Post by bluefedish on Jan 29, 2008 16:06:21 GMT -5
Also known as Narayana, is the Supreme Being (i.e. God) or Ultimate Reality for Vaishnavas and a manifestation of Brahman in the Advaita or Smarta traditions of Hinduism.
The Vishnu Sahasranama describes Vishnu as the All-Pervading essence of all beings, the master of and beyond the past, present and future, the creator and destroyer of all existences, one who supports, sustains and governs the Universe and originates and develops all elements within.
In the Puranas, Vishnu is described as being the colour of clouds (dark-blue), 4-armed, holding a lotus, mace, conch and chakra (wheel). Vishnu is also described in the Bhagavad Gita as having a 'Universal Form' (Vishvarupa) which is beyond the ordinary limits of human sense perception.
It's also within the Puranas that the information regarding Vishnu's avatars is given. 9 of these avatars, or 'incarnations' are described as having occurred in the past, with one still to happen at the end of Kali Yuga. The Bhagavad Gita mentions their purpose as being to rejuvenate Dharma and vanquish negative forces. In virtually all the Sanatana Dharma traditions, Vishnu is worshiped, either directly or through avatars such as Rama, Krishna, Varaha and Narasimha.
In the Trimurti, Vishnu is responsible for the maintenace or 'preservation' of the Universe, with the other roles of creation and destruction being under the care of Brahma and Shiva, respectively.
Etymology
The traditional Sanskrit explanation of the name Visnu involves the root vis, meaning "to settle, to enter", or also (in the Rigveda) "to pervade", and a suffix nu, translating to approximately "the All-Pervading One". An early commentator on the Vedas, Yasks, in his Nirukta, defines Vishnu as 'vishnu vishateh; one who enters everywhere', and 'yad vinutso bhavati tad vishnurbhavati; that which is free from fetters and bondages is Vishnu'.
Adi Sankara in his commentary on Vishnu Sahasranama states derivation from this root, with a meaning "presence everywhere'. Adi Sankara states (regarding Vishnu Purana, 3.1.45): "The Power of the Supreme Being has entered within the universe. The root Viś means 'enter into.'"
Regarding the suffix, Manfred Mayrhofer proposes that the nasal is analogous to jisnu "victorious". Mayrhofer further suggests that the name goes back to an already Indo-Iranian *visnu, and was replaced by rasnu in Zoroastrian Iran.
The root Viś is also associated with visva "all".
Suggestions involving other roots include vi-snu "crossing the back", vi-s-nu "facing towards all sides" and vis-nu "active", as well as attempts to explain Vishnu as a combination of 2 unrelated words, or as being derived from a non-Aryan root. The name is continued in Prakrit venhu, vinhu.
Theological Attributes
Vishnu takes form as an all-inclusive deity, known as Purusha or Mahapurusha, Paramatma (Supreme Soul), Antaryami (In-dweller), and he is the Sheshin (Totality) in whom all souls are contained. He is Bhagavat or Bhagavan, which in Sanskrit means "possessing bhaga (Divine Glory)".
Vishnu possesses 6 such divine glories, namely:
* Jñāna Omniscient; defined as the power to know about all beings simultaneously
* Aishvarya Sovereignty, which persist in unchallenged rule over all
* Shakti Energy, or power, which is the capacity to make the impossible possible
* Bala Strength, which is the capacity to support everything by his will and without any fatigue
* Virya Vigour, or valour which indicates the power to retain immateriality as the Supreme Spirit or Being in spite of being the material cause of mutable creations
* Tèjas Resplendent, or Splendour, which expresses his self-sufficiency and the capacity to overpower everything by his spiritual effulgence; cited from Bhakti Schools of Vedanta, by Swami Tapasyananda
However, the actual number of auspicious qualities of Vishnu is countless, with thte above-mentioned 6 qualities being the most important. Other important qualities attributed to Vishnu are Gambhirya (inestimatable grandeur), Audarya (generosity), and Karunya (compassion).
