DASHAVATAR

'Yada Yada Hi Dharmasya
Glanirva Bhavathi Bharatha,
Abhyuthanam Adharmaysya
Tadatmanam Srijami Aham'.

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter IV, Verse 7.

Lord Krishna says to Arjun, "It is Dharma, which teaches renunciation and is responsible for the elevation and well-being of human beings. Whenever in the passage of time, Dharma is weakened or is under attack, and whenever adharma spreads without control,it is then that I re-incarnate myself with all my powers to restore Dharma.Whenever there is a decline of righteousness, and the rise of unrighteousness, then I re-incarnate myself to teach dharma"

Lord Vishnu is said to have taken human form on earth on ten different occasions to preserve the world. During each incarnation,he has a specific task to perform. The stories of these incarnations, the ten Vishnu avatars or Dashavatar are told in the Vishnu Puran and depict the theory of evolution represented through a story Of the ten avatars.

Matsya, the fish, from the Satya Yug. Lord Vishnu takes the form of a fish to save Manu from apocalypse, after which he takes his boat to the new world along with one of every species of plant and animal, gathered in a massive cyclone.

Kurma, the tortoise, from the Satya Yug. When the devas and asuras were churning the Ocean of milk in order to get amrit, the nectar of immortality, the mount Mandar they were using as the churning staff started to sink and Vishnu took the form of a tortoise to bear the weight of the mountain.

Varaha, the boar, from the Satya Yug. He appeared to defeat Hiranyaksha, a demon who had taken the Earth, and carried it to the bottom of what is described as the cosmic ocean in the story. The battle between Varaha and Hiranyaksha is believed to have lasted for a thousand years, which the former finally won. Varaha carried the Earth out of the ocean between his tusks and restored it to its place in the universe.

Narasimha, the half-man/half-lion, from the Satya Yuga. The rakshas Hiranyakashipu, the elder brother of Hiranyaksha, was granted a powerful boon from Brahma, not allowing him to be killed by man or animal, inside or out, day or night, on earth or the stars, with a weapon either living or inanimate. Vishnu descended as an anthropomorphic incarnation, with the body of a man and head and claws of a lion. He then disembowels the rakshas at the courtyard threshold of his house, at dusk, with his claws, while he lay on his thighs.

Vaman, the dwarf, from the Treta Yug. The fourth descendant of Hiranyakashyap, Bali, with devotion and penance was able to defeat Indra, the god of firmament. This humbled the other deities and extended his authority over the three worlds. The gods appealed to Vishnu for protection and he descended as the dwarf Vaman. During a yajna of the king, Vaman approached him and Bali promised him for whatever he asked. Vaman asked for three paces of land. Bali agreed, and the dwarf then changed his size to that of a giant. He stepped over heaven in his first stride, and the netherworld with the second. Bali realized that Vaman was Vishnu incarnate. In deference, the king offered his head as the third place for Vamana to place his foot. The avatar did so and thus granted Bali immortality. Then in appreciation to Bali and his grandfather Prahlad, Vaman made him ruler of Pathaal, the netherworld.

Parashuram, warrior with the axe, from the Treta Yug. He is son of Jamadagni and Renuka and received an axe after a penance to Shiva. He is the first Brahmin-Kshatriya, or warrior-saint, with duties between a Brahman and a Kshatriya. King Kartavirya Arjun and his army visited the father of Parashuram at his ashram, and the saint was able to feed them with the divine cow Kamadhenu. The king demanded the animal, Jamadagni refused, and the king took it by force and destroyed the ashram. Parashuram then killed the king at his palace and destroyed his army. In revenge, the sons of Kartavirya killed Jamadagni. Parashurama took a vow to kill every Kshatriya on earth twenty-one times over, and filled five lakes with their blood. Ultimately, his grandfather, Rishi Rucheeka, appeared and made him halt. He is a Chiranjivi (immortal), and believed to be alive today in penance at Mahendragiri.

Lord Ram, the prince and king of Ayodhya, from the Treta Yug. He is thought of as the ideal heroic man. His story is recounted in one of the most widely read scriptures of ancient India, the Ramayan. While in exile from his own kingdom with his brother Lakshman and the monkey king Hanuman, his wife Sita was abducted by the demon king of Lanka, Ravan. He travelled to Ashoka Vatika in Lanka, killed the demon king and saved Sita.

Krishna was the eighth son of Devaki and Vasudev, from the Dwapara Yug. He appeared alongside his elder brother Balaram. Balaram is regarded generally as an avatar of Shesh Naag.

Gautam Buddha, is generally included as an avatar of Vishnu. Buddha may be depicted in Hindu scriptures as a preacher who deludes and leads demons and heretics away from the path of the Vedic scriptures. Another view praises him as a compassionate teacher who preached the path of ahimsa (non-violence).

Kalki, will be the final incarnation of Lord Vishnu, foretold to appear at the end of Kali Yug.He will be atop a white horse and his sword will be drawn, blazing like a comet. He is the harbinger of end time in Hindu eschatology, and will destroy all unrighteousness and evil at the end of Kali Yug.