Prajapati

(“Lord of Creatures”) Deity appearing
late in the Vedas, the earliest Hindu
sacred texts, who is described as the
creator of the universe and is considered superior to the Vedic deities. The
means by which Prajapati carries out
creation are different in different
places. In Rg Veda 10.121 he is
described as the Golden Embryo from
which all things developed, whereas in
Rg 10.90, also known as the Purusha
Sukta, he is described as the primal person
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Pradhana
(purusha) who is sacrificed by the gods
and from whose parts the world develops. In later Hindu practice the name
Prajapati can also be used to refer to the
god Brahma, as fashioner of the universe, or to the gods Vishnu or Shiva, as
the universe’s supreme deities.