Tvashtr

(“maker of carriages”) In the Vedas, the
oldest and most authoritative Hindu
religious texts, Tvashtr is a minor deity
known as the workman of the Vedic
gods. The Vedic hymns frequently mention wheeled chariots as military
devices, and his name’s literal meaning
shows the esteem in which this craft was
held, as the apex of creative work. In the
Vedas, Tvashtr is famous for crafting the
weapons of the gods, especially the
mace with which the storm-god Indra
slays the serpent Vrtra (Rg Veda 1.32). In
later times Tvashtr is identified with
the minor deity Vishvakarma, who in
later Hindu life becomes the architect
and craftsman of the gods. Since Tvashtr
has a much older textual presence
than Vishvakarma, this seems to be
an attempt to identify one divine
workman as another, based on their
similar functions.