A v t a r s
The concept of Avtars is the cornerstone of Hindutheology, Avtars have been noted in the Purans such as Bhagwat,Skand, Garud, etc, written by Bhagwan Ved Vyas. No one can disprove this concept nor can we prove it beyond doubt, but Godincarnates Him self on the Earth in the form most suitable at the timeand occasion and the degree of excellance differs in the incarnation tosave this Earth from evil.
1. Matsya (fish) Whenlife was mostly aquatic, the Lord took the form of an exemplary Fish torecover the Vedas (stolen from Lord Brahama by the demon Hayagriva) andto save Vaivaswatha (Sathyavartha) from the great deluge. 2. Kurma (Tortoise) providedits curved back as a pivot for the Manthara mountain to be firmly placed,for churning the Milkly Ocean by the Devas and Asuras (usingthe serpentVasuki as a rope) in order to extract the important ingredients - chieflythe Nectar of immortality (amirta). Among the other ingredients were Laksmhi,goddess of wealth and beauty; Kamadhenu, the divine Cow; and Halahala,the terrible poison which threatened to destroy the world. Lord shiva wantedto swallow it to save the world but His Divine Consort Parathy in her anxiety,stopped the poison at Shiva's throat. The throat became blue and hencea name "Neelakanda" for Shiva. 3. Varaha (the Boar) rescuedthe Earth, which was taken to the depths of the ocean by the demon Hiranyaksha,(after killing the latter). 4. Narasimha (½ Man ½Lion) came out from the pillar in the Asura Hiranyakashipu's palaceto destroy him and to prove to the world (in response to the demon's sonPrahalada's prayer) that the Lord is everywhere. The killing was done withoutviolating Brahma's boon to Hiranyakashipu: the time was evening - neitherday nor night; the place was the doorway of the palace - neither insidenot outside the palace; the assailant was neither man nor animal; no weaponwas used; and the victim was neither in the air nor on the ground. The first four incarnations took place in the 1st era of Kerta Yuga,and the next three in the Treta Yuga. 5. Vamana (Dwarf) checkedthe pride of King Bali who wanted to usurp the kingdom of the Devas. Vamanaasked Bali for the gift of three foot-paces of land - which were readilygiven inspite of the warning by his preceptor Sukracharya. Vamana grewto enormous size and with two paces covered the earth and the heavens andwith the third pace pressed Bali into the underworld. 6. Parasurama (Rama with theaxe) exterminated 21 generations of the Kshatrya race because oftheir arrogance and also taught the lesson that a father's command mustbe obeyed (by beheading his mother Renuka in obedience to the command ofhis father jamadagni) 7. Rama's purpose wasto destroy the wicked Ravana and set an example as the ideal son, brother,king, husband and to emphasise the doctrine of "Ekapathini" i.e.a man should have only one woman. Rama was human perfection, though humanand divine qualities were manifested by him equally. 8. Krishna lived duringthe end of the 3rd age i.e. Dwapara Yuga. He is said to have lived for125 years (born on 19.7.3227 B.C.; left the earth on 18.2.3102 B.C., accordingto His Holiness A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada of the InternationalSociety of Krishna Consciousness). He was truly man, Superman, Purnavatharaand god. He was the Parmatman crystailised as a mortal. Now that the researchof Dwaraka (North Western India) has brought out the remains of placesfrom under the sea, there can be little doubts as to Krishna's historicity.The main purpose of the Krishna incarnation was to uproot evil, establishrighteousness (dharma) and to give to the world the Bhagavad Gita. Krishnalived His own teachings. His life is the Bhagavad Gita in action. He wasthe idol child, ideal student, Brahmachari, lover, husband, warrior, sportsman,teacher, strategist, sannyasin, king-maker and above all the Soul's DivineCharioteer. His life is described in the Bhagavatham, the Hari Vamsa andthe Mahabharatha. He is a living force even today through the immortalBhagavad Gita and through the "Hare Krisha" societies which existall over the world. Sages, saints and scholars have glorified Him as acomplete manifestation of Divinity. Swami Sivananda has bestowed upon Krishnaall the 16 kalas (rays) of God. He has entered into or song, dance, poetryand in fact every aspect of heritage and culture. 9. Buddha is believedto be the 9th incarnation lived in the 4th age (Kali Yuga) during the 6thcentury B.C. Many things Balarama, Krishna elder brother to be the 9thincarnation. Buddha refuted the Vedas and rebelled against caste and gavedignity to the common man. His followers broke away form orthodox Hinduismand formed the new religion of Buddhism, little of which exist in Indiatoday. Balarama helped Krishna to establish Dharma. 10. Kalki, The 10th incarnation,Kalki is expected to come on the eve of the destruction of the world. Why Swaminarayan is not in 10 Avtars The lisitings of avtars is restrictive.There is also 24 Avtars. But does that mean that God will come to Earthonly 10 times or 24 times. In the Bhagwad Gita, Krishna says to Arjun thatwhen there is the need, He will venture on the Earth to rid it of eviland re-establish religious principles. No numbers have been mentioned hereeither. Many in 24 avtars, are not listed in 10 avtars, e.g Nar Narayan,Laxmi Narayan, Kapil Muni, Dataatreyi, Dhanvantri, Vaasudev, etc. I supposethe question could be, "Is Swaminarayan one of the avtars?" Avtarshave been noted in the Purans such as Bhagwat, Skand, Garud, etc, writtenby Bhagwan Ved Vyas. In the Skand Puran, there is a section called VishnuKhand within which there is a sub-section called Vaasudev Mahaatmyam. Inthe 18th Adhyaay of Vaaseduv Mahaatmyam, in verses 42-44, Bhagwan Purushottamadvises Brahma of the forthcoming avtars. The coming of Swaminarayan hasbeen noted there. This was before the birth of the Ram, Krishna, Buddha,etc. So, does it really matter whether Swaminarayan is part of 10 avtars.
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