Narayana

Vishnu as Narayana resting on Shesha on celestial waters, accompanied by his consort Lakshmi

Narayana (Sanskrit: नारायण, IAST: Nārāyaṇa) is one of the forms and epithets of Vishnu. In this form, the deity is depicted in yogic slumber under the celestial waters, symbolising the masculine principle and associated with his role of creation.[1][2] He is also known as Purushottama, and is considered the Supreme Being in Vaishnavism.[3][4][5][6]

  1. ^ Leeming, David (17 November 2005). Oxford Companion to World Mythology. Oxford University Press. p. 278. ISBN 978-0-19-028888-4.
  2. ^ "Invoking Auspiciousness [Chapter 1]". 14 August 2014.
  3. ^ John Clifford Holt (2008). The Buddhist Viṣṇu: Religious Transformation, Politics, and Culture. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. p. 268. ISBN 9788120832695.
  4. ^ Jon Paul Sydnor (29 March 2012). Ramanuja and Schleiermacher: Toward a Constructive Comparative Theology. ISD LLC. p. 110. ISBN 9780227900352.
  5. ^ C. Mackenzie Brown (29 August 1990). The Triumph of the Goddess: The Canonical Models and Theological Visions of the Devi-Bhagavata Purana. SUNY Press. p. 28. ISBN 9780791403648.
  6. ^ Peter Clarke; Friedhelm Hardy; Leslie Houlden; Stewart Sutherland (14 January 2004). The World's Religions. Routledge. p. 748. ISBN 9781136851858.