Saturday, April 17, 2010

Parashurama Avatar - Sixth Avatar Of Lord Vishnu

In this avatar Lord Vishnu incarnates himself as a human, a human who acts without reasons and has uncontrollable anger. This is the avatar with which I am not very comfortable with. Before I delve into the reasons for these feelings of discomfort, let me start at the beginning - the origins of this avatar.

Parshurama is the fifth son of Renuka and Jamadagni. His original name was Jamadagnya. In his childhood ‘axe’ was his favourite toy and when he entered adulthood his ‘axe’ became his favourite weapon. In one of previous posts I had written about how Parshurama killed his mother (on the instructions of his father). To me, this looks like a child who is trying hard to please his father (whatever the cost might be). Growing up Parshurama had a lot of relationship problems with his parents and brothers. And this led to a lot of built up anger within him - and this led him to violence - to him this was the best outlet for his anger…

King Kaartaveerya-Arjuna ruled the area around where Jamadagni and his family lived. One day King Kaartaveerya-Arjuna and his troops ventured out on an expedition in the forest. Half way through the expedition they realised that they have run out of all water and food. They were all hungry and tired. Thankfully they came across a small beautiful house - this was Jamadagni’s house. They ask Jamadagni if they could get some food and water to drink. Jamadagni kindly agreed and he and his wife were good hosts. They prepared an elaborate meal for the King and his troops. The food was very delicious. The king was very impressed and asked the secret behind such a delicious meal. Jamadagni says that the entire credit goes to his divine cow, Kamadhenu. This cow has the power to make confer any favour instantly. The king got a bit jealous and greedy and demanded that the cow be given to him. Jamadagni refused. And so the king took the cow away forcibly.

Parashurama was away when this incident happened. On his arrival he learned of the King’s actions…He was furious…He took his axe and went straight to the palace….No one was able to stop him….He went straight to the king and beheaded him. When the king’s sons found out about their father’s murder, they went straight to Jamadagni’s house - looking for Parshuram. Parshuram was not in the house….Only his parents were in the house - The princes’ killed Jamadagni.

When Parshurama returns home, he finds his father dead and his mum crying. He is heart broken. As usual the fit anger of takes over him…He grabs his axe and rushes to the palace and kills all the princes…He is disappointed at all the unfit kings. Kings are supposed to their subjects and not kill them. So he goes on to kill 21 unfit kings - He thinks he has done a favour to the entire world by killing these Kings.

Parashurama was obviously a very disturbed person…I understand that some of the kings were unfit - But killing them the way Parashurama did is not the answer. Parashurama is the incarnation of Lord Vishnu….But his actions are very different to what a divine person would do - Maybe Lord Vishnu is showing us the ugly side of a human and maybe He wants us all to find God even in bad people.

Parashurama then goes to Himalayas and spends years praying and meditating. At the end of the prayers, he is blessed by Lord Shiva and he becomes a much saner person.

Parashurama is a Chiranjeevan or an immortal and will continue to dwell on earth until the last avatar of Lord Vishnu. He even makes an appearance in Ramayan and Mahabharat.

The ten incarnations have a strong resemblance to Darwin’s theory of evolution. After the start of life in water (first avatar), came a life sustaining not only in water but progressed to some extent on land (second avatar), ….And the third avatar tells how an amphibian became a semi-amphibian and then an animal living in a swamp. And the fourth avatar represents the half man half beast. And the fifth avatar represents the full human but a small sized human (next stage of evolution). In this avatar the dwarf becomes a full human but with a wavering mind, uncontrollable, and acting without reasons.

Vamana Avatar - The Fifth Avatar

This is the fifth avatar of Lord Vishnu and the first avatar in which Lord Vishnu appears in complete human form.

King Bali is the grandson of Prahalada. King Bali has a strong ambition to rule the entire planet and the Devas kingdom as well. He knew that reaching this goal is not going to be easy. He knew that in the past, despite Ausras’ might, Devas always emerged victorious in the end. He attributed Devas’ success to their yogic powers. So he prays to Lord Brahma with a lot of dedication and concentration. Lord Brahma was pleased with his prayers. He offers to grant any wish that King Bali asks for. King Bali thanks Lord Brahma and asks for the strength of Lord Indra. Lord Brahma grants the wish. King Bali is also a devotee of Lord Vishnu.

