SHRI VISHNU
DASHAVATARA
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SHRI VISHNU
DASHAVATARA
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Avatar (also known as Incarnation) in Sanskrit means – descent. It is the “appearance” or “manifestation” of God, Deity, or Supreme Self in an earthly embodiment.The Dashavatars of Vishnu is also an interpretation of evolution of man kind first Matsya (Fish Aquatic life), Kurma (Tortise amphibious life), Varaha (Wild Boar,Terrestial Wildlife), Narsimha (Mammal), Vamana (Dwarf), Parshurama( a man with Volatile nature), Rama (a stable peaceful man),Krishna (A Joyful and exuberent man), Buddha ( A meditative man), Kalki ( A Mystic).
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VISHNU Vishnu is one of the most important gods in the Hindu pantheon and, along with Brahma and Shiva, is considered a member of the holy trinity (trimurti) of Hinduism. He is the most important god of Vaishnaism, the largest Hindu sect. Indeed, to illustrate Vishnu’s superior status, Brahma is, in some accounts, considered to have been born from a lotus flower which grew from Vishnu’s naval. A complex character, Vishnu is the Preserver and guardian of men (Narayana), he protects the order of things (dharma) and, when necessary, he appears on earth in various incarnations or avatars to fight demons and fierce creatures and so maintain cosmic harmony. Vishnu was married to Lakshmi .He is considered to live in the city of Vaikuntha on Mt. Meru, where everything is made of shining gold and fabulous jewels and where there are lakes resplendent with lotus flowers.
“I am coming, I am coming, when there is a loss of religion, then I am coming, when the iniquity increases, then I am coming to protect the gentlemen, to destroy the wicked I am coming in to establish religion and I am born in the age of era.”
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MAT S YA AVATAR Once there was a demon called Hayagriva with the face of a horse, who stole the Vedas from Brahma, the creator and had disappeared into the oceans. During those times, there was a highly virtuous and pious king named Satryavrata or Vaivasvata Manu who ruled over the southern part of the Bharatvarsha. One day, the king went to Krithamala River to do his morning prayers. When he took some water from the river in his cupped palms, he found a tiny fish in it. When he wanted to drop the fish in the waters, it requested him to give shelter for fear of being eaten away by bigger fishes in the river. The King obliged and carried the fish to his palace and dropped it in a vessel.
SATYUGA Matsya Avatar is the first among the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu. Though there are several versions of the story found in different Puranas, the most popular is the one narrated in the Bhagavata Purana. As per the story, Lord Mahavishnu incarnated as Matsya to ensure the continuity of life on the earth following the great floods, starting Satyuga and also to rescue the Vedas and sacred texts from the demon Hayagriva.
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With the fish growing in size rapidly, Vaivasvata Manu had to change the container to bigger ones, finally when none of the containers was enough to contain the fish, it was eventually transferred to a pond, then to a lake , then to river Ganges and then finally to the ocean. The fish was growing even bigger in the ocean and once it thanked Vaivasvata Manu for giving shelter till then and assured the king that it would appear back after a while to rescue the king from the great floods.
The ship with Manu and his collections aboard was tied to the horn of the fish with the snake Vasuki. The fish swam over the floods pulling the ship to safety reaching the top of the Mighty Himalayas. All through the voyage, the Fish discoursed the King on the entire gamut of Sacred literature. Once the great floods subsided, the demon Hayagriva was exposed. Matsya killed him and rescued the Vedas handing them over once again to Brahma. All the seeds gathered in the ship were thrown on the earth. All the representatives of the different animal species started procreating once again.
Meanwhile, the fish instructed the king to collect the best of seeds from the flora and the best of representatives from fauna. It also advised that a huge ship be built and kept in ready condition.
Vaivasvata Manu performed a huge sacrifice or Yajna to propitiate the gods. With the blessings of the gods, a beautiful damsel named Ida appeared from the fire and married Manu. Both of them gave rise to the human race once again.
The great floods started swallowing the earth. The King had by then gathered all the collected seeds and representatives in the huge ship. The huge fish Matsya Avatar appeared and brought with it the huge snake Vasuki.
