Trimurti: Difference between revisions

{{short description|Hinduism's triple deity of supreme divinity}}

| type = Hindu

| caption = Lord [[Shiva]] (left), Lord [[Vishnu]] (middle), and Lord [[Brahma]] (right),

| god_of = Supreme Beings of Universe and Existence<br>The Gods of Creation, Preservation and Destruction

| affiliation = {{ubl|[[Brahma]] (creator)|[[Vishnu]] (preserver)|[[Shiva]] (destroyer)<!-- Please don't add further deities without discussion on talk -->}}

| abode = {{ubl|[[Satyalok]] (abode of Brahma)|[[Vaikunth]] (abode of Vishnu)|[[Kailash]]( abode of Shiva)}}

| weapon = {{ubl|[[Brahmastra]] and [[Kamandal]] (Brahma)|[[Sudarshana Chakra|Sudarshan]] and [[Narayanastra]] (Vishnu)|[[Trishula|Trishul]] (Shiv)}}

| consort = [[Tridevi]] specifically:

| mount = {{ubl|[[Hans (bird)|Hans]] (mount of Brahma)|[[Garuda]] (mount of Vishnu)|[[Nandi (bull)|Nandi]] (mount of Shiva)}}

| title= Trimurti

| as=     ত্ৰিমূৰ্তি ({{transl|as|Trimūrti}})

| bn=     ত্রিমূর্তি

({{transl|bn|Trimūrti}})

| en=     Three forms or Trinity

| gu=     {{lang|gu|ત્રિમૂર્તિ}} ({{transl|gu|Trimūrti}})

| hi=     {{lang|hi|त्रिमूर्ति}} ({{transl|hi|Trimūrti}})

| jv=     {{lang|jv|ꦠꦿꦶꦩꦸꦂꦠꦶ}} ({{transl|jv|Trimurti}})

| kn=     ತ್ರಿಮೂರ್ತಿ ({{transl|kn|Trimūrti}})

| ml=     ത്രിമൂർത്തികൾ ({{transl|ml|Trimūrttikaḷ}})

| mr=     त्रिमूर्ती ({{transl|mr|Trimūrti}})

| ne=     त्रिमूर्ति ({{transl|ne|Trimūrti}})

| or=     ତ୍ରିମୂର୍ତ୍ତି ({{IAST|Trimūrtti}})

| pa=     ਤ੍ਰੀਮੂਰਤੀ ({{transl|pa|trīmūratī}})

| sa=     त्रिमूर्ति ({{IAST|Trimūrti}})

| ta=     மும்மூர்த்தி ({{transl|ta|Mum'mūrtti}})

| te=     త్రిమూర్తులు ({{transl|te|Trimūrtulu}})