Vamana Avatar - The Fifth Avatar
Once the wish was granted, nothing seemed to stop King Bali. He goes on to conquer the entire planet and then goes on to conquer the kingdom of Indra (King of Devas). Devas are upset and their King, Indra, rushes to Lord Vishnu and begs Him to find a solution.

Lord Vishnu incarnates Himself as a human and is born to Aditi and Kashyapa (parents of Lord Indra). And hence Vamana is the younger brother of Lord Indra. Vamana takes on the disguise of a short Brahmin (learned person) and approaches King Bali. He impresses King Bali with His knowledge and teachings. King Bali decides to offer him a reward and so asks Vamana to ask for anything (anything he might want).

Meanwhile King Bali’s Guru, Guru Sukracharya, warns him that Vamana is Lord Vishnu Himself. He tells him that Vamana might ask for something that might actually destroy King Bali. But King Bali ignores his Guru’ advice and encourages Vamana to tell him what his wish is. Vamana asks for three feet of land. King Bali is thrilled and thinks that this is the easiest wish ever - not much land would be needed for a dwarf…So he does not think he would be losing much at all. King Bali agrees to grant the wish.

At this stage Vamana grows in size (grows huge), He grows a third feet as well. He places one feet on entire earth, one on entire heaven and then He asks King Bali where He should place the third feet. King Bali at this stage realizes that Vamana is non other than Lord Vishnu. He kneels down in awe and admiration. He prays to Lord Vishnu and then asks Vamana to place his third feet on his head. Vamana agrees. He places his third feet on King Bali and pushes him down (and in the process kills him).

One of the important lessons in this story is that pride and arrogance will eventually ruin you (doesn’t matter what your connections are and whose devotee you are). Another key lesson is that material wealth can disappear in a second.

The ten incarnations have a strong resemblance to Darwin’s theory of evolution. After the start of life in water (first avatar), came a life sustaining not only in water but progressed to some extent on land (second avatar), ….And the third avatar tells how an amphibian became a semi-amphibian and then an animal living in a swamp. And the fourth avatar represents the half man half beast. This avatar represents the full human but a small sized human (next stage of evolution).

Matsya Avatar - The Fish Avatar

‘Matsya’ in Sanskrit means ‘Fish’. Matsya avatar is the first incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Many millions of years ago, there was a great king called Manu. Every day, in the mornings, King Manu, walked up to the river, got waist deep in water and prayed to God. One day during his prayer, he cupped a handful of water in his hands to offer to God. He saw a small fish in the water that was in hands. He was about to let go of the fish but the small fish begged him to save his life. The fish told him that if he let him go back to the river, the big fish would eat him alive. King Manu felt sorry for the fish and so took the fish home. He put the fish in a small bowl of water and he went back to his daily routines.


The next morning King Manu went to have a look at the fish. He was surprised to see the fish had grown overnight. The fish now almost filled the whole bowl. King Manu transferred the fish into a much larger bowl. The next morning the fish had almost filled up the new large bowl as well….King Manu immediately realized that this was no ordinary fish. Something in him told him that this fish was the God Himself. He knelt down and prayed. Lord Vishnu (in the form of the fish) tells him that in seven days there is going to be a huge flood which will destroy the entire planet. Hence it is important that all the species on this planet be preserved. To enable this to happen He asks Manu to build a huge boat and fill it up with samples of every species and then abode the boat and set it sail on the ocean and wait for Him.

Matsya - The Fish Avatar

Manu and his wife did as instructed. The giant Fish appeared and towed the boat which was tied to a horn he had manifested on his head. As predicted there was a huge flood and it destroyed the planet. Manu and his wife were safe (since they were on the boat). And along with Manu and his wife were the samples of every species. After a few years, the havoc stopped and normality returned. The boat was then towed to a land.

The king and his queen started a new life using the samples of various species and were able to create a new life on earth.

This story is very similar to Noah and his Ark story in Christianity. There is also apparently a similar story in the Middle Eastern culture. So I guess there is a story in almost every culture regarding the great flood which happened many many millions of years ago.

