Questions tagged [vaishnavism]
Vaishnavism is one of the branches of Hinduism with followers worshiping lord Vishnu as the greatest or supreme god
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What is the difference between Thenkalai and Vadakalai sects of Sri Vaishnavism?
For those who do not know, there are two main sects of Sri Vaishnavism: Thenkalai and Vadakalai.
The Vadakalai sect wear their namam, or thiruman, in a "U" shaped pattern with manjal or yellow like ...
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Is there any scripture that tells story about Lord Vishnu and MahaVishnu?
As per the Shiva Purana, there is a main God Shiva who is Nirakara and thereafter his physical manifestation who is known as Shankara. I know that different Hindu texts about different Gods treat ...
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How has Lord Vishnu's understanding developed and what was his role initially?
I've recently come by an excellent research on how the understanding of Shiva has been evolving through the ages and I wonder whether such a research has been made with respect to Vishnu. The book I ...
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Do any commentators of Brahmasūtras other than Ādi Śaṅkarācārya disagree with both Pañcarātra and Śaiva Āgamas?
As I discuss in this question, by far the most popular school of Hindu philosophy is the Vedānta school, which bases its tenets on the doctrines laid out in the Brahma Sūtras, a work by the sage Vyāsa ...
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Which scriptures state Vishnu teaching principles of Vaishnavism to his four disciples?
In many questions asked on this site, I frequently see a line about Vishnu teaching principles of Vaishnavism to his four disciples:
Vishnu is said to have taught the principles of Vaishnavism to ...
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Was Rama a god?
Rama was born as the eldest son of Kausalya and Dasharatha and become the ruler of Ayodhya Kingdom. Can Rama be considered as Lord.
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Why did Sri Ramanuja refuse to hail Shiva? What was the need to prove that Vishnu is the one true God?
I was reading the history of Sri Ramanuja, the Vaishnava saint. Apparently, he was in hiding in fear of a Chola King. The Chola king was a worshiper of Shiva as opposed to Ramanuja who is a Vishnu ...
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What are the Kashmir Agamas defended in Yamunacharya's lost work?
As I discuss in this answer, one of the early movements that was important to the development of Vaishnavism was the ancient Pancharatra movement, whose sacred texts or Agamas consisted of detailed ...
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What are the different Vaishnava interpretations on the nature of Lord Vishnu's physical form?
I understand that Lord Vishnu's body is aprakrita, composed of sat-chit-ananda, but is it understood to have a physical reality? i.e. four arms, two legs, one head, two eyes, five fingered hands, ie, ...
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Where does the Linga Purana declare Vishnu to be the supreme soul?
As I discuss in this answer, one of the early movements that was important to the development of Vaishnavism was the ancient Pancharatra movement, whose sacred texts consisted of detailed procedures ...
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Did Tamil Vaishnavites (Iyengars) descend from Shaivites (Iyers)?
Wikipedia article on Iyer has a passage without citations which says:
The title 'Iyer' was used as a designation for all Tamil Smartha
Brahmins during the medieval period, during which they were ...
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How many of the Divya Desams are the sites of Sri Vaishnava Temples?
The Alwars (also spelled Azhwars) are a group of 12 ancient Vaishnava saints who lived in Tamil Nadu and are famous for their poetry in praise of Vishnu. The Alwars are crucially important figures in ...
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Where is this Srimad Bhagavatam verse about the different forms of Moksha?
According to Vaishnavism, there are six kinds of liberation from Samsara (the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth). They're each defined in relation to Vishnu, since Vaishnavas consider Vishnu to be ...
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What is the significance of Satagopuram?
Why is it placed on our head after Darsan?
If I am correct, the Satagopuram is not offered in Shakthi temples. What is the reason behind this? (In which kind of temples can this be seen?)
Do we ...
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If Radha and Krishna aren't married, why do we worship Them together, like Sita-Rama?
We all know that Lord Krishna didn't marry his lover Radha, but we still consider her as the consort of Lord Krishna. My question is why do we worship them together?
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What is the secular account of the compilation of the Alwars' poems?
The Alwars (also spelled Azhwars) are a group of 12 ancient Vaishnava saints who lived in Tamil Nadu and are famous for their poetry in praise of Vishnu. The 4000 verses of the Alwars were compiled by ...
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How do the stories of Prahlada and Hanuman show invisible effects of visible causes?