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KURMA AVATAR In the ongoing saga of battle between the gods and asuras. Once sage Durvasa had once presented a garland of flowers to Indra, who carelessly gave it away to his elephant which trampled it. the gods suddenly lost all their strength due to a curse by Durvasa. Devas grew weaker.The asuras, a tried to overcome them. A war followed, which continued for long. Despite fighting bravely, devas could not win over the asuras. They asked Lord Vishnu for help. Lord Vishnu asked the devas to churn ocean. But, they could not pull up the mount Mandara .
SATYUGA Kurma avatar belongs to the Satya Yuga and in this avatara Mahavishnu incarnated as a giant turtle to save the earth from destruction. Kurma Purana, one of the major eighteen Puranas, is said to have been directly stated by Lord Vishnu to the sage Narada, and it contains the details about the Kurma avatar.
On advice of Lord Vishnu, the gods and asuras made a deal churn the ocean jointly. They pulled the Mount Mandara and used it as a churning stick. Serpent Vasuki was used as a rope. During churning, Mandara began to sink, Vishnu took the form of Kurma and held the mountain on his broad back. As a result of the churning, amrita was obtained which asuras took control of Vishnu, took the form of a beautiful lady, Mohini and managed to take the nectar bowl with him and gave it to devas. Thus devas eventually got powerful. Thus, Vishnu helped them once again .
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VARAHA AVATAR Once the four sons of Lord Brahma visited Vaikunt, the abode of Lord Vishnu to pay their respect and seek his blessings. The two guards of Vaikunt namely Jaya and Vijaya had grown proud over time and they denied entry to the four sages without a reason. To teach them a lesson and put them in the right track, the four sages cursed that they shall lose their position and be born on the earth. When Jaya and Vijaya realized their mistake, they pleaded for pardon and the curse was revised that they shall be born thrice on the earth as demons and shall be killed by Vishnu every time upon which they shall attain their original status as the guards of Vaikunt once again. In their first birth, they were born as Hiranyakashpu and Hiranyaksha. Upon their birth, all the three worlds shook as though there were strong tremors. Indra was terribly afraid and approached Lord Vishnu. The Lord assured Indra that when the time was ripe, he would kill the demons and save all the worlds.
SATYUGA Varaha is the third incarnation of Lord Vishnu following Matsya (fish) and Kurma (tortoise). Varaha incarnation is highly powerful and benevolent. Devotees pray Lord Varaha to overcome fears and troubles. Installed in separate shrines in several Vishnu temples, Varaha is one of the most popular forms of Vishnu blessing the devotees with several boons.
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Hiranyakasha did a severe penance towards Brahma and secured boons that he shall not be killed by demons, humans, animals or gods. When this was conferred on him, he thought he had attained immortality not knowing how the divine shall work out the way.
harm the Lord. The Lord then used his Sudarshan Chakra and severed the head of Hiranyakashyap that put an end to his arrogant life. Lord Narayana then lifted the earth on his tusk and brought it out and positioned it in the orbit. Thus, the mission was complete. Once the Lord came out, he shook his body and powders of all colours fell down from his body. These powders were then used by the people of different sects to wear on their foreheads as religious marks.
Hiranyakashyap stood in the middle of the ocean and turned from side to side churning it. When Sage Narad appeared there, the demon asked whether there was anyone more powerful than him. The sage said it was Lord Narayana who is the supreme one. Angered by this response, the demon sought to search for Narayana in the three worlds. He rolled the earth like a mat and carried it to the nether worlds.
Since Lord Narayana rescued Mother Earth from the evil hands of the demon, Mother Earth surrendered at his lotus feet and prayed him to accept her. The Lord Married Mother Earth also called as Bhudevi. The iconographic depiction of Varaha Avatar shows The Lord with a wild boar’s head and having Bhudevi (Mother earth) seated on his laps. This form is also called Bhuvaraha.
