Avatar

In Hinduism, an avatar (, from Sanskrit , বাংলা अवतार in the Devanagari script, meaning "descent") is a deliberate descent of a deity to earth, or a descent of the Supreme Being (i.e., Vishnu for Vaishnavites) and is mostly translated into English as "incarnation," but more accurately as "appearance" or "manifestation".Introduction to World Religions, by Christopher Hugh Partridge, pg. 148, at Books.Google.com
The term is most often associated with Vishnu, though it has also come to be associated with other deities. Varying lists of avatars of Vishnu appear in Hindu scriptures, including the ten Dashavatara of the Garuda Purana and the twenty-two avatars in the Bhagavata Purana, though the latter adds that the incarnations of Vishnu are innumerable. The avatars of Vishnu are a primary component of Vaishnavism. An early reference to avatar, and to avatar doctrine, is in the Bhagavad Gita.
Shiva and Ganesha are also described as descending in the form of avatars. The various manifestations of Devi, the Divine Mother principal in Hinduism, are also described as avatars or incarnations by some scholars and followers of Shaktism. The avatars of Vishnu carry a greater theological prominence than those of other deities, which some scholars perceive to be imitative of the Vishnu avatar lists.
Avatar is the incarnation or incarnated manifestation of a Hindu deity, a theory both characteristic of Vishnuism and marking a new epoch in the religious development of India.
Recently, the term avatar has been used to signify "an interactive representation of a human in a virtual reality environment",http://www.case.edu/help/webglossary.html that is, an online persona used in computer gaming or internet communities.
Avatar: The Last Airbender is also the title of an animated television series which airs on Nickelodeon.
==Etymology and meaning==
The Sanskrit noun is derived from the verbal root "to cross over", joined with the prefix "off , away , down". The word doesn't occur in the Vedas, but is recorded in (3.3.120).
 was initially used to describe different deities, then around the 6th century CE it began to be used primarily to describe the manifestations of Vishnu.Sheth, p. 116.
While earlier texts mention deities taking on different forms, the Bhagavad Gita (4.5-9) is the first text to discuss the doctrine associated with the term even though the word avatāra itself is not mentioned.Sheth, pp. 98, 116.
According to some scholars like Parrinder, Oduyoye, Vroom and Sheth, the common translation "incarnation" due to its christological implications is somewhat misleading as the concept of avatar corresponds more closely to the view of Docetism in Christian theology, as different from the idea of God 'in the flesh' in mainstream Christology.Edward Geoffrey Parrinder, Avatar and incarnation (1970, 1997), chapter "Docetism, in Buddhism and Christology", pp. 240ff.Mercy Amba Oduyoye, H. M. Vroom, One gospel – many cultures: case studies and reflections on cross-cultural theology, Rodopi, 2003, ISBN 9789042008977, p. 111.Sheth, p. 108.
Related to the idea of avatar is that of , that is, the idea of manifestations of the divine in various aspects of human life and the natural world.Sheth, p. 100
==Avatars of Vishnu==
The concept of avatar within Hinduism is most often associated with Vishnu, the preserver or sustainer aspect of God within the Hindu Trinity or Trimurti or the one and only supreme God for followers of Vaishnavism.
Vishnu's avatars typically descend for a very specific purpose. An oft-quoted passage from the Bhagavad Gita describes the typical role of an avatar of Vishnu—to bring dharma, or righteousness, back to the social and cosmic order:
The descents of Vishnu are also integral to His teaching and tradition, whereas the accounts of other deities are not so strictly dependent on their avatar stories. Although it is usual to speak of Vishnu as the source of the avatars, within the Vaishnavism branch of Hinduism Narayana, Vasudeva, and Krishna are also seen as names denoting divine aspects which descend as avatars.
