Megasthenes called Krishna 'Heracles'.

Principles and branches of Vaishnav religion-

Major sect opinion Acharya Time
Vaishnava sect Vishishtadvaita Ramanuja 12th century
Brahma Sampradaya Dualism Madhva (Anandatirtha) 13th century
Rudra sect Shuddhadvaita Vishnu Swami/Ballabhacharya 13th century
Sanaka sect Dvaitadvaita Nimbarka 13th century
Mihirbhoj, the ruler of Pratihar, accepted Vishnu as both Nirguna and Saguna and
called him 'Hrishikesh'.
The saint king Kulasekhara of Kerala was a devotee of Vishnu.
Vamana continued to be worshiped among the Alwars of the state for a long
time. They also worshiped Varaha.
The originator of Bhagwat religion was Vrishni (Satvat) Vanshi Krishna, who is
called Krishna because he was the son of Vasudev. He was originally a resident of
Mathura.
Krishna's brother Balarama has been depicted carrying a plough in hand.
Therefore, he is also known as Haldhar.
In the Bhagwat sect, Navadha Bhakti has been recognized for attaining salvation.
In the Garuna pillar inscription of Vidisha (Besnagar), Heliodorus has been called
'Bhagwat' and Vasudeva has been called 'Devdevas' i.e. god of gods.
Kalika Purana is from Shakta religion.
Upanishads, Brahmasutra and Bhagavad Gita are called 'Prasthanatrayi' of
Vedanta.
Naimisharanya in Sitapur district U.P. is considered to be the abode of 60,000
monks.
Every year in the Shukla Paksha of Ashadh month, Rath Yatra is taken out in the
honor of Lord Jagannath (Krishna), Balaram and Subhadra in Puri, Odisha.
The first mention of Bhakti is found in Shwetashvara Upanishad whereas the first
detailed mention of Bhakti is found in Bhagavad Gita.

Shaivite
Initial information about Shiva devotion comes from the Indus Valley. In the
Rigveda, the god most similar to Shiva is Rudra.
Shiva is mentioned as a great deity in Mahabharata. Megasthenes mentioned
Shaivism in the fourth century B.C.
In fact, Shaivism (as a sect) started during the Shaka Satavahana period, which
reached its peak during the Gupta period.
The worship of Ardhanarishwar and Trimurti (Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh
(Shiva)) started in the Gupta period. This liberal spirit of coordination is
characteristic of the Gupta period.
The idol of Ardhanarishwar was based on the mutual identity of Shiva and Parvati.
The first such statue was built during the Gupta period.
The first clear mention of Linga worship is found in Matsya Purana.
Linga worship is also mentioned in the Anushasana Parva of Mahabharata.
The first statues of Shiva and Vishnu in the form of Harihara were made during
the Gupta period.
The oldest idol of Shiva has been found from 'Gudimallam Linga Renagunta'.
In Kaushitiki and Shatapatha Brahmana, there is mention of eight forms of Shiva –
four as destroyer and four in solar form.
The first mention of Shaiva sects was in Patanjali's Mahabhashya under the name
Shiva Bhagwat.
In Vamana Purana the number of Shaiva sect is stated to be four. These are - (1)
Shaiva (2) Pashupat (3) Kapalik and (4) Kalamukh.
1. Shaiva- According to this sect, the God is Shiva, the cause is the power and the
upandana is the point. There are four legs or loops (bandhans) of this belief -
Vidya, Kriya, Yoga and Charya. There are three substances – husband, animal and
loop.
2. Pashupat- This is the oldest sect of Shaivism. The founder of this sect was
Lakulish or Nakulish. Who is considered one of the 18 incarnations of Lord Shiva.
Lakulish was born in Kayavrohan (Gujarat).
In Vajasaneyi Samhita, Ambika is mentioned as the sister of Rudra.
The followers of this sect have been called Pancharthika. The main doctrinal text
of this belief is Pashupata Sutra.
The Pashupat sect developed greatly during the Gupta period. The three parts of
this principle are 'Pati' (master), 'Pashu' (soul), Paash (bondage). Shiva was
worshiped in the form of Pashupati.
3. Kapalik The presiding deity of Kapaliks was Bhairav who was considered to be
the incarnation of Shankar.
This sect was extremely dangerous and of demonic nature. In this, offerings of
Sura and human sacrifice were made to Bhairav.
The main center of this sect was a place called 'Shri Shail', the evidence of which is
found in Maltimadhava of Bhavabhuti.
4. Kalmukh - The followers of this sect belonged to the Kapalik class only; But it
was even more extreme in nature.
In Shiv Purana it has been called Mahabratdhar. The followers of this sect used to
consume food, water and liquor in the human skull and applied ashes on the
body.
Lingayat sect Shaivism also expanded in South India (Karnataka). The worshipers
of this religion were called Lingayats or Jangams in the south.
In Basava Purana, there is mention of the originator of this sect, Allabhaprabhu
and his disciple Basava.
Kashmiri Shaiva was purely philosophical and a path of knowledge. It has
condemned the despicable activities of the Kapalikas. Vasugupta was its founder.
He considered Shiva as Advaita
Prajapati, Mahadev and Ishaan are beneficial.
Shaivism in South India was propagated by the Nayanars or Adiyar Santris, 63 in
number. The collection of his verses is called 'Tirumudai', which was compiled by
'Nambi Andala-Namayi'.
Adiguru Shankaracharya (788 A.D.-820 A.D.)
Birth: Kaldi Village (Kerala)
Death: Kedarnath (Uttarakhand)
Guru: Govind Yogi
Govardhan Peeth Jagannathpuri
Jyotirmath (North) Badridham
Shardapeeth: Dwarka
Sringeri: South (Rameshwaram)

Shakta Dharma
Although the formula of worship of Mother Goddess can be traced even in the
pre-Vedic period, but the cult of worship of Goddess or Shakti is as ancient as the
Vedic period.
Shakti sect has a close relationship with Shaivism.
There is a clear mention of the worship of this Adi Shakti or Goddess in the
Mahabharata.
According to the Puranas, the worship of Shakti is mainly limited to the worship of
Kali and Durga.
In the Vedic period, names like Uma, Parvati, Ambika, Hemvati, Rudrani and
Bhavani are found.
In the 'Dasam Mandal' of Rigveda, an entire hymn is related to the worship of
Shakti; Which is called Tantric Devi Sukta.
Chausath Yogini's Temple (Jabalpur) provides evidence to prove the development
and progress of Shakta religion.
Method of worship: There are two classes of Shaktas: Kaulamargi and
Samayachari.
Completely monistic seekers are called Kaul, who do not understand any
difference between cardamom and sandalwood, enemy and son, crematorium
and building and glass and grass.
Kaul Margi worship Panchamakar, which includes alcohol (Madya), meat (Maans),
fish (Machhali), currency (Mudra) and sex (Maithun), which start with 'M'.
Ajivika or Niyatavada sect, everything in the world is already determined, "What is
not to happen, will not happen, what is to happen, will happen without effort. If
there is no luck, then even the thing that has come gets destroyed."
The Ajivaka people considered fate or destiny to be more powerful than manly
deeds and upliftment.