Vishnu

For other uses, see Vishnu (disambiguation).

Vishnu
God of Preservation[1]
Member of Trimurti[6]
Painting depicting Vishnu, c. 1730
Other names
Affiliation
Abode
Mantra
Weapon
Symbols
DayThursday
Mount
Festivals
Genealogy
SiblingsDurga as Yogamaya (ceremonial sister)[11][12]
ConsortLakshmi and her forms
Children

Vishnu (/ˈvɪʃnuː/; Sanskrit: विष्णु, lit. 'All Pervasive', IAST: Viṣṇu, pronounced [ʋɪʂɳʊ]), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism.[13][14]

Vishnu is known as The Preserver within the Trimurti, the triple deity of supreme divinity that includes Brahma and Shiva.[15][16] In Vaishnavism, Vishnu is the supreme Lord who creates, protects, and transforms the universe. Tridevi is stated to be the energy and creative power (Shakti) of each, with Lakshmi being the equal complementary partner of Vishnu.[17] He is one of the five equivalent deities in Panchayatana puja of the Smarta tradition of Hinduism.[16]

According to Vaishnavism, the supreme being is with qualities (Saguna), and has definite form, but is limitless, transcendent and unchanging absolute Brahman, and the primal Atman (Self) of the universe.[18] There are many both benevolent and fearsome depictions of Vishnu. In benevolent aspects, he is depicted as an omniscient being sleeping on the coils of the serpent Shesha (who represents time) floating in the primeval ocean of milk called Kshira Sagara with his consort, Lakshmi.[19]

Whenever the world is threatened with evil, chaos, and destructive forces, Vishnu descends in the form of an Avatar (incarnation) to restore the cosmic order and protect dharma. The Dashavatara are the ten primary avatars of Vishnu. Out of these ten, Rama and Krishna are the most important.[20]

  1. ^ Encyclopedia of World Religions. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. 2008. pp. 445–448. ISBN 978-1-59339-491-2.
  2. ^ Wendy Doniger (1999). Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions. Merriam-Webster. p. 1134. ISBN 978-0-87779-044-0.
  3. ^ Soifer 1991, p. 85.
  4. ^ Doniger, Wendy; O'Flaherty, Wendy Doniger (1 January 1980). Karma and Rebirth in Classical Indian Traditions. University of California Press. Retrieved 26 January 2019 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ Indian Civilization and Culture. M.D. Publications Pvt. 1998. ISBN 9788175330832. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  6. ^ For the Trimurti system having Brahma as the creator, Vishnu as the maintainer or preserver, and Shiva as the destroyer. see Zimmer (1972) p. 124.
  7. ^ a b Constance Jones; James D. Ryan (2006). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Infobase Publishing. pp. 491–492. ISBN 978-0-8160-7564-5. Archived from the original on 20 October 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  8. ^ "Shesha, Sesa, Śeṣa, Śeṣā: 34 definitions". 23 August 2009. Archived from the original on 3 August 2022. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  9. ^ Muriel Marion Underhill (1991). The Hindu Religious Year. Asian Educational Services. pp. 75–91. ISBN 978-81-206-0523-7.
  10. ^ Debroy, Bibek (2005). The History of Puranas. Bharatiya Kala Prakashan. ISBN 978-81-8090-062-4.
  11. ^ Williams, George M. (27 March 2008). Handbook of Hindu Mythology. OUP USA. ISBN 978-0-19-533261-2.
  12. ^ "Śb 10.4.12". vedabase.io/en/. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  13. ^ Kedar Nath Tiwari (1987). Comparative Religion. Motilal Banarsidass Publications. p. 38. ISBN 9788120802933.
  14. ^ Pratapaditya Pal (1986). Indian Sculpture: Circa 500 BCE- 700 CE. University of California Press. pp. 24–25. ISBN 978-0-520-05991-7.
  15. ^ Orlando O. Espín; James B. Nickoloff (2007). An Introductory Dictionary of Theology and Religious Studies. Liturgical Press. p. 539. ISBN 978-0-8146-5856-7.
  16. ^ a b Gavin Flood, An Introduction to Hinduism Archived 23 December 2023 at the Wayback Machine (1996), p. 17.
  17. ^ David Leeming (17 November 2005). The Oxford Companion to World Mythology. Oxford University Press. p. 236. ISBN 978-0190288884.
  18. ^ Edwin Bryant; Maria Ekstrand (23 June 2004). The Hare Krishna Movement: The Postcharismatic Fate of a Religious Transplant. Columbia University Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-0231508438. Archived from the original on 22 April 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
  19. ^ Vanamali (20 March 2018). In the Lost City of Sri Krishna: The Story of Ancient Dwaraka. Simon and Schuster. p. 737. ISBN 978-1620556825.
  20. ^ Zimmer, Heinrich Robert (1972). Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization. Princeton University Press. p. 124. ISBN 978-0-691-01778-5.