Mainstreams

Vishnuism and Shivaism are among the most important branches of Hinduism.

Vishnuism

The term Vishnuism contains three main streams, which refer to the Vedic god Vishnu, Rama and Vasueva Krishna. Some Vishnuite streams are monotheists. They worship Vishnu or his incarnations (rebirths), which are said to have taken place ten times on earth. These incarnations are also called matras. These incarnations include Rama and Krishna, among others. The elementary of the doctrine of incarnation is that Vishnu is the supreme divine principle that produces the real world and all other deities. The worship of a personal god (bhakti) is in the foreground in Vishnuism, unlike in Shivaism.

Shaivism

In Shaivism, Shiva is the supreme divine being. The Shivaites believe that Shiva is the being who created all other gods and has the greatest power among them. With the exception of the Nataraj, Shiva is usually not worshiped as a figure but symbolically with the lingam. Yoga plays an important role in some streams of Shaivism.