'''Trimūrti'''  ({{IPAc-en|t|r|ɪ|ˈ|m|uːr|t|i}};<ref>[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/trimurti "Trimurti"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129070403/http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/trimurti |date=29 November 2014 }}. ''[[Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary]]''.</ref> [[Sanskrit]]: त्रिमूर्ति ''{{IAST|trimūrti}}'', "three forms" or "trinity") is the [[triple deity]] of [[Para Brahman|supreme divinity]] in [[Hinduism]],<ref>{{cite book |series=SUNY Series in Religious Studies |last=Grimes |first=John A. |title=Ganapati: Song of the Self |year=1995 |publisher=State University of New York Press |location=Albany |isbn=0-7914-2440-5 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Jansen |first=Eva Rudy|title=The Book of Hindu Imagery|year=2003 |publisher=Binkey Kok Publications BV|location=Havelte, Holland|isbn=90-74597-07-6 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Radhakrishnan |first=Sarvepalli (Editorial Chairman)|author-link=Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan |title=The Cultural Heritage of India |year=1956 |publisher=The Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture |location=Calcutta }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Winternitz |first=Maurice |title=History of Indian Literature |year=1972 |publisher=Oriental Books Reprint Corporation |location=New Delhi }}</ref> in which the cosmic functions of [[creation ex nihilo|creation]], [[Conservation (ethic)|maintenance]], and [[End time#Hinduism|destruction]] are [[personified]] as a triad of deities, typically [[Brahma]] the creator, [[Vishnu]] the preserver, and [[Shiva]] the destroyer,<ref>For quotation defining the trimurti see Matchett, Freda. I real all the three deities are avatar of [[Shiva]]. The [[Brahma]] is "Swetamber"(one who wears white clothes), [[Vishnu|Maha Vishnu]] is "Pitamber" (one who wears yellow/red/orange clothes) and the [[Shiva]] is "Digamber/Vaagamber"(one who doesn't wears any cloth, only the skin of tiger). "The {{IAST|Purāṇas}}", in: Flood (2003), p. 139.</ref><ref>For the Trimurti system having [[Brahma]] as the creator, [[Vishnu]] as the maintainer or preserver, and [[Shiva]] as the destroyer. see Zimmer (1972) p. 124.</ref> though individual denominations may vary from that particular line-up. The legendary yogi [[Dattatreya]] is often treated as not only one of the 24 [[avatar]]s of Vishnu, but also of Shiva and Brahma as well in a single three-headed body.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Mhatre|first1=Sandeep|title=Datta Sampradaay and Their Vital Role|url=http://swamisamarthmath.com/en/dattasampraday.html|location=Swami Samarth temple|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304074548/http://swamisamarthmath.com/en/dattasampraday.html|archive-date=4 March 2016|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The [[Om]] symbol of Hinduism is considered to have allusion to Trimurti, where A, U and M of the Om symbol are considered as creation, preservation and destruction.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Young_Scientist/rztlAAAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=om+trimurti+-wikipedia&pg=PA224&printsec=frontcover|title = Young Scientist: A Practical Journal for Amateurs|year = 1852|publisher = Industrial Publication Company.}}</ref> The '''[[Tridevi]]''' is the trinity of goddess consorts for the Trimūrti. <Ref>https://www.hindufaqs.com/tridevi-the-three-supreme-goddess-in-hinduism/</Ref>

The [[Puranas|Puranic period]] from the 4th to the 12th century CE saw the rise of post-[[Vedic period|Vedic]] religion and the evolution of what R. C. Majumdar calls "synthetic Hinduism".<ref>For dating of Puranic period as c. CE 300-1200 and quotation, see: Majumdar, R. C. "Evolution of Religio-Philosophic Culture in India", in: Radhakrishnan (CHI, 1956), volume 4, p. 47.</ref>

<blockquote>There must be some doubt as to whether the Hindu tradition has ever recognized Brahma as the Supreme Deity in the way that Visnu and Siva have been conceived of and worshiped.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sutton |first1=Nicholas |title=Religious doctrines in the Mahābhārata |date=2000 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publishers |location=Delhi |isbn=81-208-1700-1 |pages=182 |edition=1st}}</ref></blockquote>  The concept of Trimurti is also present in the ''[[Maitri Upanishad]]'', where the three gods are explained as three of his supreme forms.<ref>"Brahma, Rudra, and Vishnu are called the supreme forms of him. His portion of darkness is! Rudra. His portion of passion is Brahma. His portion of purity is Visnu"—''[[Maitri Upanishad]]'' [5.2]</ref>

Temples dedicated to various permutations of the Trimurti can be seen as early as the 6th century C.E., and there are still some temples today in which the Trimurti are actively worshiped.

 

In general it can be said that the trimurti has less of a role in the Hinduism of recent centuries than in ancient India.  

