Vishnu as he appears in Shin Megami Tensei
Vishnu (ヴィシュヌ, Vishunu) is a recurring entity in the series.
History
"One of the major gods in Hindu myth, he is the preserver of the universe. It is believed that he will descend to earth ten times to maintain the balance of power."
Vishnu is one of the primary deities in the Hindu pantheon. He called The Preserver and is know for a kindly demeanor and genuine interest in the welfare of humanity. In the Hindu religion, Vishnu the Preserver is one of the three principle deities of the Trimurti (Hindu Triad) along with Brahma the Creator and Shiva the Destroyer. He was first seen in early Vedic mythology as the god that assisted Indra in defeating Vritra and is now the supreme deity within Vaishnavism, a branch of Hinduism that focuses on the worship of Vishnu. As the preserver, Vishnu maintains balance within the world, and at the end of our current aeon will appear as his final avatar Kalki and judge whether mortals have been good or evil. After this, the universe will end and creation will start anew. He is depicted with up to four arms, blue skin, holding a chakra wheel , a lotus flower, a mace and a conch, and rides on the back of Garuda He also sleeps on the back of a great naga named Ananta Shesha.
Vishnu's first prominant appearance in later Hindu mythology was in the form of his first avatar, the fish Matsya, where he warned the first human, Manu, about a great flood that was soon to come and to tow his ship full of plants and animals to the mountains where they would avoid the high water levels. After this he appeared in many incarnations, both as humanoids and animals, thoughout Hindu tales. Probably the best known incarnation of Vishnu was within the Hindu epic Ramayana, where he appeared as the hero Rama who set out to save his wife Sita from the rakshasa king, Ravana.
He is the husband of the goddess Lakshmi in all her incarnations and has ten personal incarnations starting with Matsya and ending with Kalki. He may also be worshipped in the form of Harihara, the perfect fusion of Vishnu and Shiva.
He is know to have countless avatars (the word avatara is generally put after the avatars' name), but these ten are considered the most important:
- Matsya - The fish avatar. Plays a role in the story of Manu (the first man in Hindu myth) by warning him of an impending flood.
- Kurma - The tortoise avatar. Supports a sacred mountain on his back during a battle with demonic entities.
- Varaha - The boar avatar. Is known to have rescued the earth (sometimes in the form of a woman) out of the ocean after she either falls in or a demon pushes her in.
- Narashima / Simha- Half man, half lion avatar. Kills the invulnerable demon Hiranyakasipu.
- Vamana - The dwarf priest avatar. Tricks the demon Bali who stole the three worlds.
- Parashurama - The warlike human avatar. Born into the Brahmin caste, he carries a great battle axe given to him by Shiva to destroy those who oppress the Brahmin. Kills the thousand-armed king Kartavirya of the Himalayas.
- Rama - The kingly avatar carrying a bow and arrow. A popular mortal hero in Hinduism and the central figure in the epic Ramayana. Kills many demons including the Rakshasa, Taraka, Kabandha, and Ravana.
- Krishna - The Mahabharata avatar. The central character in the Bhagavad-Gita / Song of the Blessed Lord, in which he is the charioteer for Arjuna.
- Buddha - The historical avatar. The only avatar that can be connected to an actual person, though some historians debate that Buddha was made an avatar to bring his worshippers back into the Hindu fold.
- Kalki - The avatar yet to be. He is the coming avatar who will ride in on a white horse, sword in hand, to end the evil of the current age (called Kali Yuga), and usher in a new time of prosperity. His coming in prophesied to happen sometime in the next 400+ years.
Appearances
- Shin Megami Tensei: Majin (Normal enemy)
- Devil Summoner: Majin Clan
- Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers: Majin Clan
- Digital Devil Saga 2: Fury (Optional boss, Deity clan in JP)
- Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne: Deity
- Majin Tensei II: Deity
- Megami Ibunroku Persona (As "Ashura" in the English version)
- Persona 2: Eternal Punishment: Emperor Arcana
- Persona 3: Sun Arcana
- Persona 3: FES: Sun Arcana
- Persona 4: Temperance Arcana
- Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey: Deity
- Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Children White Book
- Shin Megami Tensei: DemiKids: Light Version
- Shin Megami Tensei: DemiKids: Dark Version
- Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Children Fire Book
- Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Children Ice Book
Profile
Digital Devil Saga 2
Vishnu appears as an optional boss in a room opposite that of Shiva's. To meet with Vishnu, the Embryon must first prove their worth to his avatar Narasimha and obtain his sword. Upon meeting the Seraph, Vishnu states that it has been a while since the dharma (righteousness) has vanished from peoples hearts and been replaced by adharma (wickedness) as it has now. He claims that he must cleanse this impurity by destroying Seraph and the others, and the only way to change his mind is for them to show the strength of their dharma.
Persona 3: FES
Vishnu is the second most powerful Persona of the Sun Arcana, next to Asura. With the addition of Weapon Fusion, he can be fused with any kind of Nihil weapon to obtain Sarnga, Vishnu's bow.
Data about Sarnga:
Attack: 400 Hit Rate: 90
Bow crafted from sunbeams. Strengthens Wind attacks.
His Heart Item is Chakra Ring, which halves the cost of spells to the character which equips it.
Persona 4
Vishnu is the Ultimate persona of the Temperance Arcana that can only be summoned if you max out the Young Mother Social Link with Eri Minami and recieve the Clover Bookmark.
Stats
Shin Megami Tensei
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Persona 3: FES
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Persona 4
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Gallery
