At
@IndigoChild5559
I am not a "Hindu" in the strictest sense of the word - so please take what I have to say with that bias in mind -
@Aupmanyav when he deigns to come along - may add more
Some references for you -
Astika schools of philosophy - goes all the way from belief in a deity to total non belief in a god (Samkhya) as close as it gets to atheism proper
Vedanta - as
@Vinayaka referred to - is a study of subjects appearing at the end of the Vedas (
Ved = from Vedas;
ant = end)
While the three "major" figures of the supreme lord are Brahma (NOT to be confused with Brahman) Vishnu and Shiva - respectively the Creator, Sustainer and Destroyer - there is an excellent reply on Quora from Rami Sivan - who is an expert in the Mimamsa philosophy - you may want to look him up on Quora - I have found his replies steeped in pragmatism and showing of a deep knowledge of not only Hindu teachings but also the three Abrahamic faiths - Judaism Christianity and Islam
He says and I quote directly:
"
The most important thing to learn to avoid confusion is to differentiate between MYTHOLOGY and METAPHYSICS
Brahmā is the creative principle in the Universe, the cosmic mind and the impetus for potential to become actual. All the three tripartite forces of the Universe - evolution, existence and devolution and then evolution etc. are all the eternal repeating cycles interacting with one another, giving rise to one another and merging in each other.
He is also a character who features in the Puranas involved in all kinds of questionable practices and stories which are MYTHS which illustrate various aspects of Brahma in creative and entertain ways - not to be taken seriously.
So — Brahma is born from the navel of Vishnu who is born from the Shakti of Shiva who is born from the essence of Brahma who arose from the mind of Shiva who is in fact an alter-ego of Vishnu who lies on the thousand headed serpent of eternity who is just another aspect of himself lying on the ocean of milk which represents the undifferentiated stage of the Universe before its emanation into being.
Do you get it? "
To my way of understanding Brahman exists as Nirguna - devoid of attributes and Sarguna - those with attributes - which are two sides of the same coin
View attachment 38083
In my own path - "we" (the sum totality of existence) are part of the ocean of the universe and merge back into the one as individual droplets merge back into a body of water.
View attachment 38077
The ultimate supreme divine is called Param-Atma (the ultimate soul) whereas we are called Atman (individual souls) which are part of - and are expected to merge back at a point in time
View attachment 38080
In different Hindu sects or sampradeyas - different versions of the deity are thought to be the Supreme Being
For Saivites - it is Mahadev or Shiva - everything comes from him and he is the entire creation personified
For Vaisnavas - it is Vishnu and then others say that Vishnu in the form of Krishna is the embodiment of it all - as I have said before - to my limited knowledge - Krishna is the ONLY religious figure - mythical or otherwise - that showed his devotees
that the entire Universe embodies in him - not once but at three different times - it is also reflected in the Gita
haika-sthaṁ jagat kṛitsnaṁ paśhyādya sa-charācharam
mama dehe guḍākeśha yach chānyad draṣhṭum ichchhasi
Gita 11:7
Behold now, Arjun, the entire universe, with everything moving and non-moving, assembled together in my universal form. Whatever else you wish to see, observe it all within this universal form.
And as I alluded to you in a prior post - there is also a couplet where Krishna implies that he alone represents as different deities to different individuals - implying that he is the Universe personified
For what it worth - from one seeker's point of view ....
Thanks for reading