All the lives were suffering. Lord Narayana then took the form of a wild boar and pierced down his way to the Patala Loka (nether worlds). He fought with the demon. No weapons used by the demon could
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NARSIMHA AVATAR Hiranyakashipu was Hiranyaksha’s younger brother. After his brother’s death, Hiranyakashipu was seething in rage and wanted revenge. He started tapas to please Lord Brahma to gain boon like his brother. After many years of severe penance, he finally pleased Lord Brahma. When Brahma appeared in front of him and asked what he wanted, he was prepared. He knew boon for immortality will not be granted. But like his brother, he planned to navigate through it. He asked not to be killed by any man or animal created by the gods. He continued to add conditions to make his death impossible. He wanted not to die during day or night, neither inside or outside, neither on land nor in the air, neither by any kind of weapon. Once he was granted this boon, he was as good as immortals. While he was away from his home doing tapas to gain boons, his home was attacked by Devas who wanted to kill his wife and his unborn child. But at the last minute, they were saved by Narada . Narada told the Devas that Hiranyakashipu’s wife and child have done nothing wrong and that it will be a sin to kill them. This stopped the attack and Narada continued to take care of lady.
SATYUGA Narasimha avatar is considered to be Lord Vishnu’s fourth avatar, and he had taken the form of a half-man half-lion to protect his devotee Prahalad ruler of the heavens.
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Narada would continue his Vishnu worship every day and this impacted the unborn child as well.When the baby boy was born he was named Prahlada. He grew up to become a Vishnu devotee much to his father’s annoyance. He wanted to kill his own child but didn’t want to upset his wife. He was also afraid that his subjects loved Prahlada too much and they might start a revolution if he was killed.
gave him one last chance to change his devotion to him instead of Vishnu. When Prahlada refused, Hiranyakashipu mocked him to call his Vishnu to come and save him. As he leapt towards Prahlada, the main pillar in the courtroom burst open and Vishnu in the form of Narasimha came out of it. Vishnu knew the boon and thus proceeded to pick Hiranyakashipu up in the air and brought him to the doorway. they were neither inside nor outside. Then proceeds to place him on his lap which was neither land nor air and as the sun was setting and night approaching during the dusk, he proceeded to use his paws to tear him in two pieces.
So one day His sister Holika came up with a solution. She had a shawl which was blessed to be fire-resistant. She said they would prepare a huge pyre in front of everyone. She will then sit in the pyre along with Prahlada and fire would be set. It would be told to the subjects that Holika will be chanting King Hiranyakashipu’s name while Prahlada will chant Vishnu’s name. The one stronger will save their devotee. On the said day pyre was prepared. When the fire started, Holika entered it along with Prahlada. At this time, Vishnu used a gust of wind to transfer the fire-resistant shawl from Holika to Prahlada. Thus nothing happened to Prahlada but Holika burnt to her death.. Hiranyakashipu was now angry beyond reason. Now he was ready to kill his son himself. He brought Prahlada to his courtroom and
After killing out, he gave out a loud roar, which scared away all the asuras in fright. Prahlad went up to him with utter devotion in his eyes and thanked him for saving his life. When asked about his father, Narasimha told him that Hiranyakshipu was actually Lord Vishnu’s gatekeeper Vijay who was cursed, and who needed to take three more births to go back to the heavens. Prahlad was made the king of his father’s kingdom, and he ruled with utmost honesty and goodwill, which also changed the ways of the asuras ways the curse.
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VAMANA AVATAR One day Daityaraj Bali went to meet Rishi Shukracharya and asked him, “Acharya please show me a way to gain back all my powers and my kingdom.”Hearing Bali’s words, Acharya replied, “You must perform the Mahabhishek Vishwajeet Yagya, to get back all your powers.”Bali agreed to do the Yagya under the supervision of Shukracharya. After the yagya, Bali received a golden chariot pulled by four houses that ran at the speed of wind. He also got a quiver with numerous arrows, a flag post with lion’s head and celestial armour. Along with these things Shukracharya gave him a garland of ever blooming flowers and a conch shell whose battle cry was thunderous. Then, Bali went to battle against Indra. This time Daityaraj Bali won the battle and Indra fled from the battlefield. Bali once again asked for Shukracharya’s guidance to maintain his victorious position. Shukracharya said, “If you keep on performing yagyas, you can live a fearless and powerful life. You should also give alms to poor and the Brahmins.“
SATYUGA The Vamana Avatar starts with Mahabali the Asura King. Mahabali was the grandson of Prahlada and the son of Virochana. After the churning of the ocean, the Gods became immortal and powerful. Indra’s army defeated Daityaraj Bali and his army of Asuras and Daityas.
