The Vishnu Purana in Tamil is a classic Indian scripture with many scriptures, such as the Yogasutra, embedded within it. It has been translated into several languages and forms of writing, yet the original Sanskrit text survives in only one version; however, there are numerous English translations available. The Vishnu Purana is considered to be one of the most important texts in Hinduism and is often referred to as "the Fifth Veda". This article features an online search engine which will provide you with access to numerous free downloadable editions. The Vishnu Purana was written by Veda Vyasa, the compiler of the Vedas, who is believed to be an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. The current version of this article features an embedded audio player which contains commentary of the text in Tamil. The source text is the Tamil Vishnu Purana available for download. The English translation of this text can be found on your left hand side. You can also download PDF and ebooks of the same version of this article. The Vishnu Purana has been acclaimed as "one of the greatest religious epics in the world" and "one of the most revered works in Hinduism". The Hindu dharmic faith considers it as one of their many scriptures and as such, it is considered as a vishnu dharmam () (sacred scripture), by Hindus. This is because it contains many stories about Lord Vishnu, mythology and different rites and customs associated with them. The Purana also discusses the existence of God, creation, cosmology, relationship of soul and body and other important topics. It is divided into 12 chapters called "Bhavas", which are further divided into 126 sections (called "Anus"). The Vishnu Purana is written in the style of a conversation between sage Markandeya and Lord Vishnu. The sage asks questions about creation of Earth, origin of beings etc., to which Lord Vishnu replies. The text has been translated into several languages over centuries including Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and more. There is only one known Sanskrit and Telugu version available, while there are numerous Tamil and Kannada versions. These ancient texts were translated into the regional language for the benefit of the people. The Tamil version of Vishnu Purana was translated by Kachiyappa Sivacharyar (who also translated Mahabharata) as well as Nambi Andar Nambi (who had also translated Mahabharata). This Tamil text includes hundreds of verses describing temples, deities and other aspects of Hinduism.