Avatar

The ten avatars of Lord Vishnu, copyright BBT

In Hindu philosophy, an avatar, avatara or avataram, avatāra), most commonly refers to the incarnation (bodily manifestation) of a higher being (deva), or the Supreme Being (God) onto planet Earth. The Sanskrit word avatāra- literally means "descent" (avatarati) and usually implies a deliberate descent into lower realms of existence for special purposes. The term is used primarily in Hinduism, particularly in Vaishnavism, that is, the school which worships of Vishnu, which is not surprising considering that most avatars are said to derive from this God. The word has also been used by extension to refer to the incarnations of God in other religions, especially by adherents to dharmic traditions, when explaining figures such as Jesus of Nazareth.

Types of avatars

File:Madhvacharya avatars.jpg

Avatars of Madhvacharya. From top (in order of occurrence): Hanuman, Bhima and Shri Madhvacharya

According to the Bhagavan Puranas countless numbers of avatars descend into our universe: "O brahmanas, the incarnations of the Lord are innumerable, like rivulets flowing from inexhaustible sources of water" (1.3.26). Vaishnavism theologically has categorised the many avatars into a number of different types depending on their specific personality and role as described in scripture. Not all are recognised as 'full' or 'direct' incarnations of Vishnu. Some avatars are believed to be souls blessed with certain abilities of 'divine origin', although they themselves are an individual jiva.

Lila avatars

Lila avatars are the most commonly identified variation of avatar. There are too many lila-avatars to list. Lila translates to 'pastime', and the lilavatars are those which descend at regular intervals throughout time to perform a particular series of events in order to instruct others in the paths of dharma, bhakti or moksha. The Dasavatars, that is, the ten avatars of Vishnu as well as other avatars from the Puranas (as below) are examples of this type.

Shaktyavesa avatars

Shaktyavesa avatars: These are of two types - a direct avatar of Vishnu and a partial avatar of Vishnu's power, given to a specific living being. There are said to be a great number of avatars of this second type imparticular. An example would be Narada Muni or Buddha The secondary avatar class is sometimes called Saktyamsavatar, Saktyaveshavatar or avesha avatar. Other secondary avatars, include Parashurama in which Vishnu does not directly descend. Parashurama is the only one of the traditional ten avatars that is not a direct descent of Vishnu. According to Srivaishnavism, there are two types of secondary avatars: 1) Vishnu enters a soul with His form ^{[citation needed]}. (e.g., Parashurama) or 2) Vishnu does not enter a soul with His own form, but gives him extraordinary divine powers. (e.g., Veda Vyasa.) The secondary avatar class besides being called shaktyavesa avatar is also called Saktyamsavatar,or avesha avatar.

The secondary avatars are generally not worshipped as the Supreme being, only the direct, primary avatars are worshipped in this way. In practice, the direct avatars that are worshipped today are the Purna avatars of Narasimha, Rama and Krishna. among most Vaishnava traditions, Krishna is considered to be the highest kind of Purna avatar. However, followers of Chaitanya (including ISKCON), Nimbarka, Vallabhacharya differ philosophically from other Vaishnavites, such as Ramanuja and Madhva and consider Krishna to be the ultimate Godhead, and not simply an avatar. In any event, all Hindus believe that there is no difference between worship of Vishnu and His avatars as it all leads to Him.

According to Srivaishnavite doctrine, there are two types of avatars, primary avatars and secondary avatars. The most common type of primary avatars are called Svarupavatars, in which He manifests Himself in His Sat-cid-ananda form. In the primary avatars, such as Narasimha, Rama, Krishna], Vishnu directly descends. The Svarupavatars are subdivided into Amsarupavatars and Purna avatars. In Amsarupavatars, Vishnu is fully present in the body but He is manifest in the person only partially. Such avatars include the first five avatars from Matsya to Vamana except for Narasimha. Narasimha, Rama and Krishna, on the other hand, are types of Purna avatars, in which all the qualities and powers of the Lord are expressed. Narasimha and Rama are also additionally considered to be Lila avatars.

Other Types

There are also Purusha avatars, guna avatars, and Manvantara avatars. Purusha avatars are described as the original avatars of Vishnu within the universe. They include: Vasudeva, who was the son of Śũrasena, of the Yadava dynasty; Sankarshan, one of the primal beings of creation who ruled over all nagas, or nature spirits; Pradyumna, a son of Krishna; and Pradyumna's son Aniruddha. Guna avatars, meanwhile, are the avatars in control of the three modes of nature (gunas). They are: Brahma, controller of the mode of passion and desire (or rajas), Vishnu, controller of the mode of goodness (or sattva), and Shiva, controller of the mode of ignorance (or tamas). These three personas are together known as the Trimurti, the Hindu trinity. Manvantara avatars: These are beings responsible for creating progency throughout the universe, said to be unlimited in number.