The Paramathabhanga is a work by the Sri Vaishnava Acharya Vedanta Desikan which refutes rival schools of Indian philosophy, both inside and outside of Hinduism. In this chapter of the Paramatha ...
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Why do Gaudiya Vaishnavas think the order of the Yugas is Satya, Dwapara, Treta, Kali?
Throughout Hindu scripture, the order of the Yugas is given as Satya, Treta, Dwapara, Kali. (See my answer here for more information on Hindu timescales.). Yet in his ISKCON commentary on the Srimad ...
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Were cows sacrificed in Gomedha Yagnas brought back to life as Chaitanya Mahaprabhu says?
In the Chaitanya Charitamrita, the traditional biography of Gaudiya Vaishnava founder Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, a Muslim Kazi asks Chaianya Mahaprabhu about the Gomedha Yagna, a Vedic fire-ritual where ...
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Do any non-Vaishnava Agamas trace their origins to a Vedic Shakha?
As I discuss in this answer, Hindu scripture is made up of two categories, Shruti or that which is heard from the gods, and Smriti or that which is composed by humans authors and passed down from ...
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Have any Swaminarayan commentaries on the Brahma Sutras been translated into English?
Vishnu is said to have taught the principles of Vaishnavism to four disciples: Lakshmi, Brahma, Shiva and Sanatkumara. And in turn they started the four main Sampradayas or traditions of Vaishnavism: ...
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Why God Imprisoned us here?
I understand from vedic scriptures that God created the souls and gave free will in the spiritual world, but the souls denied God's love and become materialistic. So Inorder to teach the souls a ...
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Who is the Bhashyakara who pretended to criticize Pancharatra?
As I discuss in this answer, one of the early movements that was important to the development of Vaishnavism was the ancient Pancharatra movement, whose sacred texts consisted of detailed procedures ...
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What surviving works of the Rudra Sampradayam are there before Vallabhacharya?
As I discuss in my question here, Vishnu is said to have taught the principles of Vaishnavism to four disciples: Lakshmi, Brahma, Shiva and Sanatkumara. And in turn they started the four main ...
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What happened to Vishnu's incarnation Narayana after his Pancharatra Yagna?
As I discuss in this answer, one of the most prominent incarnations of Vishnu in ancient times was the sage Narayana, twin brother of the sage Nara and son of Yama god of death. Nara and Narayana ...
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How are gods and goddesses such as Shiva and Shakti seen in the Vaishnava sampradayas?
How is Shakti/the consort of Shiva (including her various forms such as Kali, Durga, Parvati, Tara, etc.) seen in the various Vaishnava sampradayas?
I have read that, since she is the chaste stri of ...
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What exactly are Pancharatra texts?
One of the early movements that was important to the development of Vaishnavism was the ancient Pancharatra movement, whose sacred texts or Agamas consisted of detailed procedures to worship the sage ...
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Where does Periyavachan Pillai discuss Mleccha devotees of Vishnu?
Mlecchas refer to people who are foreign to India and the Vedic tradition, in contrast to Nastikas who are from India but reject the Vedic tradition. In this excerpt from his Rahasyatraya Sara, the ...
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Is Shankaracharya's Advaita Vedanta philosophy compatible with Vaishnavism?
There are many schools of thought like VisistAdvaita, Achintya Bheda Abheda and Dvaita which are followed by different sects of Vaishnavites. Most of these Vaishnava sects seem to be very critical of ...
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What scriptures describe Parashara asking for Moksha for everyone?
In 7 minute mark of this lecture, the Sri Vaishnava lecturer U. Ve. A.S. Rajagopalan Swami explains the importance of Sharanagati, or complete surrender to Vishnu as a means of getting Moksha, using ...
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Why Kukke Subramanya temple has a Madhwa mutt?
This question is specific to kukke Subramanya temple present in Dakshina Kannada District of Karnataka (refer : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kukke_Subramanya_Temple).
The main presiding deity is ...
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What is the Thenkalai-Vadakalai disagreement about "Sriman Narayana Preethiyartham" vs "Bhagavat Kainkarya Roopam"?
The members of the Sri Vaishnava sect of Hinduism (of which I'm a member), especially the Iyengars (Sri Vaishnavas who are Brahmanas), are divided into two sub-sects, Thenkalais and Vadakalais. These ...
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Do any Sampradayas apart from the Sri Vaishnava Sampradaya differentiate between Sharanagati and Bhakti Yoga?
According to Sri Vaishnavism, there are two paths to Moksha- Bhakti-Yoga and Sharanagati. Bhakti-Yoga to them is considered a longer and more difficult path to Moksha and involves Karma-Yoga and Jnana-...
