Within both the Vaishnava traditions and Hinduism generally he is known as being a manifestation of Shesha, the serpent on whom Vishnu rests.

In the Vaishnava devotional or bhakti traditions of Hinduism that focus on Krishna, Radha is Krishna's friend and advisor.

Great leaders of the Vaishnava Bhakti movement in Karnataka like Purandara Dasa, Kanaka Dasa, Raghavendra Swami and many others were influenced by Dvaita traditions.

In Dvaita ( dualism ) and Vishistadvaita ( qualified monism ) schools of Vaishnava traditions, moksha is defined as the loving, eternal union with God ( Ishvara ) and considered the highest perfection of existence.

A number of Vaishnava traditions regard him as an Avatar of Vishnu.

In the mid-20th century Mohandas Gandhi, a Vaishnava, undertook to reform these and emphasize traditions shared in all the Indian faiths:

The Vaishnava Bhakti traditions speak of five different moods, referred to as bhāvas — different attitudes that a devotee can take up to express his love for God.

Vaishnava traditions also employ a recitation of names of Lord Narasimha and reading scriptures ( notably Bhagavata Purana ) aloud.

The Kalachakra refers to many different traditions, for example the Hindu ; Saivite, Samkya, Vaishnava, the Vedas, Upanisads and Puranas traditions, but also Jainism.

* Vishnu is seen as Para Brahman within Vaishnava traditions, and the Vishnu Sahasranama enumerates 1000 names of Vishnu, each name eulogizing one of His countless great attributes.

* Krishna () is associated with Vishnu and certain Vaishnava traditions also regard Him as Para Brahman and Svayam Bhagavan ( svayambhagavān ) or the Lord Himself.

In other Vaishnava traditions too, the Vishnu Sahasranama is considered an important text.

According to Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy, consciousness is not a product of matter ( this is common for all spiritual traditions ), but is instead a symptom of the soul.

As part of the legacy of the Alvars, five Vaishnava philosophical traditions ( sampradayas ) have developed at the later stages.

Within Hindu traditions Vaishnava devotees commonly chant on beads made from the Tulsi plant ( Holy Basil ), held as a sacred manifestation of Tulsidevi ; whereas Shaivites use Rudraksha beads.

The Chota Char Dham included representatives from all three major Hindu sectarian traditions, with two Shakta ( goddess ) sites, ( Yamunotri and Gangotri ), one Shaiva site ( Kedarnath ), and one Vaishnava site ( Badrinath ).

Vaishnava and Saiva traditions of Hinduism subscribe to an ultimate personal nature of God.

In Krishna-centered theology ( Krishna is seen as a form of Vishnu by some ) the title Svayam Bhagavan is used exclusively to designate Krishna in his personal feature, it refers to Gaudiya Vaishnava, the Nimbarka Sampradaya and followers of Vallabha, while the person of Vishnu and Narayana is sometimes referred to as the ultimate personal god of other Vaishnava traditions.

Various Vaishnava traditions have different degree of adherence and various lists of texts included under the overall concept.

During the 11th century AD Ramanuja, a founder of Sri Vaishnava traditions of Vaisnavism had established the Pancharatra system of Vaisnavism for his followers and refuted the philosophy of Adi Sankara.

All Vaishnava schools are panentheistic and view the universe as part of Krishna or Narayana, but see a plurality of souls and substances within Brahman.

Major Temple cities: Puri, which hosts a major Vaishnava Jagannath temple and Rath Yatra celebration ; Katra, home to the Vaishno Devi temple ; Three comparatively recent temples of fame and huge pilgrimage are Shirdi, home to Sai Baba of Shirdi, Tirumala-Tirupati, home to the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple ; and Sabarimala, where Swami Ayyappan is worshipped.

Generally Vaishnava temples are dedicated to Keshava ( or to Chennakeshava, meaning " Beautiful Vishnu ") while a small number are dedicated to Lakshminarayana and Lakshminarasimha ( Narayana and Narasimha both being Avatars, or physical manifestations, of Vishnu ) with Lakshmi, consort of Vishnu, seated at his feet.

In addition, various Vaishnava saints and founders are considered to be partial avatars.

Vaishnava men, typically of the ISKCON sect, are often clean-shaven as a sign of cleanliness.

Similar in appearance to Buddhist monks, brahmacari monks from the International Society for Krishna Consciousness ( ISKCON ), or Hare Krishnas as they are popularly known, are the best known Vaishnava monks outside India.

According to Gaudiya Vaishnava theology Smriti statement, living entities ( bhuto ) are eternally in the service ( dasa ) of the Supreme Lord ( Hari ).

According to Hindu Vaishnava theology the stories concerning the gopis are said to exemplify Suddha-bhakti which is described as ' the highest form of unconditional love for God ' ( Krishna ).

Bauls are a very heterogeneous group, with many sects, but their membership mainly consists of Vaishnava Hindus and Sufi Muslims.

They are thought to have been influenced by the Hindu tantric sect of the Kartabhajas, as well as Tantric Vaishnava schools like the Vaishnava-Sahajiya.

The theory that Jagannath triad is a Vaishnava cult has been ruled out as there is no semblance of Nila Madhaba in the present triad images, nor are three images on the same platform being worshiped by the Vaishnavites.

However, the Vaishnava commentator, Parasara Bhattar, a follower of Ramanujacharya has interpreted the names " Shiva " and " Rudra " in Vishnu sahasranama to mean qualities or attributes of Vishnu, and not to indicate that Vishnu and Shiva are one and the same God.

In the Sri Vaishnava tradition, the Bhagavad-gita and the Vishnu Sahasranama are considered the two eyes of spiritual revelation.

Scholarly consensus holds that the text was completed no later than around 1000 CE, when it is mentioned by al Biruni and quoted by Abhinavagupta ; the earliest suggestions of it are the composition of the Vishnu Purana and Harivamsa, and the Vaishnava Bhakti movement in South India, which limit its composition to after 500 CE.

B. van Buitenen, a late professor of Indology at the University of Chicago points out that 10th – 11th CE South Indian Vaishnava theologians Yamuna and Ramanuja do not refer to Bhāgavata Purāṇa in their writings, and this anomaly needs to be explained before the geographical origins and dating are regarded as definitive.

Although sharing a common set of core beliefs, there are a number of philosophical differences which distinguish Gaudiya Vaishnavism from other Vaishnava schools:

Other prominent Gaudiya Vaishnava theologians are his uncles, Rupa Gosvami author of Sri Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu and Sanatana Gosvami, author of Hari-bhakti-vilasa, Visvanatha Chakravarti author of Sri Camatkara-candrika and Baladeva Vidyabhushana, author of Govinda Bhashya, a famous commentary on Vedanta Sutra.

Avadhutas ( the " pure ones ", in Bhagavat Purana 4. 29. 11 described as " most free ") are usually associated with the Shaivite tradition but there is a relatively obscure lineage of Vaishnava sannyasis known as turiyatit-avadhuta.

Some of the ideas in this Gita are however common to both Shaivite, and Buddhist Tantras and Vaishnava Agamas.

The prayers within the temple are performed, following in the style of Andal, one of the twelve Vaishnava Saints of South India.

Sri Vaishnava orthodoxy posits the number of alvars as ten, though there are other references that include Andal and madhurakavi, making the number twelve.

Together with the twelve Vaishnava Alvars, the Nayanars are sometimes accounted South India's 75 Apostles of Bhakti because of their importance in the rise of the Hindu Bhakti movement.