Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

, the Rudra Sampradaya is one of four

Vaishnava Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...

sampradaya ''Sampradaya'' ( sa, सम्प्रदाय; ), in Indian origin religions, namely Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, can be translated as 'tradition', 'spiritual lineage', 'sect', or 'religious system'. To ensure continuity and ...

s, a tradition of disciplic succession in the religion. Vaishnavism is distinguished from other schools of Hinduism by its primary worship of deities

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...

and/or

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...

and their

Avatar Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appeara ...

s as the Supreme forms of God. The ascetic

Vishnuswami Vishnuswami was a Hindu religious leader. He is primarily known for having started the Rudra sampradaya.

formed the Rudra-Sampradaya, though the sampradaya is believed to have traced its origins to the Hindu deity

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

, also known as

Rudra Rudra (; sa, रुद्र) is a Rigvedic deity associated with Shiva, the wind or storms, Vayu, medicine, and the hunt. One translation of the name is 'the roarer'. In the Rigveda, Rudra is praised as the 'mightiest of the mighty'. Ru ...

, who passed on the knowledge imparted to him by Vishnu (or Krishna), on mankind. According to Vaishnavism,

, who has the

Shaivism Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangi ...

school dedicated to his worship as the Supreme God, is the first and foremost Vaishnava, or follower of

. According to the tradition, Vishnuswami was fifteenth in the line of passing of the knowledge from teacher to student. The date of formation of the sampradaya is disputed. Not much about the historical

Vishnuswami Vishnuswami was a Hindu religious leader. He is primarily known for having started the Rudra sampradaya.

is known and all his works are thought to have been lost in time. The sampradaya currently is mainly present in Gujarat/Rajasthan, through the Vallabha sampradaya. The beliefs of the sampradaya was further propagated by Vallabha Acharya (1479–1531). Rudra sampradaya has two main divisions: Vishnuswamis, that is, followers of Vishnuswami and the Vallabhas or Pushtimarg sect, founded by Vallabha. According to William Deadwyler, the sampradaya has disappeared, except for the Pushtimarg group.William Deadwyler in ''Vaishnavism: Contemporary Scholars Discuss the Gaudiya Tradition'' pp. 128–9
/ref> The philosophy of the sampradaya is

Shuddhadvaita Shuddadvaita (Sanskrit: "pure non-dualism") is the "purely non-dual" philosophy propounded by Vallabhacharya (1479-1531 CE), the founding philosopher and guru of the ("tradition of Vallabh") or ("The path of grace"), a Hindu Vaishnava tradit ...

, or pure

monism Monism attributes oneness or singleness (Greek: μόνος) to a concept e.g., existence. Various kinds of monism can be distinguished: * Priority monism states that all existing things go back to a source that is distinct from them; e.g., i ...

References

External links

'Rudra-sampradaya' at vaniquotes.org
{{Vaishnava Sampradayas Vaishnava sects

See also

References

External links