Tamil commentary on the hymns of the Alvars,
which became a philosophical backbone for later
Vishishtadvaita thought. The most prolific later
teacher among many later philosophers in this
lineage was Venkatanatha of the 15th century, who
wrote numerous works in Sanskrit and Tamil.
Most significant in the philosophy of Sri
Vaishnavism is a vision of a personal divinity that
is worshipped with great passion and devotion. At
the same time that divinity, Vishnu, is understood
to be the transcendent brahman of the UPANISHADS.
The Alvar’s faith was passionate and mystical.
Ramanuja’s commentaries were subtle philosophy
that sought to legitimate their path in terms of
Vedanta. The two paths together constitute what
Sri Vaisnavas call the “Double Vedanta” (Ubayave-
danta), which relies on both Sanskrit and Tamil
textual bases.
Further reading: John Braisted Carmen, The Theology
of Ramanuja (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press,
1974); S. N. Dasgupta, A History of Indian Philosophy,
vol. 3 (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1975); A. K. Ramanu-
jan, Hymns for the Drowning (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton
University Press, 1981); Arvind Sharma, Visistadvaita
Vedanta: A Study (New Delhi: Heritage, 1978).
Vishnu
Vishnu in his various forms is one of the most
worshipped gods in the Indian pantheon. His
tradition, known as VAISHNAVISM, constitutes the
second largest sect within Hinduism.
Vishnu first appears in the VEDAS as a rather
insignificant divinity, with only minor ritual impor-
tance. There are only 64 mentions of him in the RIG
VEDA, most of them in passing, with only a handful
of hymns addressed to him alone. He is celebrated
in the Vedas mostly for his “three steps” that saved
the world, in his incarnation as VAMANA AVATA R.
Vishnu first gains prominence in the later
Vedic period, apparently after being identified
with VASUDEVA, a non-Vedic god popular in west-
ern India in the last centuries before the Common
Era, and with the god Narayana of the Vedic BRAH-
MANA literature. By the time of the MAHABHARATA
and RAMAYANA epics his prominence was assured.
He was identified both with the gods KRISHNA,
hero of the Mahabharata, and RAMA, hero of the
Ramayana.
Eventually, Vishnu’s cult reached full devel-
opment when he was recognized as Mahavishnu
(great Vishnu), preserver of the universe, who
entered into the world when needed in succes-
sive AVATA Rs or “descents.” Before the world is
created, Vishnu sleeps on the cosmic MILK OCEAN
on the back of the divine serpent ADISHESHA. Out
of his navel grows a lotus from which BRAHMA the
creator god emerges to create the universe. OnceLord Venkateshwara, popularly known as Balaji, is one
of the manifestations of Lord Vishnu. (Institute for the
Study of American Religion, Santa Barbara, California)Vishnu 491 J