The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (633 page)

Deuteronomy
.

The fifth book of the
Pentateuch
in the Hebrew Bible and Christian Old Testament. The English title (‘second law’) derives from the Septuagint Gk. version of 17. 18. The usual Hebrew title
Devarim
(‘words’) is the second word of the text.

 
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(Skt., perhaps connected with
dyaus
, ‘bright sky’). ‘Shining One’. In Hinduism, a deva is a celestial power (
cf.
Chandogya Upani
ad
6.3), and particularly a manifestation (
not
a personification) of a natural power, generally beneficent, especially if propitiated through offerings (see
SACRIFICE
,
HINDU
). In that way, it became a term for all the Vedic gods, generally reckoned as thirty-three (
g Veda
1. 139. 11, 1. 45. 2). The introduction of goddesses,
dev
s
, appears to have been secondary.
In Buddhism, devas are manifest forms of reappearance (
punabbh
va
) in ‘heaven’, i.e. in one of the good domains of manifestation (
gati
).

 
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Deva
(Buddhist Madhy
maka philosopher)
:

see
RYADEVA
.

 
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Deva-d
s
.