The Rigveda says: Vishnu can travel in three strides. The first stride is the Earth. The second stride is the visible sky. The third stride cannot be seen by men and is the heaven where the gods and the righteous dead live. The Sanskrit for "to stride" is the root kram; its reduplicated perfect tense is chakram (guņa grade) or chakra (zero-grade), and in the Rigveda he is called by epithets such as vi-chakra-māņas = "he who has made 3 strides". The Sanskrit word chakra also means "wheel". That may have suggested the idea of Vishnu carrying a chakra.
Relations with other Deities
Vishnu's consort is Lakshmi, the Goddess of wealth. Maya is the samvit (the primary intelligence) of Vishnu, while the other five attributes emerge from this samvit and hence Maya is his ahamata, activity, or Vishnu's Power. This power of God, Maya, is personified and is called Maya, Vishnumaya, or Mahamaya, and She is said to manifest Herself in, 1) kriyāshakti, (Creative Activity) and 2) bhütishakti (Creation) of Universe. Hence this world cannot part with his creativity i.e., ahamta, which is a feminine form and is called Maya.
Vishnu is also associated with Bhudevi or Prithvi, the earth goddess; Tulsi ; Ganga, goddess of river Ganges and Saraswati. According to Brahma Vaivarta Purana 2.6.13-95 Vishnu has three wives, who constantly quarrel with each other, so that eventually, he keeps only Lakshmi, giving Ganga to Shiva and Saraswati to Brahma.
Vishnu's vehicle is Garuda, the eagle, and he is commonly depicted as riding on his shoulders. Some traditions also believe Vishnu to be the brother of Parvati, the consort of Shiva.
Iconography
According to various Purana, Vishnu is the ultimate omnipresent reality, is shapeless and omnipresent. However, a strict iconography governs his representation, whether in pictures, icons, or idols:
* He is to be depicted as a 4-armed male-form: The 4 arms indicated his all-powerful and all-pervasive nature. The physical existence of Vishnu is represented by the 2 arms in the front while the 2 arms at the back represent his presence in the spiritual world. The Upanishad titled Gopal Uttartapani describes the 4 arms of Vishnu.
* The color of his skin has to be new-cloud-like-blue: The blue color indicates his all-pervasive nature, blue being the color of the infinite sky as well as the infinite ocean on which he resides.
* He has the mark of sage Bhrigu's feet on his chest.
* Also on his chest is the srivatsa mark, symbolising his consort Lakshmi.
* Around his neck, he wears the auspicious "Kaustubha" jewel, and a garland of flowers (vanamaalaa).
* A crown should adorn his head: The crown symbolizes his supreme authority.
* He wears 2 earrings: The earrings represent inherent opposites in creation - knowledge and ignorance; happiness and unhappiness; pleasure and pain.
* He rests on Ananta: the immortal and infinite snake.
Vishnu is always to be depicted holding the four attributes associated with him, being:
* A conch shell or Shankhya, named "Panchajanya", held by the upper left hand, which represents creativity. The Panchajanya is the originator of the five elements or Panchabhoota - water, fire, air, earth and sky or space. The sound that evolves from blowing this conch is the primeval sound of creation.
* The chakra, a sharp-spinning discus-like weapon, named "Sudarshana", held by the upper right hand, which symbolizes the mind. The name Sudarshana is derived from two words - Su, which means good, and Darshan, which means vision. The chakra as a weapon thus indicates the necessity of destroying one's ego and illusory self-existence and developing the vision to identify the eternal truth. The discus has six spokes and symbolizes a lotus with six petals, thus representing the power that controls all six seasons.
* A mace or Gada, named "Kaumodaki", held by the lower left hand, which represents individual existence. The mace symbolizes the primeval force from which all mental and physical strength is derived.
* A lotus flower or Padma, held by the lower right hand, which represents liberation or dispersion. The lotus symbolizes the power from which the universe emerges. It represents the concentration of truth or Satya, the originator of the rules of conduct or Dharma, and knowledge or Gyana in a single symbol.