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Bali readily agreed to do so. Meanwhile Indra approached Acharya Brihaspati to learn a way to gain back Gods’ powers. Acharya Brihaspati asked Indra to seek Lord Vishnu’s help. Now Indra started doing penance so as to please Lord Vishnu. Maharishi Kashyap’s wife Aditi, who was Indra’s mother, saw her son in trouble and went to Lord Vishnu for help. Lord Vishnu said, “I will help you, Devmata. I will be born as your son in the near future. I will and then kill Bali.”And so it happened that Aditi gave birth to a boy. She named him Vamana. One day Vamana posed as a Brahmin and went to the spot where Shukracharya and Daityaraj Bali were performing a yagya. Bali welcomed the Brahmin boy and said, “How can I help you young Brahmin?”
He took a large step and put it on Earth to claim it and said, “Now the earth is mine.” Then he took the second step and put it on Amravati which was under Bali’s control and said, “Now Amravati is mine.” Amravati was also unrthe Brahmin boy’s possession. Then he said, “Bali where should I keep my third step? Earth and Heaven are already mine. Now there is no place left.” Shukracharya warned Bali, “Be careful Bali! I am very sure this Brahmin is not an ordinary boy. He is surely Vamana, Lord Vishnu himself. Don’t let him take the third step or you will have to lose everything you have.” But Bali said, “Acharya, I have given him my word. I cannot go back from it. “The Asuras and Daityas heard this and stepped forward to attack Vamana, but they could not harm him at all. Bali then addressed Vamana and said, “As nothing else is left you may keep your third step on my head.”
The Brahmin said, “I have heard a lot about you give alms to Brahmins. I do not want wealth or luxuries; I just need the land that my three steps cover.” All the people who were present there were surprised to hear the request of the Brahmin boy. The Asuras laughed at the boy’s request. Daityaraj Bali agreed to grant him what he wanted. Suddenly, to everyone’s surprise, the young Brahmin boy started growing in size. Soon he was larger than planet Earth itself.
Hearing Bali’s words, Lord Vishnu appeared in his true form and said, “I bless you, Bali. From now on, you will rule Pataal Lok forever.” Thus Bali went away to Pataal Lok. Indra and the other Gods retained Amravati due to Lord Vishnu’s Vamana Avtar.
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PARSHURAMA Parshuram was the son of Jamadagni and Renuka. Parshuram had received an axe from Lord Shiva after undertaking terrible reparation. Lord Shiva had also taught his methods of warfare and other skills. Born in a Brahmin family, he was unlike the other Brahmins. Instead, Parshuram carried traits of a Kshatriya. He carried a number of Khatriya traits, which included aggression, warfare and valour. Hence, he is called as a ‘Brahma-Kshatriya’ as he had skills from both the clan. One story associated with Parshuram is that once King Kartavirya Sahasrarjuna and his army forcibly tried to take away Parshuram’s father’s magical cow named Kamdhenu. Being angry and revengeful, he killed the entire army and King Kartavirya. In revenge for their father’s death, the king’s son killed Jamadagni in Parshuram’s absence. Furious and hurt by their act, he went ahead killing all the king’s sons and corrupt Haihaya Kings and warriors on the earth.
TRETA YUGA Lord Vishnu occupies an integral place in Indian mythology and religion. Lord Vishnu is known for his many incarnations. Parshuram is believed to be his sixth incarnation.The story of Parshuram belongs to the Treta yug. The word Parshuram means Lord Ram with an axe(parsha).