It is also said that there is a reason that this is the first avatar. The ten incarnations have a strong resemblance to Darwin’s theory of evolution. This avatar signifies the start of life…The life in water, as an amphibian, is the earliest known life on the earth - and hence Lord Vishnu picked a fish as his first avatar.

Friday, April 16, 2010

Kurma Avatara



ChurningSeaMilk …The next form that God had to take was that of a tortoise. The tortoise is the ugliest of all animals, but because it saved so many souls from death it could not but seem very beautiful. It came about thus. All living beings were subject to death, as they are now, and they hated it very much. Even the gods wished to escape from death and everyone was asking how it could be done. The gods held a great conference in the north polar regions, situated on the northern axis of the Earth. You know there is a line running from the pole star through the centre of the Earth and its two poles, which does not move. The Pole Star, you know, does not move. If you observe the heavens, you will see that all stars and heavenly bodies are moving round this line which is called the celestial axis. This line alone is fixed and every other particle of which the universe is composed is describing a circle round this fixed unchanging line. In that secluded and least changing spot, the gods had their meeting. The gods are the least changing among living beings. They do not die as often as we do; they only die at the end of a cycle, so they need a more fixed place to dwell in, and heaven, their abode, is therefor situated somewhere around this celestial axis. Hence it was at the North Pole that the gods congregated to consider how all people might avoid death. Everyone was very much troubled on account of the fear of death, and for this reason the gods were trying to find out the means of escaping it. Vishnu, the Protector of the universe, came forward and said to them: “My friends, I can tell you how to avoid death. Churn the ocean steadily for certain period and out of it nectar will come; drink that you will escape death.” “Very well, Master,” they all said, “ we are very thankful to you.” But what did the Lord mean?

When you churn, you separate the grosser part from the finer or more essential part. As for example, the more essential part of milk is butter, which comes out in churning. So when the Lord Vishnu advised to churn the ocean, He meant to separate the essential from the non-essential part; and how was that to be done? By incessant activity, not by stagnation. Stagnation is always death, so you must create commotion by incessant activity. Therefore, the Lord said, churn the ocean, stir it up; thus separate the essential from the non-essential and then you will avoid death. This advice of the Lord Vishnu was communicated to all the inhabitants of the universe and everyone was so happy to think of escaping death that all wished to help in the churning. Now there is a race of demons who are extremely powerful. They are the step brothers of the gods, their common father being Kashyapa. These also, wanting to be immortal came forward to help in churning the ocean; so demons and gods joined together to accomplish the task.

To churn, however, a big churning stick was needed, for the ocean was not like little water contained in a vessel. There was a big mountain, Mandara by name, which extended many hundred feet above the earth and many hundred feet under it; that alone would make a good churning stick. But they all declared they were too weak to uproot it from its base. SO, the Lord said: “Tell that most powerful and pious snake, Ananta, who holds the whole universe on his head, to take it up.” Ananta then lifted it up and carried it to the ocean. All found, however, that if it was placed on the earth, by its very weight it would enter into the earth again and they did not know what to do. Then the Lord, said. “ I shall support it for you; just place it on my back. What is it to Me to hold this mountain, when I have created the whole universe, and support it?” SO He assumed the form of a tortoise, a form which alone could suit the purpose, and they placed the mountain on His back.

Next a rope was necessary. Where to get a rope, long and strong enough? There was a great snake called Vasuki and the Lord said, “ That will do for your purpose”; so they wound that snake round the mountain. The gods took the tail and the demons the head and they began to churn. As they churned, millions of aquatic beings had to perish on account of the rapid revolution of the peak Mandara. Trees and plants and big boulders began to fall from it and were torn or broken to pieces and violently whirled with the frothy water. The demons had to suffer much because they had cought hold of the head side of Vasuki, which now and then began to throw out puffs of poison because of the tremendous strain upon its body. The gods did not suffer so much because they had caught hold of the tail end. After some time they all got tired; but in the meanwhile a considerable portion of the churned water had transformed itself into clarified butter of ghee, for it was the ocean of milk. Neither th gods nor the demons, however , were now able to continue further and they had to rest for a time. The Vishnu filled their bodies and minds with fresh strength and again they began to churn.