The Bhagavata Purana describes Vishnu's avatars as innumerable, though there are ten incarnations (Dasavatara, Sanskrit: ten avatars) that are widely seen as his major appearances. Krishna and Rama are the two mostly widely known and worshiped avatars of Vishnu, with their stories told in the two popular epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. Different lists of Vishnu's avatars appear in different texts, including: the dasavatara from the Garuda Purana; lists of twenty-two, twenty-three, and sixteen avatars in the Bhagavata Purana; thirty-nine avatars in the ; the dasavatara again in Agni Purana; the first eight of the dasavatara in Padma Purana. The commonly accepted number of ten was fixed well before the 10th century CE. In addition, various Vaishnava saints and founders are considered to be partial avatars.Sheth, p. 100.
The various avatars categorized in many different ways. For example: Purusavatara is the first avatara; Gunavataras are represented by the Trimurti (Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva) who each preside over one of the gunas (rajas, sattva, and tamas); Lilavataras are the well-known ones, and include Avesavataras (beings into whom part of God Himself has entered) and saktyamsavesa (into whom only parts of His power enter); Kalpa-, Manvantara-, and Yuga-avataras descend during different cosmic ages.Sheth, pp. 100–101.
Some Vaishnavism schools consider Krishna to be the source of all avatars (Krishnaism).
===Dashavatara===
The ten best known avatars of Vishnu are collectively known as the Dasavatara (a dvigucompound meaning "ten avatars"). This list is included in the Garuda Purana (1.86.10"11).Garuda Purana (1.86.10-11)
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). The next three avatars appeared in the Treta Yuga, the eighth descent in the Dwapara Yuga and the ninth in the Kali Yuga. The tenth, Kalki, is predicted to appear at the end of the Kali Yuga.Matchett, p. 86.
# Matsya, the fish-avatar who saved Manu – the progeniter of mankind from the great deluge and rescued the Vedic scriptures by killing a demon. Story can be found in the Matsya Purana.
# Kurma, the tortoise-avatar, who helped in the Samudra manthan – the churning of the ocean. Story can be found in the Kurma Purana.
# Varaha, the boar-avatar, who rescued the earth from the ocean, by killing her kidnapper-demon Hiranyaksha. Story can be found in the Varaha Purana.
# Narasimha, the half man-half lion avatar, who killed the tyrant demon-king Hiranyakashipu, to rescue the demon's son Prahlada, who was a Vishnu-devotee
# Vamana, the dwarf-avatar, who subdued the king Maha Bali. Story can be found in the Vamana Purana.
# Parashurama, sage with the axe who killed the thousand-armed king Kartavirya Arjuna
# Rama, the king of Ayodhya and the hero of the Hindu epic Ramayana
# Krishna, the king of Dwarka, a central character in the Bhagavata Purana and the Mahabharata and reciter of Bhagavad Gita. However, in the original Dasavatara stotra, Balarama, the elder brother of Krishna, is stated as the eight incarnation, while Krishna (Lord Kesava) is the source of all the incarnation.O Keshava! O Lord of the universe! O Lord Hari, who have assumed the form of Balarama, the yielder of the prowl All glories to You! On Your brilliant white body You wear garments the color of a fresh blue rain cloud. These garments are colored like the beautiful dark hue of the River Yamuna, who feels great fear due to the striking of Your plowshare Dasavatara stotra
# Gautama BuddhaList of Hindu scripture that declares Gautama Buddha as 9th Avatar of Vishnu as follows
[Harivamsha (1.41) Vishnu Purana (3.18) Bhagavata Purana (1.3.24, 2.7.37, 11.4.23 name="Bhagavata Purana 1.3.24">Bhagavata Purana 1.3.24
