Sṛṣṭi-Sthiti-Saṃhāra
Sṛṣṭi (creation), sthiti (sustenance/preservation), and saṃhāra (dissolution/withdrawal) constitute the eternal cosmic triad — the three fundamental modes of divine action that maintain the universe in its endless cyclical existence. In popular Hindu understanding, these three functions are often associated with the Trimūrti: Brahmā as creator, Viṣṇu as sustainer, Rudra/Śiva as destroyer. Śrī Vaiṣṇava theology sharply distinguishes itself from this tritheistic reading: in Viśiṣṭādvaita, there is no Trimūrti of three equal divine functions belonging to three equal deities. Rather, all three cosmic functions belong to Bhagavān Nārāyaṇa alone.
Rāmānuja's position, grounded in the Brahma Sūtras and the Upaniṣads, is explicit: Brahman — Bhagavān Nārāyaṇa — is the sole cause of sṛṣṭi, sthiti, and saṃhāra ('janmādy asya yataḥ', Brahma Sūtra 1.1.2). Brahmā is not an independent creator-god but a jīvātmā — a bound soul of extraordinary accumulated merit — whose body is controlled by Bhagavān from within (antaryāmin). Brahmā creates because Bhagavān wills it through him. Similarly, Rudra/Śiva, who performs the cosmic dissolution, is also a jīvātmā whose body is Bhagavān, through whom Bhagavān performs the saṃhāra-function. The Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad and the Viṣṇu Purāṇa support this reading. Brahmā and Rudra are thus not co-equal members of a divine triad but are great souls (mahātmās) elevated to their cosmic offices by Bhagavān's grace and serving as His instruments.
The cycle of sṛṣṭi-sthiti-saṃhāra is Bhagavān's līlā (divine play) — it is not driven by external necessity, cosmic compulsion, or karmic debt, but flows from His sovereign freedom and compassion. The universe is created to provide jīvātmans the opportunity to experience (bhoktṛtva) the fruits of their karma and ultimately turn toward liberation (mokṣa). Sthiti — the period of sustenance — is the time given to souls for this turning. Saṃhāra is not destruction in a nihilistic sense but withdrawal — souls and matter return to their subtle causal state within Brahman (pralaya), resting until the next cycle of creation begins. Vedānta Deśika's Tattva Muktā Kalāpa provides systematic exposition of this doctrine.