Editing Asura (section)

===Shiva Purana===
[[Alain Daniélou]] states that Asuras were initially good, virtuous and powerful in Indian mythology. However, their nature gradually changed and they came to represent evil, vice and abuse of power. In Shiva Purana, they evolved into anti-gods and had to be destroyed because they threatened the gods.<ref name="dalal"/><ref name="Alain">Alain Daniélou (1991). ''The Myths and Gods of India: The Classic Work on Hindu Polytheism from the Princeton Bollingen Series'', [https://archive.org/details/mythsgodsofindia00dani/page/141 pp. 141–142]. Inner Traditions / Bear & Co. {{ISBN|0-89281-354-7}}.</ref>

The asuras (anti-gods) were depicted to have become proud, vain, to have stopped performing sacrifices, to violate sacred laws, not visit holy places, not cleanse themselves from sin, to be envious of devas, torturous of living beings, creating confusion in everything and challenging the devas.<ref name="dalal"/><ref name="Alain"/>

Alain Daniélou states that the concept of ''asuras'' evolved with changing socio-political dynamics in ancient India. Asuras gradually assimilated the demons, spirits, and ghosts worshipped by the enemies of Vedic people, and this created the myths of the malevolent ''asuras'' and the ''[[rakshasa]]''. The allusions to the disastrous wars between the ''asuras'' and the ''suras'', found in the Puranas and the epics, may be the conflict faced by people and migrants into ancient India.<ref name="Alain"/>