Mahavishnu () is an aspect of

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

, the principal deity in

Vaishnavism Vaishnavism () ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu denominations, Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole Para Brahman, supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, that is, ''Mahavishnu''. It is one of the majo ...

. In his capacity as Mahavishnu, the deity is known as the Supreme Purusha, the absolute protector and sustainer of the universe, the one who is beyond human comprehension, and all attributes.

Literature

The

Bhagavata Purana The ''Bhagavata Purana'' (; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam)'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' () or simply ''Bhagavata (Bhāgavata)'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen major Puranas (''Mahapuranas'') and one ...

, among the most revered texts among Vaishnavas, attributes the following qualities to Mahavishnu: According to Gaudiya tradition of Bhagavatam,

Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...

is the Supreme Being, who expands first as Balarama, then into the first quadruple expansion of Sankarshana,

Vasudeva Vasudeva (; Sanskrit: वसुदेव ), also called Anakadundubhi (''anakas'' and ''dundubhis'' both refer to ''drums'', after the musicians who played these instruments at the time of his birth), is the father of the Hindu deities Krishna ( ...

, Pradyumna, and Aniruddha. Sankarshana expands into Narayana, then Narayana expands into the second quadruple expansion of Sankarshana, Vasudeva, Pradyumna, and Aniruddha, then Sankarshana expands into Karanodakasayi-Visnu (Maha-Vishnu), who reclines within the Mahat-Tattva, creating innumerable universes from the pores on his body. He then expands into each universe as Garbhodakasayi-Vishnu, from which

Brahma Brahma (, ) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the triple deity, trinity of Para Brahman, supreme divinity that includes Vishnu and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity, Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 212– ...

emerges. Here, the first expansion Purusha is used interchangeably for Mahavishnu. From sattva emerges Vishnu (Garbhodakshayi), and from tamas arises Shankara. These are known as the guna avatars of Krishna.

Role

Mahavishnu is said to lie in the Causal Ocean, or the Garbhodaka. According to Vaishnava cosmogony, he puts the seed of this material universe in Mahamaya by glancing at her. Mahamaya remains the ever obedient material energy of Vishnu. All the natural elements including sky, fire, water, air and land are created along with mind, intelligence and false ego. After this, Mahavishnu enters each of the many universes so created (seeds emerging from the pores of His skin) as Garbhodaksayi Vishnu, who lays down in each and every of these individual material universes (Brahmanas). It can be interpreted that Garbodakshayi Vishnu is the collective soul of all souls in a particular material universe, and that Mahavishnu is the collective soul of all souls in all of the material universes. From Garbhodaksayi Vishnu then emerges Brahmā, who is the secondary creator (due to his need to meditate to create planets in the material universe) of the planetary systems within this material universe ( Brahmanda).

References

External links

Thousand names of the Supreme
(Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram)

{{HinduMythology Forms of Vishnu Vedanta

Literature

Role

See also

References

External links