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He conducted the Ashvamedha sacrifice and gave away his entire holdings to the priests who conducted the ritual.Parshuram is also known as immortal, who fought back the advancing ocean, which was going to hit the lands of Kokan and Malabar. Parshuram was known for his love for righteousness. He was known to be the Guru to Bhishma, Dronacharya and Karna. However, in advance, Parshuram knew that Karna would do injustice to Duryodhan in the Kruskshetra war. So as the duty of a good guru, he decides to teach him the Brahmashastra, but he also cursed Karna that the knowledge will not be any useful to him.
According to Bhagavata Purana, Renuka, his mother has the ability to collect water in unbaked pots by the power of her chastity. She was known for her absolute devotion to her husband.One day, when she went to the river to fetch water. She saw a Gandharva bathing in the river. She felt sexually attracted to him and began to desire for his company. This moment of infidelity took away her magical powers. She completely lost the sense of time. She forgets that her husband is waiting for her return.When she returned, her husband learned of her adulterous intentions through his meditative powers. As a result, he becomes enraged and ordered his sons to be head her.His four eldest sons refused to do so as killing off a mother which was considered a great sin.
According to the folklore, Parshuram gave the Sudharshan chakra to Lord Krishna. It is believed that the main motto of Vishnu’s sixth incarnation was to free the earth’s burden by assassinating the sinful and irreligious kings who neglected their duties.
But at the same time, not obeying the orders of an elder, especially their father’s is also a great offense. But Parashuram obeyed his father without any question. He raised his axe and severed her head from her body. Furthermore, he ordered him to kill his brothers too. He killed his brothers too. Pleased with the obedience of his son, he asked his son to ask for a boon.Parashuram said, ‘Give me back my mother and brothers’. His father grants him the boon .
According to another legend, Parshuram once went to meet Lord Shiva. As he reached the door, Lord Ganesh confronted Parshuram and stopped him from meeting Lord Shiva. Angry and furious, Parshuram threw the axe given by Lord Shiva on Ganesha. Knowing that the axe was given by Lord Shiva, Ganesha allowed the axe to cut away one of his tusks.
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RAMA AVATAR King Dasaratha, a prince of the solar race, and his mother is Queen Kausalya. Rama was born at the end of Treta-yuga and he came into the world specifically at the bidding of the gods to deal with the fearsome multi-headed demon Ravana, the king of Lanka. The great god Vishnu answered the gods’ call and appeared in a sacrificial fire made by Dasaratha. The pious king was presented with a pot of nectar, and he gave it to his wifes who produced halfdivine Rama as a consequence and Bharata, Lakshmana, and Shatrughna
TRETA YUGA Treta Yuga is the second yuga after Satya Yuga. Unlike Satya yuga when people in earth were mostly leading highly righteous lives, Treta yuga saw a gradual deterioration in the practice of dharma; it is said that in Treta yuga, three quarters of the people in earth were righteous and a quarter of the population followed unrighteous ways in life. And it was at appropriate time in Treta Yuga that Lord Vishnu descended on earth as Rama Avatar.
Rama’s first adventure occurred when the sage Visvamitra asked for help in fighting deamon and there killed Taraka, a terrible female demon. In gratitude Rama was given divine weapons, and he set off for more adventures, ending up in Mithila. There Janaka the king of Videha hosted him and he met the king’s beautiful daughter Sita. The king had promised the princess in marriage to anyone who could manage to bend a huge bow which had once been the weapon of the great god Shiva. Rama, with his divine strength, did more than just bend the bow but broke it in half and so won the hand of Sita, his first and most revered wife.
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Jealous of Rama, Manthara soured the opinion of Kaikeyi, who persuade her husband to make Bharata heir to the throne. On top of this slight Rama was exiled from the kingdom for fourteen years. Accompanied by Sita and Laksmana, Meanwhile, Dasaratha died, Rama did not stay still in the of his exile but visited many sages. Eventually, he ended up at Panchvati along the river Godavari, an area plagued by demons. One in particular, Surpanakha, the sister of Ravana, fell in love with Rama, and when her advances were resisted, she attacked Sita in revenge. Laksmana was the first to react and cut off the ears and nose of Surpanakha. Surpanakha was not finished with the matter and she persuaded Ravana that Sita was a girl worth fighting for. Accordingly, the demon king sought out Rama’s home, and while Rama was distracted in the hunt for a deer , abducted Sita, taking her back to Lanka in his aerial chariot to be kept captive in his beautiful Ashoka garden.Rama followed in hot pursuit but met several troubles.
