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	'''Vaishnavism''' is one of the principal divisions of ]. Its adherents worship ] as the supreme ] or one of his ]s and are principally ] whilst also incorporating elements which could be described as ] in nature. ]s, or ]ers of Vishnu are called Vaishnavites, an English term that originated from ''Vaishnava'' in ], which is the ] form of ''Vishnu''). The ] movement is a modern example of a Vaishnavite organisation.

	==Schools of Vaishnavism==

	Major Vaishnava schools of thought include:

	*] ("qualified nondualism"), espoused by ]; i.e., ].

	*] ("dualism"), espoused by ]

	*], espoused by Sri ] adhered by ]. ] ("Hare Krishnas") is the most well known branch of this school.

	*], espoused by ]

	*], espoused by ]

	*], espoused by ]

	The ''achintya-bheda-abheda tattva'', as revealed by Sri ] Mahaprabhu, points out that Lord Vishnu is the Supreme Lord, the original Supreme Personality of Godhead. Vaishnavism is strikingly fundamentally monotheistic, more so than the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Islam, and Christianity.) This is due the fact that in Vaishnava theology, the worshipper (Vaishnava) is expected to surrender '''mind, body and words''' in the service of Lord Vishnu or Sri Krishna, at all times. The vaishnavas' theological tenet of ''achintya-bheda-abheda tattva'' reconciles the fact that Godhead is "one with and different from His creation". In this sense, vaishnava theology is defintely not pantheistic, since it never denies the separate existence of Lord Vishnu (Krishna) in His own personal form. Yet, at the same time, Creation (or what is termed in Vaishnava theology as the 'cosmic manifestation') is never separated from God. He always exercises supreme control over it. Sometimes directly, but most of the time indirectly through His different potencies or energies.

	==The major schools==
	] <small>''Artwork © courtesy of ''</small>]]

	Vaishnavas believe that Vishnu-Narayana is the one supreme God (Parabrahman) and all other living entities (including ]s such as ] and ]) are subservient to Him. ] is also viewed as subservient to lord Vishnu, although it is still understood that he is above the category of an ordinary ].

	While many schools like ] and Advaitism encourage people to interpret the Vedas philosophically and metaphorically and not too literally, Vaishnavism stresses the literal meaning (''mukhya v{{Unicode\|ṛ}}itti'') as primary and indirect meaning ({{Unicode\|gauṇa vṛitti}}) as secondary: ''{{Unicode\|sākṣhād upadesas tu shrutih}}'' - "The instructions of the shruti-sh{{Unicode\|ā}}stra should be accepted literally, without so-called ''fanciful or allegorical interpretations''." (Jiva Gosvami, ''{{Unicode\|Kṛiṣhna}} Sandarbha'' 29.26-27). Thus according to Vaishnava theology, ]n is not ]. Furthermore, Vaishnavites do not believe in the ] concept of ] which believe in "union with ]" but rather believe, that moksha is "eternal life in ], the abode of Vishnu."

	==The great Epics==
	The heroes of both the great ] ]s are believed to be incarnations of Lord Vishnu. These epics, the '']'' and the '']'', concern ] and ], respectively. Rama with His ] named ], brother ] and devotee ] are central characters of Ramayana. Rama and Lakshman are always shown to be ready for battle (with bow and arrow) as it is their ] '']'' to fight.

	==History of Vaishnavism==
	With the help of ], a set of twelve people who with their ]al ]s spread the sect to the common people, Vaishnavism flourished in ]. Some of the prominent ''azhvars'' are ''Poigaiyazhvar'', ''Peyazhvar'',
	''Periyazhvar'', ''Nammazhvar'' and ''Andal''. Vaishnavism grew in later years due to the influence of ]s like ],], ], ], ], etc.

	With the entry of other religions into the Indian subcontinent, Hindus became more united and the discriminations of Vaishnavism and ] turned more into intellectual arguments rather than mutually exclusive philosophies.

	==Vaishnava Upanishads==
	Of the 108 ]s of the ], 13 are considered Vaishnava Upanishads.
	They are listed with their associated Veda ({{Unicode\|], ], ], ]}}):
	<!-- needs reference, copied from ]-->

	#{{IAST\|Nṛsiṃhatāpanī}} (AV)
	#{{IAST\|Mahānārāyaṇa}} (AV)
	#{{IAST\|Rāmarahasya}} (AV)
	#{{IAST\|Rāmatāpaṇi}} (AV)
	#{{IAST\|Vāsudeva}} (SV)
	#{{IAST\|Avyakta}} (SV)
	#{{IAST\|Tārasāra}} (SYV)
	#{{IAST\|Gopālatāpani}} (AV)
	#{{IAST\|Kṛṣṇa}} (AV)
	#{{IAST\|Hayagrīva}} (AV)
	#{{IAST\|Dattātreya}} (AV)
	#{{IAST\|Gāruḍa}} (AV)
	#] ({{IAST\|Kali}}) (KYV)

	==See also==
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]

	== External links ==
	*
	*
	*
	* - A collaborated wiki web site covering all aspects of Hinduism.

	{{Hinduism}}

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Latest revision as of 10:14, 10 November 2006

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