Vishnu Purana

The Vishnu Purana is one of the earliest of the eighteen major Puranas (“ancient stories”) revered by the Hindus. It is considered to be one of the most important Puranas and for this reason is referred to by the name Puranaratna, which means “Gem of Puranas.” Like some of the other Puranas, the Vishnu Purana is presented in the form of a dialogue, in this instance with the sage Parashara (or Parasara) teaching his disciple Maitreya how Vishnu, as the Supreme Being, takes care of his devotees and how one should evolve spiritually for the attainment of liberation. Major topics discussed in the Puranas include creation myths, narratives of battles fought between the Asuras (sinful, materialistic, power-seeking deities) and Devas (benevolent supernatural beings), the avatars (appearances, manifestations, or incarnations) of Vishnu, and stories and genealogies surrounding legendary kings. The Vishnu Purana glorifies Vishnu as the supreme lord of the universe, in whom the whole universe abides. The text may have been composed to unify disparate philosophic worldviews and people of all castes and to elevate Vaishnavism—one of the divisions of Hinduism, which sees Vishnu as the central god—as the only sure means for spiritual success.

The authorship of the entire Vishnu Purana is attributed to the legendary Vyasa (literally, “Arranger”), who is believed to be the author of all the Puranas as well as the editor of the ancient Vedas, the earliest Hindu sacred texts. Included in the class of smriti—“that which has to be remembered”—by India’s Vedic sages and handed down orally from very ancient times, this Purana incorporates very old stories that might have undergone several revisions before their final redaction sometime around 1045. It is unknown where this text was finally composed, a common problem with the ancient Hindu texts, which do not directly or indirectly allude to their original place and time of composition to suggest their ancientness and divine authorship. Scholars seem resigned to the belief that the absence of texts glorifying particular places and people or providing similar information makes it nearly impossible to determine the origin of the Puranas.