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Shankha is the divine Conch
Conch

A conch is one of a number of different species of medium-sized to large saltwater snails or their shells.True conchs are Marine gastropod molluscs in the family Strombidae, and the genus Strombus....
 shell or sea shell, which is one of the insignia in the Hindu God Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....
's hands. Lord Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....
, also called Narayan
Narayan

Narayan may mean any of several things.* For the common Indian name signifying Vishnu, see Narayana.* For the age of Narayan in the Myst franchise, see...
, is imagined to have four hands. He has a Shankha (a conch shell) on one hand, the Sudarshana Chakra
Sudarshana Chakra

Sudarshana Chakra is a spinning disc like weapon with very sharp edge, which serves as an emblem of the Hindu God Vishnu. Lord Vishnu, also called Narayana, is portrayed with four hands, holding a Shankha , the Sudarshana, a Gada and a Padma ....
 in second, a Gada (a mace) in the third and Padma (lotus flower) in the fourth.

The divine Shankha is identified with, or represented by, the shell of the Indian Ocean species Turbinella pyrum
Turbinella pyrum

Turbinella pyrum, common names the chank shell, sacred chank or chank, sometimes referred to loosely as a conch, is a species of very large sea snail with a gill and an operculum , a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Turbinellinae of the family Turbinellidae....
, the sacred chank.

See also Iconography of Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....


Lord Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....
 is imagined to hold the Shankha on his upper left hand.






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Shankha is the divine Conch
Conch

A conch is one of a number of different species of medium-sized to large saltwater snails or their shells.True conchs are Marine gastropod molluscs in the family Strombidae, and the genus Strombus....
 shell or sea shell, which is one of the insignia in the Hindu God Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....
's hands. Lord Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....
, also called Narayan
Narayan

Narayan may mean any of several things.* For the common Indian name signifying Vishnu, see Narayana.* For the age of Narayan in the Myst franchise, see...
, is imagined to have four hands. He has a Shankha (a conch shell) on one hand, the Sudarshana Chakra
Sudarshana Chakra

Sudarshana Chakra is a spinning disc like weapon with very sharp edge, which serves as an emblem of the Hindu God Vishnu. Lord Vishnu, also called Narayana, is portrayed with four hands, holding a Shankha , the Sudarshana, a Gada and a Padma ....
 in second, a Gada (a mace) in the third and Padma (lotus flower) in the fourth.

The divine Shankha is identified with, or represented by, the shell of the Indian Ocean species Turbinella pyrum
Turbinella pyrum

Turbinella pyrum, common names the chank shell, sacred chank or chank, sometimes referred to loosely as a conch, is a species of very large sea snail with a gill and an operculum , a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Turbinellinae of the family Turbinellidae....
, the sacred chank.

See also Iconography of Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....


Lord Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....
 is imagined to hold the Shankha on his upper left hand. The Shankha is used to alarm enemies and to start off war. It also represents awakening. The sound emitted from Shanku when blown, is too divine, that is used for regular rituals for Vishnu. Shanku also represents the Insignia of Vishnu. As a result of this, Shanku stands as a Royal State Emblem of Travancore
Travancore

Travancore or Thiruvithaamkoor was a Indian Princely State in India under the British Raj, with its capital at Thiruvananthapuram ruled by the Travancore Royal Family.The name Thiruvithankoor might be derived from Thiruvithankode where the capital Padmanabhapuram was situated....
 and current state emblem of Kerala
Kerala

Kerala is a Indian Union States and territories of India located in the southwestern part of India. With an Arabian Sea coastline on the west, it is bordered on the north by Karnataka and by Tamil Nadu on the south and east....
.Sankha
Shankha

Shankha is the divine Conch shell or sea shell, which is one of the insignia in the Hindu God Vishnu's hands. Lord Vishnu, also called Narayan, is imagined to have four hands....
 was also the name of one of sons of King Virata
Virata

Virata , in the Hinduism epic Mahabharata, was a king in whose court the Pandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile. Virata was married to Queen Sudeshna and was the father of Prince Uttara and Princess Uttara ....
 who was killed in Mahabharata
Mahabharata

The is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetrys of History of India, the other being the '. The epic is part of the Hindu itihasa , and forms an important part of Hindu mythology....
.