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What is the reason of creation according to Vishishta Advaita?
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Kashmiri Shaivism : Reason of creation is the proof of existence of Shiva. As heat is inevitable in presence of fire, similarly Shakti is inevitable in presence of Shiva & this ...
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What does Lord Shiva mean when he says there are 5 gurus in Vaishnava tradition?
In Kularnava Tantra. Chapter 13, Lord Shiva talks about guru and his characteristics. He says following verse :
śaive gurutrayaṃ proktaṃ vaiṣṇave guru pañcakaṃ
vedaśāstreṣu sataso gururekaṃ ...
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What scriptures describe Sadashiva carrying Vishnu in Vishnu's abode of Paramapadam?
As I discuss in this question, the Sri Vaishnava sect (of which I am a member) places great importance on the Divya Desams, the 108 sacred places of Vishnu which are mentioned in the poems of the ...
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What is the Nyaya argument for Karma being the instrumental cause of the Universe?
The Agama Pramanya is a work by the famous Sri Vaishnava Acharya Yamunacharya arguing that the Pancharatra texts, which are foundational to mainstream Vaishnavism as I discuss here, are legitimate ...
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Does Tirupati Balaji's idol have real hair?
Namaste! I have read facts about Tirupati Balaji idol which is placed in sanctum sanctorum and among them there is one fact which raise my eyebrow: Idol has real hair and claimed to be real hair of ...
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Whats a good roadmap to learn Visistadvaita philosophy?
I am a SriVaishnavite by birth, and am keen on learning the Visistadvaita system of Ramanuja and Vedanta Desika, which is the basis of our Vadakalai Iyengar Sampradaya.
Whats a good place to start for ...
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What scriptures describe Mahabali stealing Vishnu’s crown and Garuda giving it to Krishna?
The Sri Vaishnava sect has two sub-sects, Thenkalai and Vadakalai. Vadakalais follow the teachings of Vedanta Desikan, whereas Thenkalais follow the teachings of Pillai Lokacharya. My question is ...
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What is the role of Lord Narayana in our lives? What impact does he have on our lives?
I want to know how does he influence our lives. How does he involve himself?
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How does one get initiated into Sri Vaishnavism?
How does a non-Sri Vaishnava get initiated into Sri Vaishnavism? What Sri Vaishnava Acharyas are there in the world today who initiate people?
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Third eye of Lord Narasimha
The Narasimhar sannidhi in Srirangam temple has Narasimha moorthy with a third eye like Shiva. Is the third eye of Lord Narasimha mentioned in any scriptures like Puranas or Upanishads?
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How do the different Hindu sects complete the line "Sri Bhagavat Agna"?
Before you do any Hindu ritual, you're supposed to begin by saying the Sankalpam, a formulaic utterance in which you tell the gods where you're located in the universe, the time and date when you're ...
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What is the difference between various Vaishnava Sampradayas?
There has been lots of Spiritual masters (I'm avoiding the word Guru deliberately, because of such rampant misuse of it) who were proponents of various sects of Vaishnavam such as Madhava (Brahma-...
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Is worship of Lord Hanuman associated with Vaishnavism or Shaivism?
Lord Hanuman, as we know is an ardent devotee of Lord Rama (Lord Vishnu's incarnation). But at the same time He is said to be Lord Shiva's incarnation. So is Hanuman worship more associated with ...
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Is Advaita moksha different from attaining Vaikuntha?
Is Advaita moksha different from attaining Vaikuntha? If yes, why and is this why Advaita is often frowned upon by most Vaishnavas?
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How do non-Advaitin defend Advaitin argument that difference need not be taught in scripture?
It is daily experience that we all are different beings , therefore scriptures will be purposeless if they taught that is very obvious. Hence, the actual meaning of scripture must be some unknown ...
user16895
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What is the connection between Munitrayam and Swayamacharyas in Sri Vaishnavism?
As I discuss in this question, the Sri Vaishnava sect (of which I'm a member) is divided into two sub-sects, Thenkalai and Vadakalai. Now each of these sub-sects has a bunch of Mathams belonging to ...
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What scriptures describe these four types of living beings?
The Paratvadi Panchakam is a five-verse poem by the Sri Vaishnava Acharya Nadadur Ammal In praise of the five types of manifestations of Vishnu described in the Pancharatra Agamas: Para, Vyuha, ...
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