Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)/Trimurti

TRIMURTI, in comparative religion. the later Hindu triad = Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva—considered as an inseparable unity. The Padma Purana, which, as a Purana of the Vaishnavas, assigns to Vishnu the highest rank, thus defines the Trimurti; "In the beginning of creation the great Vishnu, desirous of creating the world, produced from the right side of his body himself as Brahma; then, in order to preserve the world, he produced from the left side of his body Vishnu; and in order to destroy the world, he produced from the middle of his body the eternal Siva. Some worship Brahma, others Vishnu; one, yet three-fold, creates, preserves, and destroys; therefore let the pious make no difference between the three." Trimurti, there fore, implies the unity of the three principles of creation, preservation, and destruction, and is an expression of philosophical, rather than of popular belief. The symbol of the Trimurti is the mystical syllable o (=a+u) m; where a stands for Brahma, u for Vishnu, and m for Siva. Also a representation of the Hindu triad. It consists of one human body with three heads, that of Brahma in the middle, that of Vishnu at the right, and that of Siva at the left.