Lord Vishnu is the supreme Hindu deity; all things happening on earth are after Lord Vishnu's permission. He is the protector of the earth and all the people. He returns to earth every time people need him; he takes new avatars of different creations to help people and even gods from the terror of demons. Until today, it is said that Lord Vishnu has taken nine avatars to save the world, but it is written that he will take his 10th and last avatar in Kaliyuga. The followers of Lord Vishnu's route are called Vaishnava; they only worship Lord Vishnu. The different avatars of Lord Vishnu are curved into forms of idols from different materials like stone and brass.
The 10 Avatars of Lord Vishnu (Dashavatar & Yugas)
Hinduism, the world's oldest religion, believes that when the demons started threatening the earth, Lord Vishnu came to save them by taking a new avatar and providing justice to people. The reincarnations of Lord Vishnu are usually called Avatars in Hinduism. According to Hinduism, Lord Vishnu has taken 10 avatars, of which 9 have already appeared, and only 1 remains. The Vedpurans describe that the avatars began in the Satya yuga, the golden age of truth. The ten avatars of Lord Vishnu worshiped in Hinduism are called dashavatars; Dasha means 10, and avatar means avatar.
Satya yuga : the biggest yuga; in that time it was thought that the first 4 avatars would appear.
Treta yuga : Treta yuga was the second yuga, and it included the appearance of three more avatars.
Dawapara yuga : Dawapara yuga the third, saw the appearance of two new avatars.
Kali Yuga : Kali Yuga in which the final avatar of Lord Vishnu, Kalki, will come.
The end of this yuga is predicted to occur in about another 432,000 years.
- Matsya (Fish) Avatar
In the Matsya avatar, Lord Vishnu is said to have rescued the first man, Vaivasvata Manu, and the seven sages during the great flood (huge cyclone), bringing a sample of every plant and animal species to the renewed earth on his boat.
- Kurma (Tortoise) Avatar
The word "Kurma" refers to a turtle; hence, "Kurmavatara" literally translates to "avatar of Lord Vishnu as a turtle." That was Lord Vishnu's second avatar at that time. During this avatar, Lord Vishnu worked as a nuteral to help gods and demons during the Samundra manthan, when both gods and demos were trying to get amrit, the mountain suddenly started going underwater, and Lord Vishnu came and gave support to the mountain from his turtule back.
- Varaha (Boar) Avatar
Varaha, the boar-like avatar, was Vishnu's third avatar. Lord Vishnu arrived as Varaha to rescue the earth (personified as the goddess Bhudevi) from the demon Hiranyaksha, who had taken her and hidden her in the primordial waters. After killing the demon, Varaha lifted the Earth out of the water using his tusks, bringing Bhudevi back to her rightful place in the cosmos.
- Narasimha (Half-man/half-lion) Avatar
The fourth avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu, Narasimha, was a mixture of human and lion. Hiranyakashyap, the rakshasa (devil), was awarded a great boon from Lord Brahma, making it impossible for him to be killed by man or animal, indoors or outdoors, during the day or night, on Earth or among the stars, with a weapon that was either alive or inanimate. Lord Vishnu took on a human form but a lion's head and talons during his incarnation. The rakshasa was lying on his thighs at dusk on the threshold of his courtyard when he was disemboweled with his claws.
- Vamana (Dwarf) Avatar
Lord Vishnu's fifth avatar, or avatar, was a short man named Vamana. This is the first time an avatar has looked like a human and been seen with an umbrella made of wood. Vamana Avatar Vishnu came down from heaven to restore Indra's rule over the heavens. Vamana went against the advice of his mentor Sukracharya and got three paces of land from King Mahabali. Vamana then showed himself and grew to monstrous proportions, allowing him to walk effortlessly over all three dimensions. With the first, he descended to Earth, and with the second, he descended to the Underworld. Due to his inability to keep his word, King Mahabali sacrificed his head to appease the gods. Vamana then put his foot down, granting the monarch eternal life in exchange for his modesty.
- Parashurama (Warrior with an Axe) Avatar
Parashurama was Lord Vishnu's sixth avatar. Parashuram, the son of Jamadagni and Renuka, was given an axe by Lord Shiva in exchange for his penance. In Hinduism, he was the first Brahmin and Kshatriya (a warrior-saint) to share the responsibilities of both castes. The father of Parashurama was able to feed King Kartavirya Arjuna and his army with the celestial cow Kamadhenu when the king and his army visited the saint in his ashram. Jamadagni denied the king's request for the cow. The king infuriated, seized it, and subsequently leveled the ashram. The king was assassinated in his palace, and Parashurama single-handedly defeated his army. The sons of Kartavirya took their revenge on Jamadagni and killed him. Twenty-one times, Parashurama swore vengeance on every Kshatriya on the planet, and his blood filled five lakes. His grandfather, Rishi Rucheeka, finally made an appearance and forced him to stop. It is believed that Parashuram is still alive and performing penance on Mahendragiri Mountain despite being an immortal Chiranjivi.
- Rama (Prince/King of Ayodhya) Avatar
Rama was Vishnu's seventh avatar. In Hinduism, the avatar of Lord Rama is venerated as the archetypal brave male. The Ramayana, which tells his story, is a sacred text in Hinduism. Ravana, the demon king of Sri Lanka, kidnapped Rama's wife, Sita, the daughter of King Janaka, when he was exiled from his own country for 14 years with his brother Lakshman and the God Hanuman. After killing the demon king, he went to Ashoka Vatika in Lanka to rescue Sita.
- Balarama (Philosopher & Guide) Avatar
According to the Sri Vaishnava lists, Balarama was Lord Vishnu's eighth avatar. Balarama is also known as Baladeva, Balabhadra, and Halayudha. He was Lord Krishna's older brother and is commonly recognized as an avatar of Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu took the form of this man. Moreover, he is sometimes thought to be the Sankarshana form of Vishnu as well as the eighth avatar that Vishnu has taken.
- Krishna (Philosopher & Guide) Avatar
Lord Vishnu took on the form of Krishna for the ninth time. Lord Krishna was Devaki and Vasudev's ninth child. In the Vaishnava sect of Hinduism, he is considered an avatar, or incarnation, of a deity. He made an appearance with his older sibling Balarama. The majority populace sees Balarama as an incarnation of Vishnu. Yet, in Sri Vaishnava lists, Balarama is included as the eighth avatar of Vishnu, while Buddha is absent, and Krishna is placed ninth.
- Kalki (Eternity/White Horse) Avatar
According to Hinduism, the god Vishnu will take the form of Kalki, which translates to "destroyer of evil," as his tenth avatar at the end of the Kali Yuga. According to the Purana scriptures, when the time comes for Kalki to return, he will do so mounted atop a white horse and brandishing a flaming sword. As per Hindu eschatology, he will be the one to announce the end of time, and then he will usher in the Satya Yuga that follows.