In general, Vishnu is depicted in one of the following three ways:
* Standing upright on a lotus flower, often with Lakshmi, his consort, beside him on a similar pedestal.
* Reclining on the coiled-up thousand-hooded Shesha Naga, with his consort Lakshmi, seated at his feet; the assemblage rests on the "Kshira Sagar" (ocean of Milk). In this representation, Brahma is depicted as sitting on a lotus that grows out of Vishnu's navel.
* Riding on the back of his eagle mount, known as Garuda.
Avatars
There are ten avatars of Vishnu (dashavatara) commonly considered as the most prominent:
* Matsya - fish
* Kurma - turtle
* Varaha - boar
* Narasimha - Man-lion (Nara = man, simha = lion)
* Vamana - Dwarf Brahmin (priest)
* Parashurama - Rama with the axe, who appeared in the Treta Yuga
* Rama - Sri Ramachandra, the prince and king of Ayodhya
* Krishna (meaning 'dark colored' or 'all attractive') - appeared in the Dwapara Yuga along with his brother Balarama. Balarama is included as the eighth or ninth Dasavatara in some versions of the list which either contain no reference to Buddha, or list Krishna as the source of all avatars.
* Buddha (meaning 'the enlightened one') - appeared in the Kali Yuga (specifically as Siddhartha Gautama).
* Kalki ("Eternity", or "time", or 'The Destroyer of foulness") - who is expected to appear at the end of Kali Yuga, the time period in which we currently exist.
Some versions of the above list include Hayagriva amongst the Dasavataras.
Apart from the above mentioned ten principal avatars, another 22 avatars are given in Chapter 3, Canto 1 of the Srimad Bhagavatam. Following this list the Bhagavatam states that as well as these avatars "the incarnations of the Lord are innumerable, like rivulets flowing from inexhaustible sources of water".
There has also been some comparison between the avatars of Vishnu and Darwin's Theory of Evolution, as the incarnations generally mirror increasing phylogenetic sophistication in keeping with the theory's proposal of terrestrial reptiles and mammals evolving from aquatic and amphibian life.
Seleceted Source:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vishnu
The Vishnu Sahasranama describes Vishnu as the All-Pervading essence of all beings, the master of and beyond the past, present and future, the creator and destroyer of all existences, one who supports, sustains and governs the Universe and originates and develops all elements within.
In the Puranas, Vishnu is described as being the colour of clouds (dark-blue), 4-armed, holding a lotus, mace, conch and chakra (wheel). Vishnu is also described in the Bhagavad Gita as having a 'Universal Form' (Vishvarupa) which is beyond the ordinary limits of human sense perception.
It's also within the Puranas that the information regarding Vishnu's avatars is given. 9 of these avatars, or 'incarnations' are described as having occurred in the past, with one still to happen at the end of Kali Yuga. The Bhagavad Gita mentions their purpose as being to rejuvenate Dharma and vanquish negative forces. In virtually all the Sanatana Dharma traditions, Vishnu is worshiped, either directly or through avatars such as Rama, Krishna, Varaha and Narasimha.
In the Trimurti, Vishnu is responsible for the maintenace or 'preservation' of the Universe, with the other roles of creation and destruction being under the care of Brahma and Shiva, respectively.
Etymology
The traditional Sanskrit explanation of the name Visnu involves the root vis, meaning "to settle, to enter", or also (in the Rigveda) "to pervade", and a suffix nu, translating to approximately "the All-Pervading One". An early commentator on the Vedas, Yasks, in his Nirukta, defines Vishnu as 'vishnu vishateh; one who enters everywhere', and 'yad vinutso bhavati tad vishnurbhavati; that which is free from fetters and bondages is Vishnu'.
Adi Sankara in his commentary on Vishnu Sahasranama states derivation from this root, with a meaning "presence everywhere'. Adi Sankara states (regarding Vishnu Purana, 3.1.45): "The Power of the Supreme Being has entered within the universe. The root Viś means 'enter into.'"
