The Prominence of Vishnu and His Avatars
The Prominence of Vishnu and his Avatars
Between the Vedic and Epic periods, the divinity known as Vishnu underwent a cosmic change. In the Vedas, Vishnu was a minor solar god who was closely associated with Indra, in which he was rarely mentioned and was submissive to the king of the gods. By the time of the epics of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, Vishnu had greatly risen in importance and power in the world of the gods.
Vishnu is now known as "The Preserver" among the three books of the Hindu religion. Vaishnavas, worshippers of Vishnu, made up 70% of Hindus in 1997. (Dom, Chapter 2) Based off Vishnu Purana and the Vaishnavas, Vishnu plays the role of Brahma and Shiva as well in which he creates himself, preserves himself, and then at the end of each cosmic cycle, destroys himself. As Brahma sits in Vishnu 's navel and Shiva is a recluse in the mountains, associated with death and destruction, Vishnu is given the importance of an omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient, supreme divinity.
There are several different theories on what lead to this revolution of power among the Gods. Some scholars believe that Vishnu 's rise was inevitable because of his close association with the concept of Vaikuntha (heaven). (Gonda, p.2) He dwelled in the realm in which many sought to reach by showing their devotion. Another theory is that in the Vedas, Vishnu was personified as sacrifice, and therefore was the first one to comprehend its true significance. According to a particular myth, many gods were jealous of Vishnu 's rising power and had him decapitated. His sacrificed head then became the sun. Finally, there is speculation that Vishnu is an incorporation of three important Vedic gods. He was a fusion of his original being Vishnu: the Vedic sun god, Narayana: the cosmic deity, and the man-god Vasudeva-Krishna. (Gupta pp. 1-3)
Vishnu had tremendous popularity which was because of his connection with the people. Vishnu came to earth in human or animal form
Between the Vedic and Epic periods, the divinity known as Vishnu underwent a cosmic change. In the Vedas, Vishnu was a minor solar god who was closely associated with Indra, in which he was rarely mentioned and was submissive to the king of the gods. By the time of the epics of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, Vishnu had greatly risen in importance and power in the world of the gods.
Vishnu is now known as "The Preserver" among the three books of the Hindu religion. Vaishnavas, worshippers of Vishnu, made up 70% of Hindus in 1997. (Dom, Chapter 2) Based off Vishnu Purana and the Vaishnavas, Vishnu plays the role of Brahma and Shiva as well in which he creates himself, preserves himself, and then at the end of each cosmic cycle, destroys himself. As Brahma sits in Vishnu 's navel and Shiva is a recluse in the mountains, associated with death and destruction, Vishnu is given the importance of an omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient, supreme divinity.
There are several different theories on what lead to this revolution of power among the Gods. Some scholars believe that Vishnu 's rise was inevitable because of his close association with the concept of Vaikuntha (heaven). (Gonda, p.2) He dwelled in the realm in which many sought to reach by showing their devotion. Another theory is that in the Vedas, Vishnu was personified as sacrifice, and therefore was the first one to comprehend its true significance. According to a particular myth, many gods were jealous of Vishnu 's rising power and had him decapitated. His sacrificed head then became the sun. Finally, there is speculation that Vishnu is an incorporation of three important Vedic gods. He was a fusion of his original being Vishnu: the Vedic sun god, Narayana: the cosmic deity, and the man-god Vasudeva-Krishna. (Gupta pp. 1-3)
Vishnu had tremendous popularity which was because of his connection with the people. Vishnu came to earth in human or animal form
Bibliography: 1. Gonda, Jan. Aspects of Early Visnuism. Delhi, India: Motilal Banarsidass, 1954. 2. Gupta, Shakti M. Vishnu and His Incarnations. Bombay, India: Somaiya Publications, 1974. 3. Krishna, Nanditha. The Book of Vishnu. New Delhi, India: Penguin Books India, 2001. 4. Danielou, Alain. The Myths and Gods of India. Rochester, Vermont: Inner Traditions International, 1985, pp. 149-181. 5. Kanitkar, V.P. & Cole, W. Owen. Teach Yourself Hinduism. London, England: Hodder Headline, 1995, pp. 24-26. 6. [Online] http://mailerindia.com/god/hindu/index.php?vish1 7. Dom, Hadwa. "The Different Hindu Religions: Chapter 2" [Online] Available http://www.dalitstan.org/books/mohr/mohr2.html.