Vishnu or Krishna ? Or both?

[Sirona]

Dear forum,

sadly my primary sources on Hinduism are ISKCON and Bhakti Marga (the Swami Vishwananda sect), so please don't bash me for having lousy sources.

As most of you may know, Gaudiya Vaishnavas believe that Krishna is the Highest and that Vishnu is his avatar. They even have a book called Laghu Bhagavatamrta which justifies that belief.

Swami Vishwananda, on the other hand, has his focus on the worship of Narayana as the primary deity and Krishna as his avatar. Standard sources of information like encyclopediae seem to agree with the latter view.

Wikipedia has both options.

I do not wish to start a debate but I'd like to know which sects in Hinduism adhere to Vishnu as the Highest and which for Krishna. I'd like to see which are majority or minority opinions.

Thanks!

 

[Vinayaka]

This blog might be somewhat helpful ... it says there ar e4 traditional sampradayas... Types Of Vaishnava Sampradayas History of Vaishnavam 3

 

[Jainarayan]

Wikipedia has both options.

You might be thinking of this as one of the options, which is the Gaudiya view. Keep in mind ISKCON is Gaudiya, but Gaudiya is not ISKCON. That is, they are not one and the same. Gaudiya is the sect inspired by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in Gauda, India.

Vaishnavism - Wikipedia

It's pretty much only Gaudiya Vaishnavism that sees the relationships as per the chart. I think it's pretty safe to say that most Vaishnavas see Vishnu as the source of the avatars, including Krishna avatar.

 

[Aupmanyav]

This blog might be somewhat helpful ... it says there ar e4 traditional sampradayas... Types Of Vaishnava Sampradayas History of Vaishnavam 3

Very nice, especially his last sentence, "Squabbles are not allowed, if one is a Hindu."
Wikipedia has detailed information on various Vaishnava sects.

 

[Terese]

Lord Vishnu or Lord Krishna? Both. They are both the Supreme Lord. But who is the Original Personality? Who is Para-Vasudeva? I see Lord Vishnu as Para-Vasudeva. But i dislike the concept of avatars of the Supreme Lord being somehow less than the Original Personality. Narayana is infinite and eternal. When he displays a form on Earth, that form is infinite and eternal. Narayana is the greatest actor! He can fool anyone!

As for what sampradayas see Lord Vishnu the Original Personality, Sri Vaishnavas and Tattvavadas see Narayana as Para-Vasudeva, eternally residing in Sri Vaikuntham on his seat Ananta Shesha.

 

[Shantanu]

God is God: call it by whatever name you choose.