Garuda Purana (1.1, 2.30.37, 3.15.26) [Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi 1982.Agni Purana (160.Narada Purana (2.72)Linga Purana (2.71) Padma Purana (3.252) etc. (Dhere Ramchandra Chintaman) [Dhere Ramchandra Chintaman, Shri Vitthal: ek maha samanvaya, Shri Vidya Prakashan, Pune, 1984 (MarathiBhagavata Purana, Canto 1, Chapter 3 – SB 1.3.24: "Then, in the beginning of Kali-yuga, the Lord will appear as Lord Buddha, the son of Anjana, in the province of Gaya, just for the purpose of deluding those who are envious of the faithful theist." ... SB 1.3.28: "All of the above-mentioned incarnations [avatars] are either plenary portions or portions of the plenary portions of the Lord [Krishna or Vishnu]"O Keshava! O Lord of the universe! O Lord Hari, who have assumed the form of Buddha! All glories to You! O Buddha of compassionate heart, you decry the slaughtering of poor animals performed according to the rules of Vedic sacrifice.] [http://www.salagram.net/Dasavatara-page.htm#Sri Dasavatara stotraLecture 1974 by founder of ISKCON – A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada "Because people were addicted so much in violence, in killing the animals, therefore Buddha philosophy was needed"'Vivekananda: May he who is the Brahman of the Hindus, the Ahura Mazda of Zoroastrians, the Buddha of Buddhists, the Jehovah of the Jews, the Father in Heavens of Christians, give strength to you to carry out your noble ideas!] Hinduism, in The World's Parliament of Religions, J. H. Barrows (Ed.), Vol. II, Chicago 1893, p. 978.Radhakrishnan: If a Hindu chants the Vedas on the banks of the Ganges, ... if the Japanese worship the image of Buddha, if the European is convinced of Christ's mediatorship, if the Arab reads the Koran in the mosque ... It is their deepest apprehension of God and God's fullest revelation to them.] Eastern Religions and Western Thought, New York 1969, pp. 326–7.name="Bhagavata Purana 1.3.24"/>Buddha as an Avatar of Vishnu at HinduWikiBuddha: The Refiner of Hinduism? (hinduism.about.com)The Buddha as an Avatar of Vishnu (article by A. Seshan from The Times of India)Mahatma Gandhi and Buddhism (pdf file)The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda/Volume 1/Addresses at The Parliament of Religions/Buddhism, the Fulfilment of Hinduism|Buddhism, the Fulfilment of Hinduism, by Swami Vivekananda
#Kalki ("Eternity", or "time", or "The Destroyer of foulness"), who is expected to appear at the end of Kali Yuga. Story can be found in the Kalki Purana.
===In the Bhagavata Purana===
As many as forty specific avatars of Vishnu are mentioned in the Bhagavata Purana, though the book adds that the number is innumerable. Twenty-two avatars of Vishnu are listed numerically in the first book:Bhag-P 1.3 Canto 1, Chapter 3
# Four Kumaras (Catursana) [BP 1.3.6] – the four Sons of god Brahma and exemplified the path of devotion.
# Varaha [BP 1.3.7] the Lord lifted the earth out of the ocean and battled Hiranyaksa. 
# Narada [BP 1.3.8] the divine-sage who travels the worlds as a devotee of Vishnu
# Nara-Narayana [BP 1.3.9] – the twin-sages
# Kapila [BP 1.3.10] – a sage and one of the founders of the Samkhya school of philosophy
# Dattatreya [BP 1.3.11] – the combined avatar of the Hindu trinity Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. He was born to the sage Atri became a great seer himself.
# Yajna [BP 1.3.12] – the lord of fire-sacrifice, who took was the Indra – the lord of heaven
# Rishabha [BP 1.3.13] – the father of King Bharata and Bahubali
# Prithu [BP 1.3.14] – the sovereign-king who milked the earth as a cow to get the world's grain and vegetation and also invented agriculture
# Matsya [BP 1.3.15], he appeared to Manu and saved him from the flood.
# Kurma [BP 1.3.16], he supported the process of amrit-manthan.
# Dhanvantari [BP 1.3.17] – the father of Ayurveda medicine and a physician to the Devas.
# Mohini [BP 1.3.17] – the enchantress
# Narasimha[BP 1.3.18], he vanquished Hiranyakasipu to save Prahlada, his devotee.
# Vamana [BP 1.3.19], he was born to Aditi and brought out the humility in Mahabali.
# Parashurama [BP 1.3.20], he cleaned the earth of all Kshatriyas three times over.
# Vyasa [BP] 1.3.21] – the compiler of the scriptures – Vedas and writer of the scriptures Puranas and the epic Mahabharata