Examples of Avatars

Dasavatara: The Ten Avatars of Vishnu

The ten most famous incarnations of Vishnu are collectively known as the 'Dasavatara' ('dasa' in Sanskrit means ten). This list is included in the Garuda Purana (1.86.10-11) and denotes those avatars most prominent in terms of their influence on human society. According to Madhvacharya, all avatars of Vishnu are alike in potency and every other quality. There is no gradation among them, and perceiving or claiming any differences among avatars is a cause of eternal damnation. The majority of avatars in this list of ten are categorised as 'lila-avatars'.

The first four are said to have appeared in the Satya Yuga (the first of the four Yugas or ages in the time cycle described within Hinduism). They are: Matsya, the fish, Kurma, the tortoise, Varaha, the boar, and Narasimha, the half-man/half-lion.

The next three avatars appeared in the Treta Yuga. They are Vamana, the dwarf, Parashurama, Rama with the axe, and Rama, Ramachandra, the prince and king of Ayodhya. Thus, kings rule reached its ideal state in Treta Yuga with Rama Avatar and social justice and Dharma were protected in Dwapar Yuga with the avatar of Krishna.

The eighth incarnation, Krishna (meaning 'dark coloured' or 'all attractive'), appeared in the Dwapara Yuga. Krishna appeared in the Dwapara Yuga along with his brother Balarama. According to the Bhagavata Purana Balarama is said to have appeared in the Dwapara Yuga (along with Krishna) as an incarnation of Ananta Shesha. He is also counted as an avatar Vishnu by the majority of Vaishnava movements and is included as the ninth Dasavatara in some versions of the list which contain no reference to Buddha.

The ninth incarnation, the Buddha (meaning 'the enlightened one') appeared in the Kali Yuga (specifically as Siddhartha Gautama) the time period in which we currently exist. This is a uniquely Hindu understanding of the Buddha, since Buddhists do not confirm the existence of the Creator God, and therefore do not acknowledge the avatar doctrine. Although Hindus consider the teachings of the Buddha to be heterodoxical, they acknowledge that his arrival reinstated the balance of dharma which had been offset by Brahmins who were abusing the Vedic system for their own interests. The tenth, Kalkin ("Eternity", or "time", or "The Destroyer of foulness") is predicted to appear at the end of the Kali Yuga in some 427,000 years time, as predicted in verse 8.17 of the Bhagavad Gita.

Some groups claim that the ten avatars represent the evolution of life and of mankind on earth. Matsya, the fish, represents life in water. Kurma, the tortoise, represents the next stage, amphibianism. The third animal, the boar Varaha, symbolizes life on land. Narasimha, the Man-Lion, symbolizes the commencement development of mammals. Vamana, the dwarf, symbolizes this incomplete development of human. Then, Parashurama, the forest-dwelling hermit armed with an axe, connotes completion of the basic development of humankind. The King Rama signals humanity's ability to govern nations. Krishna, an expert in the sixty-four fields of science and art according to Hinduism, indicates man's advancement in culture and civilization. Balarama, whose weapon was a plough could stand for the development of agriculture. Buddha, the enlightened one, symbolizes social advancement of man. Thus the avatars represent the evolution of life and society with changing epoch from Krita Yuga to Kali yuga. The animal evolution and development connotations also bear striking resemblances to the modern scientific theory of Evolution.

The 25 Avatars of the Puranas

Deity form of Varaha, Khajuraho, 12th C AD

The Puranas list twenty-five avatars of Vishnu in total. In addition to the ten listed above, these additional avatars are Catursana, the four sons of Brahma; Narada, the travelling sage; Yajna, Vishnu temporarily taking the role of Indra; Nara-Narayana, twin brothers; Kapila, the philosopher; Dattatreya, combined avatar of the Trimurti); Hayagriva, a horse; Hamsa, the swan; Prsnigarbha; Rishabha, father of King Bharata; Prithu; Dhanvantari, father of ayurveda; Mohini, a beautiful woman; Ramachandra, the king of Ayodhya; Vyasa, writer of the Vedas, and Balarama, Krishna's elder brother. A description of these is found in the Bhagavata Purana, Canto 1, Chapter 3.