[[Shaivites]] hold that, according to [[Shaiva]] [[Āgama (Hinduism)|Agama]], Shiva performs five actions - creation, preservation, dissolution, grace, and illusion. Respectively, these first three actions are associated with Shiva as [[Sadyojata]] (akin to [[Brahma]]), [[Vamadeva]] (akin to [[Vishnu]]) and [[Aghora]]{{dn|date=January 2022}} (akin to [[Rudra]]). Thus, Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra are not deities different from Shiva, but rather are forms of Shiva. As Brahma/Sadyojata, Shiva creates. As Vishnu/Vamadeva, Shiva preserves. As Rudra/Aghora, he dissolves. This stands in contrast to the idea that Shiva is the "God of destruction". Shiva is the supreme God and performs all actions, of which destruction is only but one. Ergo, the Trimurti is a form of Shiva Himself for Shaivas. Shaivites believe that Lord Shiva is the Supreme, who assumes various critical roles and assumes appropriate names and forms, and also stands transcending all these.

<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.shaivam.org/shpdestr.htm}}</ref> A prominent visual example of a Shaivism version of the Trimurti is the [[Elephanta Caves#Trimurti.2C Gangadhara and Ardhanarishvara|''Trimurti Sadashiva'' sculpture]] in the [[Elephanta Caves]] on [[Gharapuri Island]].

[[File:A statue inside the Angkor Wat in Cambodia; January 2020.jpg|left|260px|thumb|Murti of [[Vishnu]], the main deity worshipped in [[Angkor Wat]], Cambodia.]]

Despite the fact that the [[Vishnu Purana]] describes that [[Vishnu]] manifests as [[Brahma]] in order to create and as [[Rudra]] ([[Shiva]]) in order to destroy,<ref>{{citation|author1=Flood, Gavin|author-link1=Gavin_Flood|title=An Introduction to Hinduism|date=13 July 1996|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=0-521-43878-0|page=[https://archive.org/details/introductiontohi0000floo/page/111 111]|url=https://archive.org/details/introductiontohi0000floo/page/111}}</ref> [[Vaishnavism]] generally does not acknowledge the Trimurti concept; instead, they believe in the [[avataras]] of Vishnu like [[Buddha]], [[Rama]], [[Krishna]], etc. They also believe that Shiva and Brahma both are forms of Vishnu. For example, the [[Dvaita]] school holds Vishnu alone to be the supreme God, with [[Shiva]] subordinate, and interprets the [[Puranas]] differently. For example, Vijayindra Tîrtha, a Dvaita scholar interprets the 18 [[purana]]s differently. He interprets the Vaishnavite puranas as [[satvic]] and Shaivite puranas as [[tamas (philosophy)|tamasic]] and that only satvic puranas are considered to be authoritative.<ref name= Sharma>{{cite book |last= Sharma |first= B. N. Krishnamurti |title= A history of the Dvaita school of Vedānta and its literature: from the earliest beginnings to our own times |access-date= 2010-01-15 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=FVtpFMPMulcC&q=sarabha&pg=PA412 |publisher= Motilal Banarsidass Publishers |page= 412 |year= 2000 |isbn= 81-208-1575-0 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191224120749/https://books.google.com/books?id=FVtpFMPMulcC&pg=PA412&dq=Varaha+sarabha&cd=11#v=onepage&q=sarabha&f=false |archive-date= 24 December 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

The [[Saura (Hinduism)|Saura]] sect that worships [[Surya]] as the supreme personality of the [[Deity|godhead]] and [[saguna brahman]] does not accept the Trimurti as they believe Surya is God.  Earlier forms of the Trimurti sometimes included Surya instead of Brahma, vishnu or shiva or as a fourth above the Trimurti, of whom the other three are manifestations; Surya is Brahma in the morning, Vishnu in the afternoon and Shiva in the evening. Surya was also a member of the original Vedic Trimurti, which included [[Varuna]] and [[Vayu]]. Some Sauras worship either Vishnu or Brahma or Shiva as manifestations of Surya, others worship the Trimurti as a manifestation of Surya, and others exclusively worship Surya alone.

*[[Moirai]]

== General sources ==