# Rama [BP 1.3.22], he vanquished the Rakshasa Ravana. 
# Balarama [BP 1.3.23]
# Krishna [BP 1.3.23], he participated in the Mahabharata and is the protagonist of many stories and parables.
# Buddha [BP 1.3.24]
# Kalki [BP 1.3.25], he will incarnate at the end of the current Kaliyuga with Parashurama as his guru.
Besides these, another four avatars are described later on in the text as follows:
# Prshnigarbha [BP 10.3.41] – the son of Prshni
# Hayagriva [BP 2.7.11] – the horse-faced avatar
# Hamsa [BP 11.13.19] – the swan, he expounded on the Vedas to Sage Narada.
# Golden avatra [BP 11.5.32] – the avatara in Kali-yuga for propagating hari-namasankirtan.The Golden Avatara
==Avatars of Ganesha==
The Linga Purana declares that Ganesha incarnates to destroy demons and to help the gods and pious people. The two upapuranas – Ganesha Purana and Mudgala Purana – detail the avatars of Ganesha. Both these upapuranas are core scriptures of the Ganapatya sect – exclusively dedicated to Ganesha worship.
Four avatars of Ganesha are listed in the Ganesha Purana:Mohotkata, Mayūreśvara, Gajanana and Dhumraketu. Each avatar corresponds to a different yuga, has a different mount and different skin complexion, but all the avatars have a common purpose – to slay demons.Grimes, pp. 100–105.
The Mudgala Purana describes eight avatars of Ganesha:Phyllis Granoff, "," in Robert L. Brown (ed.) Ganesh: Studies of an Asian God, pp. 94–5, note 2. ISBN 0-7914-0657-1
#Vakratunda () ("twisting trunk"), his mount is a lion.
#Ekadanta ("single tusk"), his mount is a mouse.
#Mahodara ("big belly"), his mount is a mouse.
#Gajavaktra (or Gajānana) ("elephant face"), his mount is a mouse.
#Lambodara ("pendulous belly"), his mount is a mouse.
#Vikata () ("unusual form", "misshapen"), his mount is a peacock.
#Vighnaraja () ("king of obstacles"), his mount is the celestial serpent .
#Dhumravarna () ("grey color") corresponds to Śiva, his mount is a horse.
==Avatars of Shiva==
Although Puranic scriptures contain occasional references to avatars of Shiva, the idea is not universally accepted in Saivism. The Linga Purana speaks of twenty-eight avatars of Shiva. In the Shiva Purana there is a distinctly Saivite version of a traditional avatar myth: Shiva brings forth Virabhadra, one of his terrifying forms, in order to calm Narasimha, an avatar of Vishnu. When that fails, Shiva manifests as the human-lion-bird Sharabha. The story concludes with Narasimha becoming a devotee of Shiva after being bound by Sharabha.Soifer, pp. 91–92. However, Vaishnava followers including Dvaita scholars, such as Vijayindra Tirtha (1539–95) refute this Shaivite view of Narasimha based on their reading of Sattvika Puranas and Śruti texts.
The monkey-god Hanuman who helped Rama – the Vishnu avatar is considered by some to be the eleventh avatar of Rudra (Shiva).
Some regional deities like Khandoba are also believed by some to be avatars of Shiva. p.118 p.332
Other stated avatars of Shiva, according to some sources, are 8th century non-dualist Vedanta philosopher (Advaita Vedanta) Adi Shankara. He was named "Shankara" after Lord Shiva and is considered by some to have been an incarnation of the godPadma Purana 6.236.7-11 and Virabhadra who was born when Shiva grabbed a lock of his matted hair and dashed it to the ground. Virabhadra then destroyed Daksha's yajna (fire sacrifice) and severed his head as per Shiva's instructions.
==Avatars of Devi==
Avatars are also observed in Shaktism, the sect dedicated to the worship of the Goddess (Devi), but they do not have universal acceptance in the sect. The Devi Bhagavata Purana describes the descent of Devi avatars to punish the wicked and defend the righteous—much as the Bhagavata Purana does with the avatars of Vishnu. Like Vishnu, his consort Lakshmi incarnates as Sita and Radha – the consorts of Rama and Krishna avatars.Hindu Avatāra and Christian Incarnation: A Comparison, Noel Sheth Philosophy East and West, Vol. 52, No. 1 (Jan., 2002), pp. 98, 117. Nilakantha, an 18th-century commentator on the Devi Bhagavata Purana – which includes the Devi Gita – says that various avatars of the Goddess includes Shakambhari and even the masculine Krishna and Rama – generally thought to be Vishnu's avatars. verses 9.22cd-23ab Mahalakshmi and Mahasaraswati are also goddesses worshipped as Devi avatars.Brown, p. 270.