Historical and Religious Figures

Besides the avatars of Hinduism listed in the Puranas and Vedas, some other Indian Hindus are considered to be full avatars by themselves or by others. Based on a verse in the latter texts of the Bhagavata Purana 11.5.32 and a number of texts from the Mahabharata and other Puranic scriptures , Caitanya Mahaprabhu (1485-1533) is listed as an avatar and is widely worshiped as such by followers of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition. In this connection Caitanya is often referred to as the Golden Avatar. Hans Ji Maharaj (1900–1966), declared that the Satguru is an avatar with the 64 kalas. Jagadguru Kripaluji Maharaj (1922-present) is claimed by his followers to be an avatar of Krishna and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Mahavatar Babaji is described by Paramahansa Yogananda in his Autobiography of a Yogi as an Avatar. Meher Baba (1894-1969) said he was the last avatar of the Kali Yuga or White Horse avatar. Mother Meera (1960-present) claims and is believed to be an Avatar of Adipara-Shakti. Narayani Amma (1976-present) claimed as the real Narayani Avatar. Sathya Sai Baba (1926?-1929?-present) claims and is believed by his devotees to be an avatar of Shiva, Shakti and Krishna. His followers say his advent was predicted in the book Bihar-al-anvar containing the preachings of Mohammad, in the Bible - especially in the Book of Revelation, in Hindu scriptures (Naadi), by Hindu saints like Sri Aurobindo. Some of Shirdi Sai Baba's (1838-1918) followers believed him to be an avatar of Dattatreya and Shiva. Sri Ramakrishna (1836–1886) is reported to have said to Swami Vivekananda, "He who was Rama and Krishna is now, in this body, Ramakrishna." Sarada Devi, who was married to Ramakrishna in a traditional Indian child marriage, is likewise considered by many to be an incarnation of Kali. This pairing of contemporaneous avatars is rare if not unique in Hindu history. Ramakrishna, Sarada Devi, and Vivekananda are worshipped by devotees worldwide as a holy trinity, the latter not as an avatar but as someone who is eternally free nityasiddha or ishwarakoti, born on earth to assist avatar in His mission, possessor of total enlightenment and liberation from his very birth.

Some Hindus with a universalist outlook view the central figures of various non-Hindu religions as avatars. Some of these religious figures include: Zoroaster (Zarathustra) the prophet of Zoroastrianism, Gautama Buddha (563-483B.C.E.-543B.C.E.) the key figure in Buddhism, Mahavira (599 B.C.E.-527 B.C.E.) originator of the tenets of Jainism, Jesus (4 B.C.E.-36), who is thought by some to have spent time in India, as well as Bahá'u'lláh (1817–1892) the founder-prophet of the Bahá'í Faith, who is believed to be Kalkin Avatar. Many other Hindus reject the idea of avatars outside of traditional Hinduism.

Influence of Avatar Philosophy

Within Theosophy and the New Age

The avatar concept was adapted by orientalising Western occultism, specifically Theosophy and Neo-Theosophy. In a series of four lectures delivered at the Theosophical Society at Adyar, Madras, in December 1899, Annie Besant, the president of the society, combines Theosophical concepts with classic Vaishvanite ideas. A decade later, her co-worker the clairvoyant Charles Webster Leadbeater would claim that his young protege Jiddu Krishnamurti was actually the avatar of a Cosmic Christ-like being called the Maitreya. The resulting Star of the East debacle almost destroyed the Theosophical Society. Many New Age teachings have been strongly influenced by Neo-Theosophical ideas as well (primarily through Alice Bailey), and feature a celestial hierarchy of ascended masters. At the head of the hierarchy is the same being, the Maitreya, that Leadbeater claimed to see in Krishnamurti. Some New Age teachings speak of the coming return of Christ, or the coming of the Maitreya, which will usher in a new cosmic Era. According to Benjamin Creme, the Maitreya has already incarnated, and will soon reveal himself.

Criticism of contemporary avatars

Due to the outpouring of individuals claiming to be avatars in modern times, claims to being an incarnation of god have come to be viewed with some suspicion. Many new religious movements related to Hinduism (see Contemporary Hindu movements), some of which are viewed as cults, have more contentious views, including a tendency among disciples in modern times to identify their guru as an avatar. Swami Tapasyananda of the Ramakrishna Mission, on commentating about this phenomenon, has noted the widespread abuse of the avatar doctrine today and has lauded Christianity for limiting Divine Incarnation to a one-time phenomenon. In this view, if followers respect and revere the guru, it is only proper if they respect him as a conduit to God, rather than God incarnate. However, Swami Sivananda, founder Divine Life Society, has said that a guru can be likened to God if he himself has attained realization and is a link between the individual and the Absolute. Such a guru, according to his definition and interpretation, should have actually attained union with God, and should inspire devotion in others while radiating a presence that purifies all.

See also

• Kalkin
• Krishna
• Vaishnavism

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Bassuk, Daniel E. Incarnation in Hinduism and Christianity: the myth of the god-man. Atlantic Highlands, NJ: Humanities Press International, 1987. ISBN 0391034529
• Kinsley, David. "Avatar." Encyclopedia of Religion. Mercia Eliade, ed. New York: MacMillan Publishing, 1987. 14-15.
• Parrinder, Geoffrey. Avatar and incarnation: the Wilde lectures in natural and comparative religion in the University of Oxford. London: Faber, 1970. ISBN 0571093191

External links

General

• Avataras as categorized within Gaudiya Vaishnavism
• Diagram showing the 'family tree' of different Avatars
• Description of different Avatar types
• Animation Project based on Vishnu's Ten Incarnations
• Dasavatara stotra and the ten avataras
• Śrî Das'āvatāra Stotra: composed by Śrî Jayadeva Gosvāmî (inc. Audio file).
• The Avatar site
• Avatars of Lord Guru Datt
• Avatars with meanings.

Academic

• Avatars (Incarnations or Descents) of Vishnu
• Dasavatar discussion with meanings
• Dasavataras (krishna.com)
• Explores the claims made by various possible Avatars

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