OM VISHNU DEV NAMAH
Vishnu's supremacy is attested
by his victories over those very powerful entities who are themselves
devotees of other Gods such as Brahma or Shiva. It is further attested
by the accepted iconography and sculptures of Vishnu in reclining
position as producing Brahma emerging from his navel. Brahma the creator
is thus created in turn by Vishnu out of his own person. Instead Vishnu
takes various avatars to slay or defeat those demons. But it is to be
noted that Vishnu also provided boons to Akrurasura, a bear faced demon
who was destroyed by Lord Shiva.
Vishnu's actions lowered Indra's ranking among Hindu deities and led to the ascendancy of Vishnu.
Few temples are dedicated to the Sun or Suryanarayana, nor indeed Indra, nor does Indra figure largely in the Hindu religion.
Indra is almost completely absent from the deities considered as the chief or most important deity.
In
the Rigveda, Vishnu is mentioned 93 times. He is frequently invoked
alongside other deities, especially Indra, whom he helps in killing
Vrutra and with whom he drinks Soma. His distinguishing characteristic
in the Vedas is his association with light. Vishnu is addressed as the
god who separates heaven and earth, a characteristic he shares with
Indra.
The Rigveda describes Vishnu as subordinate to Indra as
Vamana. In Vaishnava canon the 'Vishnu' who is subordinate to Indra is
identified as Vamana, Avatar of Vishnu, hence referred to as Vishnu by
Vaishnavites. Vishnu is not a mere sacrificial deity; he is the Supreme
God who lives in the highest celestial region, contrasted against those
who live in the atmospheric or terrestrial regions. Vishnu is content
with mere prayer, unlike almost all of the other gods who receive
sacrificial offerings such as Havis, which is given using clarified
butter, or Soma. The general view [citation needed] is that Vedas place
Indra in a superior position to Vishnu's Avatar of Vamana. Vamana helps
Indra by restoring his Kingdom as mentioned in the Vamana Purana.
OM VISHNU DEV NAMAH
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