Regarding the suffix, Manfred Mayrhofer proposes that the nasal is analogous to jisnu "victorious". Mayrhofer further suggests that the name goes back to an already Indo-Iranian *visnu, and was replaced by rasnu in Zoroastrian Iran.
The root Viś is also associated with visva "all".
Suggestions involving other roots include vi-snu "crossing the back", vi-s-nu "facing towards all sides" and vis-nu "active", as well as attempts to explain Vishnu as a combination of 2 unrelated words, or as being derived from a non-Aryan root. The name is continued in Prakrit venhu, vinhu.
Theological Attributes
Vishnu takes form as an all-inclusive deity, known as Purusha or Mahapurusha, Paramatma (Supreme Soul), Antaryami (In-dweller), and he is the Sheshin (Totality) in whom all souls are contained. He is Bhagavat or Bhagavan, which in Sanskrit means "possessing bhaga (Divine Glory)".
Vishnu possesses 6 such divine glories, namely:
* Jñāna Omniscient; defined as the power to know about all beings simultaneously
* Aishvarya Sovereignty, which persist in unchallenged rule over all
* Shakti Energy, or power, which is the capacity to make the impossible possible
* Bala Strength, which is the capacity to support everything by his will and without any fatigue
* Virya Vigour, or valour which indicates the power to retain immateriality as the Supreme Spirit or Being in spite of being the material cause of mutable creations
* Tèjas Resplendent, or Splendour, which expresses his self-sufficiency and the capacity to overpower everything by his spiritual effulgence; cited from Bhakti Schools of Vedanta, by Swami Tapasyananda
However, the actual number of auspicious qualities of Vishnu is countless, with thte above-mentioned 6 qualities being the most important. Other important qualities attributed to Vishnu are Gambhirya (inestimatable grandeur), Audarya (generosity), and Karunya (compassion).
The Rigveda says: Vishnu can travel in three strides. The first stride is the Earth. The second stride is the visible sky. The third stride cannot be seen by men and is the heaven where the gods and the righteous dead live. The Sanskrit for "to stride" is the root kram; its reduplicated perfect tense is chakram (guņa grade) or chakra (zero-grade), and in the Rigveda he is called by epithets such as vi-chakra-māņas = "he who has made 3 strides". The Sanskrit word chakra also means "wheel". That may have suggested the idea of Vishnu carrying a chakra.
Relations with other Deities
Vishnu's consort is Lakshmi, the Goddess of wealth. Maya is the samvit (the primary intelligence) of Vishnu, while the other five attributes emerge from this samvit and hence Maya is his ahamata, activity, or Vishnu's Power. This power of God, Maya, is personified and is called Maya, Vishnumaya, or Mahamaya, and She is said to manifest Herself in, 1) kriyāshakti, (Creative Activity) and 2) bhütishakti (Creation) of Universe. Hence this world cannot part with his creativity i.e., ahamta, which is a feminine form and is called Maya.
Vishnu is also associated with Bhudevi or Prithvi, the earth goddess; Tulsi ; Ganga, goddess of river Ganges and Saraswati. According to Brahma Vaivarta Purana 2.6.13-95 Vishnu has three wives, who constantly quarrel with each other, so that eventually, he keeps only Lakshmi, giving Ganga to Shiva and Saraswati to Brahma.
Vishnu's vehicle is Garuda, the eagle, and he is commonly depicted as riding on his shoulders. Some traditions also believe Vishnu to be the brother of Parvati, the consort of Shiva.
Iconography
According to various Purana, Vishnu is the ultimate omnipresent reality, is shapeless and omnipresent. However, a strict iconography governs his representation, whether in pictures, icons, or idols:
* He is to be depicted as a 4-armed male-form: The 4 arms indicated his all-powerful and all-pervasive nature. The physical existence of Vishnu is represented by the 2 arms in the front while the 2 arms at the back represent his presence in the spiritual world. The Upanishad titled Gopal Uttartapani describes the 4 arms of Vishnu.