Bali, Rama helped restore Sugriva to power. A grateful Sugriva gave Rama use of an army and enlisted the help of Hanuman, It was he who magically transported Rama and his force to Lanka, crossing the rock bridge built by the skilled general Nala, son of Visvakarma, which became known as Rama’s Bridge. A series of titanic battles between Rama’s forces and the demons followed, but eventually Ravana was slain, Lanka fell to Rama’s army, and he was reunited with his Sita who gave Agni Pariksha Escaping the flames unscrathed, and the couple headed back for Ayodhya where Rama reclaimed his throne. The story continues with people of Ayodhya harbouring suspicions about Sita virtue during her captivity with Ravana. Thus Sita exiles to live with the sage Valmiki, and there she bears him twin sons, Kusa and Lava. Eventually the sons return to Ayodhya where Rama recognizes his offspring and, in a fit of remorse, recalls the wronged Sita. Still proclaiming her innocence, Sita now swears her virtue on the earth itself which then promptly swallows her by opening beneath her feet. Later Rama wades into the river Sarayu and from there is welcomed into heaven by Brahma.
Rama before confronting Ravana, he took help of Sugriva, king of the monkeys. Finding on their arrival at Sugriva’s capital Kiskindha that the king had lost his throne to his brother
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KRISHNA AVATAR In DwaparaYuga, God came to earth as Lord Krishna to initiate large scale destruction of human race, in order to bring a manageable balance to the earthly resources and establish dharma by killing deamons like Kamsa.The King Kamsa was forewarned by his astrologers that his death would be caused by the eighth son who would be born to his cousin Devaki. To prevent such a happening, Kamsa arrested Devaki and her husband Vasudeva and incarcerated them in his prison.
DWAPAR YUGA The Avatar of Krishna is said to have taken place in Dwapara Yuga. A time where 2 quaters of people were following Dharama and other 2 Adharma. The avatar of Krishna is considered a “Poornavatar” an avatar in which Godly qualities were found manifested in full. Lord Krishna is perhaps the most widely loved, adored and worshiped Avatar by Vaishnavaites across the length and breadth of India. He is the preacher of Karma Yoga and he is a perfect Karma Yogi himself .
When the eighth child was born, it was Lord Krishna. By a dramatic divine play, at the midnight when the birth took place, the child was miraculously and secretively transported to Gokula It was a stormy night. The divine snake Adhisesha was there to act as an umbrella to protect the lord. to become the foster son of mother Yasoda and King Nanda. A female child born to them at the same time was transported back to the prisons. It was Vasudev, Krishna’s father, who did the exchange of the babies at the behest of a divine command. All these took place without the knowledge of Devaki and Yasoda.
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When Kamsa came to know of the birth of the eighth child, he came to the prison as usual and as he lifted the child to kill it, the girl child got freed from his clutches and flew away laughing aloud that the king was cheated squarely and the child meant to kill him was safe and alive elsewhere. Kamsa was shell shocked.
this phase that Radha of Brindavan developed a deep rooted love for Krishna. The divine love between Radha and Krishna is still an ispiration of Bhakti yoga for Vaishnavaites. When Krishna became a matured boy, it was time for him to go to Mathura to face his uncle Kamsa and destroy him for all his vengeful deeds. Krishna killed his uncle in a ferocious combat. He released his parents from the jail and re-throned Ugrasena as the king.At his own Kingdom at Mathura Krishna had to face a very tough war against Jarasandha, the father-in-law of the slain king Kamsa. After the last attack, Krishna establish a new Kingdom at Dwaraka, due to strategic reasons. All the Yadava subjects were shifted to Dwaraka Krishna utilized the services of Bhima to finally kill Jarasandha.
