Brahma is the Creator, the maker of the Universe, and he who all become one with in enlightened death. Vishnu is the sort of "chosen one" of the pantheon, who is the protector of Humankind and the creator of Karma. He is the light of the world. Shiva's the god of destruction, the entropic force of the universe that brings us to the end. Durga is the wife of Shiva, the Mother Goddess, and the creator of war, but also of protection, and represents many facets of life, her avatar Kali being the Goddess of War and Anger, and Shakti, the cosmic force of the universe itself.