* The color of his skin has to be new-cloud-like-blue: The blue color indicates his all-pervasive nature, blue being the color of the infinite sky as well as the infinite ocean on which he resides.
* He has the mark of sage Bhrigu's feet on his chest.
* Also on his chest is the srivatsa mark, symbolising his consort Lakshmi.
* Around his neck, he wears the auspicious "Kaustubha" jewel, and a garland of flowers (vanamaalaa).
* A crown should adorn his head: The crown symbolizes his supreme authority.
* He wears 2 earrings: The earrings represent inherent opposites in creation - knowledge and ignorance; happiness and unhappiness; pleasure and pain.
* He rests on Ananta: the immortal and infinite snake.
Vishnu is always to be depicted holding the four attributes associated with him, being:
* A conch shell or Shankhya, named "Panchajanya", held by the upper left hand, which represents creativity. The Panchajanya is the originator of the five elements or Panchabhoota - water, fire, air, earth and sky or space. The sound that evolves from blowing this conch is the primeval sound of creation.
* The chakra, a sharp-spinning discus-like weapon, named "Sudarshana", held by the upper right hand, which symbolizes the mind. The name Sudarshana is derived from two words - Su, which means good, and Darshan, which means vision. The chakra as a weapon thus indicates the necessity of destroying one's ego and illusory self-existence and developing the vision to identify the eternal truth. The discus has six spokes and symbolizes a lotus with six petals, thus representing the power that controls all six seasons.
* A mace or Gada, named "Kaumodaki", held by the lower left hand, which represents individual existence. The mace symbolizes the primeval force from which all mental and physical strength is derived.
* A lotus flower or Padma, held by the lower right hand, which represents liberation or dispersion. The lotus symbolizes the power from which the universe emerges. It represents the concentration of truth or Satya, the originator of the rules of conduct or Dharma, and knowledge or Gyana in a single symbol.
In general, Vishnu is depicted in one of the following three ways:
* Standing upright on a lotus flower, often with Lakshmi, his consort, beside him on a similar pedestal.
* Reclining on the coiled-up thousand-hooded Shesha Naga, with his consort Lakshmi, seated at his feet; the assemblage rests on the "Kshira Sagar" (ocean of Milk). In this representation, Brahma is depicted as sitting on a lotus that grows out of Vishnu's navel.
* Riding on the back of his eagle mount, known as Garuda.
Avatars
There are ten avatars of Vishnu (dashavatara) commonly considered as the most prominent:
* Matsya - fish
* Kurma - turtle
* Varaha - boar
* Narasimha - Man-lion (Nara = man, simha = lion)
* Vamana - Dwarf Brahmin (priest)
* Parashurama - Rama with the axe, who appeared in the Treta Yuga
* Rama - Sri Ramachandra, the prince and king of Ayodhya
* Krishna (meaning 'dark colored' or 'all attractive') - appeared in the Dwapara Yuga along with his brother Balarama. Balarama is included as the eighth or ninth Dasavatara in some versions of the list which either contain no reference to Buddha, or list Krishna as the source of all avatars.
* Buddha (meaning 'the enlightened one') - appeared in the Kali Yuga (specifically as Siddhartha Gautama).
* Kalki ("Eternity", or "time", or 'The Destroyer of foulness") - who is expected to appear at the end of Kali Yuga, the time period in which we currently exist.
Some versions of the above list include Hayagriva amongst the Dasavataras.
Apart from the above mentioned ten principal avatars, another 22 avatars are given in Chapter 3, Canto 1 of the Srimad Bhagavatam. Following this list the Bhagavatam states that as well as these avatars "the incarnations of the Lord are innumerable, like rivulets flowing from inexhaustible sources of water".
There has also been some comparison between the avatars of Vishnu and Darwin's Theory of Evolution, as the incarnations generally mirror increasing phylogenetic sophistication in keeping with the theory's proposal of terrestrial reptiles and mammals evolving from aquatic and amphibian life.
Seleceted Source:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vishnu