The Child Krishna Brought up at Gokula The baby Lord Krishna grew up joyfully in the company of cow herds at Gokula. He loved to steal butter and eat it in the company of fellow cow herd boys. In the meanwhile, Kamsa sent several powerful demons in varying disguises to search for, locate and kill him . Little Krishna killed them all as a matter of child play. Further, little Krishna killed a very ferocious and poisonous Snake Kaliya who lived in the river Yamuna. He extracted the snake from the river and danced at his hood to the awe of one and all. When the celestial lord Indra created heavy rains at Gokula because a worship due to him was denied at the behest of Krishna, Krishna protected the entire community by lifting up the hill Govardhan by holding it at his little finger. Right from his boyhood, Krishna started playing flute. His music was exremely captivating.It was during
In the meanwhile, his maternal cousins the Pandavas of the Kuru clan at the kingdom of Hastinapur were facing lots of difficulty in claiming their rightful share to their kingdom. It was due to the unrighteous cousins — the Kouravas headed by Duriyodhan. Krishna developed a bosom friendship with Arjuna the most powerful archer and the younger brother of Yudhishtra. The Pandavas werefairly knowledgeable of the
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divinely nature of Krishna; The Pandavas surrendered to Krishna and sought his help and guidance in overcoming their problems. Finally a grand war erupted between Padndavas and Kouravas. Numerous kings of the entire subcontinent virtually sidelined and supported either Pandavas or Kauravas took part in the great Mahabharata war.
practically all their offspring got annihilated. Lord Krishna by using his divine power to protect a fetus in the womb of Arjuna’s daughterin-law Uttara, wife of Abhimanyu. As Krishna advanced in age, the Yadava clan grew too arrogant, and got in the grip of vices. By an act of mischief, Krishna’s descendants and their clan got a curse from sages that paved for their annihilation. Time soon came when they were destined to get wiped out entirely on account of a verbal dual that started between two drunken relatives of Krishna. It grew into a bloody fight using pestles that grew out of wild grass near seashore.Krishna knew that it was time to draw curtains to his divine plays in his present Avatar. He retired to forest and was engaged in deep meditation. He was finally slain by an arrow which was mistakenly aimed at his foot by a hunter who thought it was a deer.Soon a great tsunami came and the surging sea waters submerged the entire city of Dwaraka.
Krishna offered his services to be the charioteer of Arjuna during the war. Just before the beginning of the war at Kurukshetra, Arjuna became jittery. He felt it was futile to wage war against his own blood relations. It was at this juncture, that Lord Krishna gave one of the greatest sermons to Arjuna. His utterances form the holy scripture Bhagavat Gita. In this great spiritual discourse, Lord Krishna predominantly teaches Karma Yoga . In Bhagavad Gita, he also elaborates the other spiritual paths Bhakti Yoga and Gnyana Yoga. Krishna, as part of his effort to teach Arjuna during his discourse, gave a divine vision to Arjuna an revealed his Vishwarupa and Arjuna was overwhelmed with awe to see this form of the Supreme Lord Krishna. The war ended with the annihilation of Kouravas and the rule of the Pandavas was established.. Despite the win, Pandavas too were virtually emotionally wrecked, as
Krishna’s entire life was one of an exuberant display of divine play. Krishna’s Bhagavat Gita reins as a supreme reference book of all the various paths of Yoga for earnest seekers for guidance and enlightenment.
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GAUTAM BUDDHA The evidence of the early texts suggests that Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha was born into the Shakya clan, a community which was inhabiting on the periphery of the eastern Indian subcontinent. According to Buddhist tradition, this place was called Lumbini (in modern-day Nepal). He was raised in Kapilvastu, the Shakya capital, which may have been either the present day Tilaurakot in Nepal or Piprahwa in India.Gautama was born as a Kshatriya, the son of Suddhodana, elected chief of the Shakya clan, whose capital was Kapilavastu. His mother’s name was Maya (Mayadevi) and she was a Koliyan princess. Legend has it that, on the night Siddhartha was conceived, she dreamt that a white elephant with six white tusks entered her right side. As was the Shakya tradition, when Queen Maya became pregnant, she left for Kapilavastu (her father’s kingdom) to give birth. However, Gautama is said to have been born en route Lumbini, in a garden beneath a sal tree. Thus, the birthplace of Buddha is Lumbini, which is in modern-day Nepal.
