which is the most frequent formulation of the Gods of the Trimurti?

Question

Brahma-Vishnu-Siva

Brahma-Vishnu-Mahesh

are the ones I have seen the most.

Any others?

Is this order the most frequent because Birth-Preservation-Annihilation is the natural order?

note: this is NOT a venue for "my God is superior to your God" type answers.

Trimurti, (Sanskrit: “three forms”) in Hinduism, triad of the three gods Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. The concept was known at least by the time of Kalidasa’s poem Kumarasambhava (“Birth of the War God”; c. 4th–5th century ce).

The trimurti collapses the three gods into a single form with three faces. Each god is in charge of one aspect of creation, with Brahma as creator, Vishnu as preserver, and Shiva as destroyer. In combining the three deities in this way, however, the doctrine elides the fact that Vishnu is not merely a preserver and Shiva is not merely a destroyer. Moreover, while Vishnu and Shiva are widely worshipped in India, very few temples are dedicated to Brahma, who is expressly said to have lost his worshippers as the result of telling a lie and is merely entrusted with the task of creation under the direction of one of the other two gods. Scholars consider the doctrine of the trimurti to be an attempt to reconcile different approaches to the divine with each other and with the philosophical doctrine of ultimate reality (brahman).

There is another order - Vishnu,Brahma,Shiva - in order of lineage/parentage. — ram, Mar 01 '20 at 04:17
Are you talking about the order? @SK Then Brahma-Vishnu-Maheswara is the one — Rickross, Mar 01 '20 at 16:57
both order and other forms of the names - @rickross like Mahesh for Siva etc. — S K, Mar 01 '20 at 16:59
encyclopedia brittanica in not a scriptural source. there are several other tri-murti questions already. — Swami Vishwananda, Mar 03 '20 at 04:46
@Swami Vishwananda this has been beaten to death - supporting material for a question need not be from scripture. Please close vote if it is a duplicate. — S K, Mar 03 '20 at 08:52

score 3 · Accepted Answer · answered Mar 01 '20 at 17:05

The most frequent order, when talking about the three Gods together, is Brahma-Vishnu-Maheswara and that is due to the fact that creation (with which Brahma is associated) comes first then preservation (linked with Vishnu) and then destruction (associated with Mahesha).

1-7. The Risis said :-- “O highly fortunate one! A great doubt has arisen on your statement. This is ascertained by all the wise men as written in the Vedas, Purânas and other Sâstras that Brahmâ, Visnu and Mahes'var, these three Devas are eternal. None is superior to them in this Brahmânda. Brahmâ creates all the beings, Visnu preserves and Mahes'var destroys all in due time. These are the causes of creation, preservation and destruction. The Trinity Brahmâ, Visnu and Mahes'a are really one form, indeed, Trinity in Unity and Unity in Trinity.

Devi Bhagavatam Book 1, Chapter 8

And, the order is also evident from the following hugely popular verse (from the Guru Stotram found in Viswasara Tantram):

गुरुर्ब्रह्मा गुरुर्विष्णुर्गुरुर्देवो महेश्वरः ।
गुरुरेव परं ब्रह्म तस्मै श्रीगुरवे नमः ॥१॥

Gurur-Brahmaa Gurur-Vissnnur-Gururdevo Maheshvarah |
Gurure[-I]va Param Brahma Tasmai Shrii-Gurave Namah ||1||

Meaning: 1.1: The Guru is Brahma, the Guru is Vishnu, the Guru Deva is Maheswara (Shiva), 1.2: The Guru is Verily the Para-Brahman (Supreme Brahman); Salutations to that Guru.

which is the most frequent formulation of the Gods of the Trimurti?

1 Answers1