the commands. The human soul will never reach the status of a Divine Spirit nor merge with Him. These faiths often propound Monotheism, but in reality many of them practice Ditheism; that is belief in one Supreme Being represented symbolically and also in a Messiah often worthy of additional worship. Many of the followers, while praying to the Divine and His Messiah ended up praying to the Holy Spirit, the Angels and many Saints and also offered this prayers to several symbols, icons and books.

Many ancient cultures of Europe, Greeks, Druids, Egyptians, Aztecs, Mayans and other Native Americans and African faiths believed in a Supreme spirit and also in many individual spirits to govern the Natural Forces. They also believed that humans, by repeated births and good deeds, ascend to the levels of Divine or as gods of the natural forces. This concept is also seen in the ancient faiths of Persia such as Zoroastrianism and the pre-Zoroastrian faiths, which are closer to Hindu beliefs.

While analyzing the concepts of the Faiths, beliefs and traditions of the West, with all our ignorance, one should not get the idea that any one path is superior to the other or that another person's faith should be ignored. Each of them may be suitable for the community for which it was established. One should understand one's own faith and accept the traditions as it is taught. There is no need to be apologetic and there is no need to modify ones own belief to be acceptable to the traditions of others.

In Hindu tradition of worship of several forms of Avathãras of the Supreme, various practices exist in different parts of Bhãrat. In Bengal it is Sri Kaali or Sri Durga, in the Ganges valley it is Sri Siva and Sri Rãma, in Mathura and in Gujarat it is Sri Krishna, in Maharãshtra and Karnataka it is Sri Ganesha and in Andhra it is Sri Venkate'swara. In Tamilnadu and Kerala the worship of Sri Muruga, Sri Krishna and Sri Ayyappa or Dharma Sãstha is very popular. Worship of these Deities dominates in the popular practice over all other forms of Deities, though every form is followed in every part of the land, each family can follow any one form as their Ishta-devatha.

We cannot say that they are all one and the same though one may be able to comprehend the relation and the unity of the ultimate Supreme Truth behind all these manifestations at different levels. Similarly, in Vedic fire rituals, when we invite the Celestial forces like Surya, Saneeswara, Indra and Varuna and offer prayers to fire, they all have their special place in the Divine hierarchy that govern our lives. Often we see the effects of these prayers right there through the rituals. Temples for many of these Deities are established through the special experience of a Divine command. Vedas and Agamas, as a powerful and most reliable science, explain the phenomena by which it is determined which place is right for which type of Temple.

The great Hindu Saint Ãdi Sankara while establishing the theory of Advaita or Monism as Jñãna Yoga also explained the practice of prayer rituals for six forms of Divine manifestations, Ganesha, Siva, Vishnu, Sakthi, Kumara and Surya as Deities or Ishta-devatha, This shows that the two aspects of the Supreme are complimentary and not contradictory. The various forms of Deities are derived from various scriptures and mythology. However, the basic concept remains, "Truth is One and Sages call It by different names" [Ekam Sat Vipra Bahuda Vadanti]. The idea that every Deity whom men worship is the embodiment of a limited ideal serving a specific purpose, and that the Deity is a symbol of some aspects of the Absolute Supreme Paramãtma is the most fundamental characteristics of Hindu religion. The bewildering diversity of Hindu belief rests on a solid unity. It is this idea that makes Hindu religion the most tolerant of all religions and averse to proselytizing through religious propaganda.