Chennakeshava

Vishnu
God of Protection, Preservation of Good, Dharma restoration, Moksha
Vishnu
Devanagari	विष्णु
Sanskrit transliteration	Viṣṇu
Affiliation	Brahman (Vaishnavism), Trimurti, Deva, Tridev
Abode	Vaikuntha
Weapon	discus (Sudarshana Chakra) and mace (Kaumodaki gada)
Symbols	Lotus, Shesha
Mount	Garuda
Festivals	Holi, Ram Navami, Krishna Janmashtami, Narasimha Jayanti, Onam, Tulsi Vivah
Consorts	Lakshmi

Vishnu icons across cultures

180 BCE Indo-Greek coin of Agathocles. Vishnu nicolo seal, 4th–6th century CE, Gandhara. 13th century Cambodian Vishnu. India Myanmar Indonesia The iconography of Hindu god Vishnu has been widespread in history.

Vishnu (Sanskrit pronunciation: [vɪʂɳu]; Sanskrit: विष्णु, IAST: Viṣṇu) is one of the principal deities of Hinduism, and the Supreme Being in its Vaishnavism tradition. Vishnu is the "preserver" in the Hindu trinity (Trimurti) that includes Brahma and Shiva.

In Vaishnavism, Vishnu is identical to the formless metaphysical concept called Brahman, the supreme, the Svayam Bhagavan, who takes various avatars as "the preserver, protector" whenever the world is threatened with evil, chaos, and destructive forces. His avatars most notably include Rama in the Ramayana and Krishna in the Mahabharata. He is also known as Narayana, Jagannath, Vasudeva, Vithoba, and Hari. He is one of the five equivalent deities worshipped in Panchayatana puja of the Smarta Tradition of Hinduism.

In Hindu inconography, Vishnu is usually depicted as having a dark, or pale blue complexion and having four arms. He holds a padma (lotus flower) in his lower left hand, Kaumodaki gada (mace) in his lower right hand, Panchajanya shankha (conch) in his upper left hand and the Sudarshana Chakra (discus) in his upper right hand. A traditional depiction is Vishnu reclining on the coils of the serpent Shesha, accompanied by his consort Lakshmi, as he "dreams the universe into reality".