Out of the churned ocean as first product came the most beautiful moon. The churning continued and Lakshmi (the goddess of beauty) robed in white came out of the newly formed sea of ghee as the second product. Then came, one after the other, Varuni (the goddess of spirit and vigour), a spirited and beautiful white horse by name Uchchaishrava, a brilliant diamond by name Kaustubha, a wish yielding tree called Parijata and a wish-yielding cow by name Surabhi. Then Dhanavantari (the god of health) came out with a big white jar full of nectar in his hand and went towards the gods. Next, a beautiful elephant, named Airavata, with four white tusks came out and Indra secured the noble animal for himself. At last Vasuki, who by this time was tired to death, vomited an enormous quantity of poison that threatened to destroy the whole universe. At the request of the gods, Siva, the Father of all, swallowed the terrible poison and kept it inside His throat, which on that account became blue, and thus saved the universe from destruction.

As soon as the demons saw the jar of nectar, some of them went and snatched it from the hand of Dhanavantari and secured it for their own party. At this all the gods began to complain. Vishnu then assumed the form of a charming, beautiful lady and went to the side of the demons to entice them. The latter were so struck by her unparalleled beauty that when she came smiling to them and begged of them the jar of nectar, they were only too glad to give it to her. She slowly receded from them to the side of the gods, quite unperceived by the demons, who have been infatuated by her irresistible charm. As soon as she reached the gods, she made them all sit down and distributed to them the nectar, which they began to partake of with great joy and thankfulness.

The demons at last found out that they had been deceived by the woman but it was too late. When the gods were thus enjoying the nectar, a demon by name Rahu, assuming the form of a god, also sat along with them. This was found out by the Sun and the Moon, who communicated it to others and Vishnu at once struck off the head of the demon before the latter could swallow the little quantity of nectar that he had put into his mount. The big carcass of his body fell on the earth, while the head, having tasted the nectar, became immortal and has ever since been the greatest enemy of the Sun and the Moon, both of whom he swallows occasionally on new-moon and full-moon days, causing solar and lunar eclipses.

When the gods had taken their fill, the remainder of the nectar was kept with the moon, and that is why the moon is so very charming and soothing. A terrible fight then ensued between the gods and the demons, which ultimately ended in the total overthrow of the latter.

From all this we must learn one thing. The ocean has been regarded to be the home of waters. And what is the tendency of water? To go down. And what is the lowest level of it? The sea level. Therefore all water has the tendency to go down to the sea. As the sea is the home of waters and water is the source of all life, so the sea is the root of all life. What happens if it does not rain for one year? People die by millions. What does this mean? It means that water is the source of life. The Sanskrit word “Jivana” means both water and life. Hence water stands for life, and churning the ocean means churning life. Lazy people never achieve anything. But that man who is active knows how to churn life and such a man turns out to be the greatest explorer, the greatest writer, the greatest scientist or the greatest artist. The lazy people must ever remain the bullocks of society. They will have to do such work as bullocks do. They want to do nothing, and that is regarded by them as the highest ideal. The lazy man’s ideal is laziness. He thinks that that man is the happiest who has enough money to do nothing but eat, sleep and rest. Such people will naturally have to remain stagnated. They will never care to go anywhere or do anything. Churning the ocean means, therefore, making our life perfectly active and fruitful.

Life is made of two forces, - spiritual and material. Is man wholly spiritual ? No. If he were, he could not be able to live in this world at all. Is he absolutely material? No, if he were, he would be no better that a chair or a table. He is spirit because he can taste, touch, smell, see, hear and has the power to know. He is material when he sleeps, rests, and is inactive. What is man then? Man is a mixture of matter and spirit; and not only man but every living creature up to Brahma. The spirit aspect is the knowing side of existence, and matter side is that which comprises the form. Life thus is a mixture of matter and spirit. Hence if we churn life we separate matter from spirit. The ocean of life is a mixture of mortality and immortality and by its churning, that which is mortal and perishable is separated from the immortal and permanent. We should make our life perfectly active. We should make our eyes living eyes, our ears living ears, we should make all our senses, both external and internal living, all our faculties living. We should make the whole of our body living. We should never allow it to be lazy, or our mind to be lazy; we must make then all seek the highest ideal.

