Worship of Vishnu as the supreme deity, as well as
of his incarnations, mainly Rama and Krishna.
.Vaishnavism is one of the major forms of modern Hinduism , along with Shaivism and Shaktism, and is probably the most
popular and most widely practiced. Characterized by an
emphasis on bhakti, its goal is to escape from the cycle of birth
and death in order to enjoy the presence of Vishnu. The
philosophical schools into which Vaishnavism is divided are
distinguished by their varying interpretations of the
relationship between individual souls and God, and include
aspects of monism and dualism
Vaishnavism in South India
Broadly, Vaishnavas in South India can be classified as
Brahmans and non-Brahmins.
Among the Brahmins the main groups are
The Iyengars, who follow the Sri Vaishnava Vishistadvaita philosophy of Asuri Ramanujacharya. The Iyengars are further divided into the Vadakalai (who adhere to the Sanskrit Vedas) andThenkalai (who asseverate primacy to Tamil prabhandams).[27] Both these sects either adhere to the Pañcaratra agama, or Vaikhanasa agama in temples.
The Madhvas, who follow the Sadvaishnava Dvaita philosophy of Madhvacharya.
The Vaikhanasas, who are primarily an ancient community of temple priests, who use the Vaikhanasa Agama in temple worship.
a Tengalai Iyengar temple (like Melukote) and a Vadagalai Iyengar temple (like Ahobilam) all have distinctly different rituals and customs with priests of that particular denomination who perform the worship. However all temples are popularly visited by all Vaishnavas as lay worshippers, as also members of various other denominations.
Among the non-Brahmins, sections of various communities like the Chettiars and Mudaliars in Tamil Nadu, sections of the Settys, Reddys, Rajus and Haridasu's in Andhra Pradesh and so on in other states describe themselves as Vaishnava. Some groups tend to be vegetarian like the Brahmins.
The Iyengars are further divided by philosophy into the Vadagalai and Tengalai branches.
In temple worship, a Vaikhanasa temple (like Tirumala),
a Madhva temple (like Udupi),
In Kerala, some communities call themselves Vaishnava and use sandal paste for the forehead tilaks. Kerala Vaishnava temples have their own traditions with the worship being done by Brahmin Namboodiris with Vaishnava leanings.
