摘要
在印度教三大教派中,毗湿奴教派影响最大;在三大神体系中,毗湿奴地位最高。与主"生"(创造)的梵天和主"灭"(毁灭)的湿婆不同,主"住"(护持)的毗湿奴始终以王者形象示人,华衣宝冠,披金戴银,富贵色彩浓郁,权力与权利兼具,是芸芸众生追逐和膜拜的理想形态。不过,毗湿奴又与梵天和湿婆一样,是神话传说人物,也是历史人物,是诸多传说和历史糅合的产物。毗湿奴本尊源自中亚南俄草原,先是因陀罗的部将和助手,后为次大陆的主宰。印度教文献表明,毗湿奴有无数个化身,重要的有24个,其中10个最有代表性,即鱼、龟、猪、人狮、侏儒、持斧罗摩、黑天、罗摩、佛陀和迦尔吉。侏儒、持斧罗摩、黑天、罗摩和佛陀等化身显示其雅利安人属性,鱼、龟、猪、人狮和黑天等蕴含其达罗毗荼人属性。正由于这些属性,毗湿奴为次大陆人民所普遍接受和膜拜;他也以此为依托,通过黑天"统一"了北印度,通过罗摩"统一"了整个南亚次大陆。这种"统一"并非疆域层面的统一,而是信仰层面的统一,即毗湿奴统一了次大陆人民的精神世界。可以说,如果没有毗湿奴,今日印度将会是另外一番景象。
Among the three major Hindu sects,Vaishnavism is the most influential one.Within the trimurti(triad of the major Hindu gods),Vishnu has the highest status.Compared to the creator Brahma and the destroyer Shiva,Vishnu,the preserver,always appears in majestic splendor like a king,who possesses both power and right and constitutes an ideal for common people to worship and follow.However,just like Brahma and Shiva,Vishnu is a legendary figure as well as a historical one,who resulted from constant interaction between legendary creation and historical processes.Originating from the Eurasian steppes,Vishnu evolved all the way from Indra’s general and assistant to the dominator of the subcontinent.According to Hindu classics,Vishnu has numerous avatars,among which twenty-four are major and ten crucial,i.e.Matsya,Kurma,Varaha,Narasimha,Vamana,Parashurama,Rama.Krishna,Buddha,and Kalki.Vamana,Parashurama,Rama,Krishna and Buddha indicate Vishnu’s Aryan nature,whereas Matsya,Kurma Varaha,Narasimha amd Krishna show his Dravidian nature.Thanks to this hybrid nature,Vishnu came to be accepted and worshipped by the habitants across the subcontinent.In the form of Krishna,he "united" north India,and in the form of Rama,he "united" the entire subcontinent.This is not geographical unity but faith unity;in other words,Vishnu united the spiritual world of the subcontinent.Today’s India would have been dramatically different if there were no Vishnu.
出处
《南亚东南亚研究》
2022年第1期106-120,156,157,共17页
South and Southeast Asian Studies