KALI YUGA An iconic figure of Sakyamuni Buddha is enough to perceive the grandeur of this historical leader who influenced the social and political frame of India in kaliyuga where only 1 quater of people follow Dharma. There was an unprecedented charm in Buddhist teachings and Buddhist philosophy, something that is as relevant then as it is now.
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Buddha from Siddharth Gautam Born to Shakya Chief of Kapilvastu, Suddhodana, and Queen Maya, in 6th century B.C. the daughter of the king of Lumbini, Buddha has a story that everyone should listen to. It is believed he was born en route Lumbini, under a sal tree. The infant was given the name Siddhartha which meant “he who achieves his aim” in a ceremony that took place after 5 days of his birth in which 8 Brahmins scholars were invited to read the future.
a diseased man, a decaying corpse, and an ascetic. His comprehension of the world suggested that he could overcome all this suffering by meditation and becoming an ascetic and thus, he decided to leave the royal responsibilities and family to attain enlightenment. After leaving the palace, Buddha went from place to place over a period of 6 years, learning and mastering the technique of meditation. He once came to a point where he starved himself but in return gained no spiritual awakening. Finally, after meditating for 49 days under the Bodhi tree in Bodhgaya, Bihar, Siddharth is said to have become what was prophesied for him – Buddha – the Awakened One.
They all gave a dual prediction that the baby would either become a great king or a great holy man except for the youngest Brahmin Kondanna who unequivocally predicted that Siddhartha would become a Buddha. King Suddhodana, wishing for his son to be a great king, shielded him from any contact with human suffering as well as religious teachings. It was after spending 29 years as the prince of Kapilavastu, Siddharth finally got a glimpse of the real world outside. It so happened that Gautam decided to meet his subjects, and in that attempt, he saw an aged man for the first time. His charioteer, Channa explained to him that all people grew old. In further trips, he encountered
With the awakening, the most important learning for enlightenment unfolded – the Middle Path, which construes following a path which away from the extremes of selfindulgence and self-mortification. Buddha also emphasised realizing enlightenment on one’s own. After enlightenment, he is said to have spent 45 years of his life preaching and teaching in various parts of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and southern Nepal.
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KALKI AVATAR He is described in the Puranas as the avatar who rejuvenates existence by ending the darkest and destructive period to remove adharma and ushering in the Satya Yuga, while riding a white horse with a fiery sword.The description and details of Kalki are different among various Puranas. He is, for example, only an invisible force destroying evil and chaos in some texts[citation needed], and portrayed as someone leading an army of warriors in some. Kalki is also found in Buddhist texts: in Tibetan Buddhism, the Kalachakra-Tantra. The prophecy of the Kalki avatar is believed not only by the followers of the Vaishnavism sect of Hinduism (Sanatan Dharma) but by Sikhism as well, as the last Avatar in Dashavatara the ten avatars of Vishnu, who is the chief deity in Vaishnavism.
KALIYUGA Kalki is the final incarnation of Vishnu in the current Mahayuga, foretold to appear at the end of Kali Yuga, the current epoch. Religious texts called the Puranas foretell that Kalki willbe atop a white horse with a drawn blazing sword. He is the harbinger of the end time in Hindu eschatology, after which he will usher in Satya Yuga.
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“ Dashavatara refers to the ten avatars of Vishnu, the Hindu god of preservation.Vishnu is said to descend in form of an avatar to restore cosmic order. These Avatars play a major role in shaping human evolution through centuries. God Vishnu incarnates on Earth from time to time to eradicate evil forces, to restore the dharma and to liberate the worthy ones or devotees from the cycle of births and deaths. ”
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