Again, of the changeable things that make up the earth, the mountain is the least changeable : and of all the changeable factors that make up the man, such as the body, the mind and the egoism ,the last is least changeable. And just as a mountain is fixed very strongly on account of the gravitation of the earth, in the same manner egoism is firmly fixed in earthly attractions or desires, that is, it is deeply rooted in matter. In order to churn this ocean of life, we must make this ego the churning stick, by pulling it away from all worldly attractions and fixing it firmly upon the eternal basis of God (Kurma), knowing Him to be the source of all attractions, enjoyments and powers. We must do this by the infinite power of of Viveka or discrimination (Ananta), which alone can clearly show that is real and what is unreal. We must equip our ego with patient application (Vasuki). The churning consists in the steady performance of various rounds amidst all the duties of life and perform them with unabated steadiness and unswerving zeal, uniting all the physical, mental and spiritual powers (demons and gods) together. This is what is called churning the ocean of life.

And out of such churning what will come? As the first product of it, you, who are a god and not a demon, will get a clear and unbiased mind which is presided over by them moon. Next, the goddess of beauty will favour you so that your appearance will be attractive (sattvic), and prone more to conserve than to dissipate the energies of the mind. Then you will be filled with vigour and spirit (Varuni). Fourthly, your limbs will be as swift as those of a fine horse (Uchchaisrava). Fifthly, your heart will be illumined to a certain extent as if by the lustre of a priceless diamond (Kaustubhamani). Sixthly, on account of this you will gain the rare power of a Yogi to get whatever you want or to give whatever others want of you (Parijata and Surabhi). Then in a healthy body and mind will rise up that nectar of immortalising wisdom, contained in the receptacle of your heart robed in the white dress of purity or sattva. When the highest wisdom is realised all activities cease to exist. “Partha, all Karmas come to an end at the appearance of wisdom.” (Gita IV, 33) “Just as burning flame reduces all fuel to ashes, so the ire of wisdom reduces all activities to ashes.” (Gita IV, 37). So wisdom threatens the life of the entire cosmos, which is ever active, and hence, in order to preserve the Creation from destruction, Siva, the ever-auspicious Lord of the universe, keeps the resulting death (poison) confined in one of His eight ever-active forms, namely, earth, water, fire, air, ether, the sun, the moon and the sacrificer.

This nectar of wisdom, you, the god, alone will have the privilege to enjoy and not the demon of your physical self, which must naturally have to remain mortal as before. Incontinence (Rahu) assuming the form of Zeal (Abhyasa and Vairagya) may try to deceive you in order to pass for a god, but he is sure to be detected by your clear and bright senses (Sun) and unbiassed and healthy mind (Moon), although they may now and then fall a prey to Rahu, but only for a very short time. Your immense physical and mental strength, being inoffensive and non-injurious, will be directed like that of a good elephant (Airavata) and not like that of a lion.

With the death of your physical body, your mind and senses do not die. When you give up this body, you take along with you your mind and senses. This you know when you drink the nectar of wisdom. Before that you idea of death is most frightful. Because by death you mean the annihilation not only of your body and mind, but of your entire being! Hence the desirability of churning this life which is made up of a peculiar mixture of spirit and matter…..


(by Swami Ramakrishnanandaji (Sashi Maharaj), a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna)

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Avatars of Vishnu


Lord Vishnu is prominent as the Preserver of the universe. Vishnu's restoring, shielding and conserving powers have been apparent in the world in a sequence of ten mortal incarnations known as Avatars. The avatars appear in order to balance the effect of good and evil upon the earth. It is believed that nine avatars have already descended, three in non human form, one in hybrid form and five in human form. Of the ten universally recognized avatars, nine have already appeared whereas the tenth is yet to appear. These ten avatars are also known by the name of Dasha Avatar of Vishnu.

All the Avatars are mortal form of Lord Vishnu, who himself is eternal, consistent and undeniable. The Dasha Avatar of Vishnu are briefly discussed here:

Matsya Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the form of Fish
The first avatar, Matsya, was taken by Lord Vishnu at the end of the Satyuga (last age), when a flood destroyed the world. Through this avatar, he saved humanity and the sacred Veda text from the flood.

