Many Hindu deities/gods are shown with multiple arms. Why is this? Image worship over time became a significant contributor to Indian religion. Rituals for the individual deity were written in greater detail with some gods known for having several qualities. This resulted in a problem for artists attempting to create visually correct images.
The result? Show them with several arms. Each hand of an individual deity would hold the object or symbol that represented their various qualities. While some of the hands would be empty, the position of the fingers and palms would signify the character of that god. These signals, or mudras, symbolized an individual god’s powers offering easy distinction from other deities.
Fingers pointing downwards= god of charitable disposition
Fingers pointing upwards= blessing, protector god
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