==Other Vaishnava avatars==
There are many senses and shades of meaning of the term avatar within Hinduism.
===Purusha avatars===
Purusha avatars are sometimes described as the original avatars of Vishnu or Krishna within the Universe:Avatar – Categories of Incarnationsgaudiya.com – theology
* Vasudeva
* Sankarshan
* Pradyumna
* Vamana
===Guna avatars===
The personalities of the Trimurti (Hindu trinity) are also sometimes referred to as Guna avatars, because of their roles of controlling the three modes (gunas) of nature, even though they have not descended upon an earthly planet in the general sense of the term 'avatar'.
* Vishnu – As controller of the mode of goodness (sattva)
* Brahma – Controller of the mode of passion and desire (rajas)
* Shiva – Controller of the mode of ignorance (tamas)
===Manvantara avatars===
Manvantara avatars are beings responsible for creating progeny throughout the Universe. There are said to be unlimited numbers of these avatars.Avatar – Categories of Incarnations,by Atmatattva Das, 06/17/2005
""During the hundred years of Brahmā's life, there are 504,000 manvantara-avatāras." (Śrī Caitanya Caritāmṛta Madhya 20.322)
===Shaktyavesa and Avesa avatars===
Avataric incarnations are classified as two kinds
* direct (sakshat)
* indirect (avesa)
When Vishnu himself descends, he is called sakshat or shaktyavesa-avatara, a direct incarnation of God. But when he does not incarnate directly, but indirectly empowers some living entity to represent him, that living entity is called an indirect or avesa avatar.Teachings of Lord Chaitanya – Avatars
There are said to be a great number of avesa avatars. Examples include Narada Muni, Sugata Buddha, and Parashurama. Parashurama is the only one of the traditional ten avatars that is not a direct descent of Vishnu.
According to the Sri Vaishnavism sect of Hinduism, there are two types of primary or direct avatars, Purna avatars and Amsarupavatars:
# Purna avatars are those in which Vishnu takes form directly and all the qualities and powers of God are expressed, (e.g. Narasimha, Rama and Krishna).,Types of Avatars; answers to questions #67-70.DLSHQ.org
# Amsarupavatars are those in which Vishnu takes form directly but He is manifest in the person only partially. (e.g. avatars from Matsya, Kurma etc.).
The avesa or indirect avatars are generally not worshiped as the Supreme being. Only the direct, primary avatars are worshiped in this way. In practice, the direct avatars that are worshiped today are the Purna avatars of Narasimha, Rama and Krishna. Among most Vaishnava traditions, Krishna is considered to be the highest Purna avatar. However, followers of Chaitanya (including ISKCON), Nimbarka, and Vallabha Acharya differ philosophically from other Vaishnavas, such as Ramanujacharya and Madhvacharya, and consider Krishna to be the ultimate Godhead, not simply an avatar. That said, all Hindus believe that there is no difference between worship of Vishnu and His avatars as it all leads to Him. According to Madhvacharya (chief proponent of Dvaita or school of differential monism), 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. See Madhva's commentary on Katha Upanishad.
==See also==
* Avatars in Mahabharata
* Gautama Buddha in Hinduism
* Incarnation: similar conceptions in other religions
* List of avatar claimants
==References==
==Further reading==
* Daniélou, Alain (1991) [1964]. The myths and gods of India. Inner Traditions, Vermont, USA. ISBN 0892813547. pp. 164–187.
==External links==
* Avatars (Incarnations or Descents) of Vishnu
* New York Times on origin and use of word avatar
* Meher Baba's interpretation of the Avatar's origin
Category:Sanskrit words and phrases
Category:Hindu philosophical concepts
Category:Vaishnavism
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