Kurma Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the form of Turtle
The second avatar, Kurma, was taken in the Satyuga (last age) to help the Devas and to obtain the amrut (nectar) of immortality which was also sought after by the Asuras (demons). He helped in creating the world by giving support of his back through this avatar.

Varaha Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the form of Boar
The third avatar, Varaha, was taken at the end of the last flood in the Satyuga, when Bhoomi Devi (Earth Mother) sank to the bottom of the ocean. Vishnu, in the form of varaha, dived into the ocean and raised the goddess out of the ocean, supported by his two tusks.

Narsimha Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the form of Half - Man and Half - Lion
The fourth Avatar, Narsimha, was taken in the Satyuga (last age) to kill a tyrant demon king. Narsimha is the only avatar which was Hybrid in form being half human and half animal.

Vamana Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the form of a Dwarf
The fifth avatar, Vamana, appeared in the Tretayuga in order to destroy Bali, the king of demons. He came during a huge ceremony conducted by the king and cleverly asked for just three feet of land, measured by his own small feet. Vamana covered whole of the earth and the heaven, subduing Bali into his feet.

Parshurama Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the form of a Brahmin
The sixth avatar, Parshurama, appeared in the Tretayuga to destroy the warrior caste. When the kings of the earth became despotic and started to harm people and saints in the forest, Vishnu incarnated as Parshurama and destroyed all the kings who were harassing the people.

Rama Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the form of the King
The seventh avatar, Rama, the prince and king of Ayodhaya, appeared in the Tretayuga, to rescue Sita with his loyal servant Hanuman and his brother, Lakshmana, and killed the demon Ravana. Lord Rama became one of the most popular gods in the Hindu religion.

Krishna Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the form of a Cowherd's Boy
The eighth avatar, Krishna, along with his brother Balarama, appeared in the Dwaparyuga to kill the demon king, Kansa. Lord Krishna conveyed the message of love and humanity to the world. Krishna told the epic poem Bhagavad Gita to the warrior Arjuna ,in which he acclaimed : ''Whenever Dharma, or the situation of law and order, is endangered on this world, I incarnate onto this world to re establish Dharma, law and order, and to protect the Sadhus or saints and to destroy the evil elements of the society.''

Buddha Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the Form of Buddha
The ninth avatar, Mahavira Buddha, appeared in the Kalyuga, to teach the lesson of following a middle path in life. ''Buddha'' means 'the enlightened one'. He taught that all sorrow comes from attachments and desires, so it's better to curb all attachments in order to remain happy.

Kalki Avatar - Lord Vishnu in the form of Horse
The tenth Avatar, Kalki, ("Eternity", or "time", or "The Destroyer of foulness"), is yet to appear on the earth. And it is expected to appear at the end of Kali Yuga, the time period in which we currently exist, which will end in the year 428899 CE.


ในคัมภีร์พระเวทได้มีการกล่าวถึงการอวตารของ พระนารายณ์ว่าได้อวตารมาในรูปแบบต่างๆเถึง 24 อวตาร แต่ว่ามีอวตารหลักๆเอยู่ 10 อวตารด้วยกันคือเ
- มัตสยาอวตาร โดยถืออวตารเป็นปลา
- กูรมาอวตาร โดยทรงอวตารมาเป็นเต่า
- วราหอวตาร ทรงอวตารมาเป็นหมู ป่า
- นรสิงห์อวตาร เป็นครึ่ง มนุษย์ครึ่งสิงห์
- วามนาอวตาร ทรงมาเป็นคน แคระ
- ปรศุรามอวตาร เป็นนัก บวชที่ถืออาวุธ
- รามาอวตาร เป็นพระ ราม
- กฤษณะอวตาร เป็นพระ กฤษณะผู้ทรงประทานภัควัตคีตาให้กับชาวโลก
- พุทธอวตาร หรือสมเด็จพระสัมมาสัมพุทธเจ้าผู้ทรงชี้นำทางแห่งอหิงสา
- กัลกิอวตาร อัศวินขี่ม้าขาวจะอวตารมาในอีกประมาณ 2500 ปี