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Indra The gods once went to meet Vishnu.
“We have no one who can rule us,” they told Vishnu. “We need a king. Please do something so that we can have a ruler.”
“A ruler named Indra will be born to your mother, Aditi,” replied Vishnu.
(Aditi was married to the sage Kashyapa. She was the mother of all the gods and they were, therefore, also known as the adityas.)
Aditi performed tapasya for a hundred years of the gods. (The years of the gods are much longer than human years.) After the period of meditation was over, a son was born to her. The son had four arms and shone with the radiance of a million suns. This son had several names. Amongst them were Vasudatta, Vasuda, Akhandala, Marutvana, Maghava, Vidouja, Pakashasana, Shakra and Indra.
He became the ruler of the gods.
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