Lesson 3: The Hindu Pantheon - Part One.
Vishnu & His Avatars.
Vishnu:
As the preserver Vishnu is the embodiment of the quality of mercy and goodness and is the God most associated with the Brahman, the Universal Spirit. He is the self-existent, all-pervading power that preserves and maintains the universe and the cosmic order, Dharma. Vishnu is Nara, the cosmic ocean that spread everywhere before the creation of the universe; He is also called Narayana – “moving in the waters". In this aspect He is featured in human form sleeping on the gigantic snake Ananta (eternal) or Shesha while it floats on the waters of the cosmic ocean before the beginning of time. Vishnu, in contrast to Shiva or even Brahma, is a mild God and elicits devotion rather than fear. This love makes Him the most powerful deity in the Hindu pantheon. This affection from devotees is extended to His spouse Lakshmi, the Goddess of fortune.
Vishnu is portrayed as a handsome young man with blue skin, dressed in royal robes. He has four hands in each of which He holds a conch (sankha), a discus called Sudarshan, which was Krishna’s principal weapon, a club or mace called Kaunodaki and a lotus or padma. He also has a bow called Saranga and a sword called Nandaka. He is usually seated on a lotus with His wife Lakshmi by His side or riding on His steed Garuda.
Vishnu’s heaven Vaikuntha is on the slopes of Mount Meru. It is made of solid gold and jewels and the Ganga flows through it and cleanses it. His heaven has five pools on which blue, red and white lotuses grow. Vishnu and Lakshmi are usually found among the white lotuses where They sit and radiate like the sun.
The Ten Avatars of Vishnu:
Vishnu’s prime function as the preserver remains linked to the old beliefs and is exercised through His avatars, when He descends to earth as a great hero and saves humankind and the universe in the form of a mortal hero. As such Vishnu guards the righteous, destroys evil-doers, and establishes the rule of law, dharma.
Matsyavatar:
Vishnu’s first avatar, Matsyavatar, in the form of a fish, is borrowed from the earlier myths of Brahma.
I am giving the most popular version of this myth. During one of the universal periods of chaos, while Brahma was sleeping, the Vedas emerged from his mouths and were seized by a demon or asura Hayagriva, who made off with them. To recover the Vedas and hand them over to Manu, the first lawgiver (more akin to Moses of the bible), Vishnu descended to earth in the form of a fish and killed Hayagriva and restored the Vedas. He also instructed Manu on the true nature of Brahma’s eternal soul – The Brahman - and gave him the doctrine that was inculcated in the Vedas.
Kurmavatar:
The second avatar, Kurmavatar, in the form of a tortoise, is also borrowed from an earlier myth of Brahma.
During one of the periodic deluges that destroyed the world in the first age, some things of great value were lost. The most important of this was amrita (ambrosia) without which the entire universe was at threat from eternal destruction. It was thus decided that both the Gods and demons would churn the oceans to extract the amrita out of it. Vishnu took birth as a huge tortoise on whose humped back Mount Mandara was placed as a fulcrum. The weight of the mountain was such that it could not be placed anywhere else without jeopardizing the place. Then the serpent Vasuki was wound round the mountain to be used as a churning rope. With the Gods taking the head portion and the demons the tail Vasuki was used to churn the ocean and amrita was extracted together with other precious objects and the entire universe was thus saved.
Special Note: It is very essential to know the other special objects that emerged out of the churning of the ocean together with the amrita. They are:
- Dhanwantari, the bearer of the Gods’ cup of amrita and their physician
- Lakshmi or Sri, the goddess of fortune and beauty, whom Vishnu took to wife
- Sura, the Goddess of wine
- Chandra, the moon, whom Shiva had to entangle in His own matted hair to keep the mischievous Moon-God out of annoying escapades
- Rambha, a lovely nymph, who became the first of the celestial apsaras
- Uchchaisravas, a beautiful white horse initially given to the demon Bali but later seized by Indra
- Kaustubha, a precious jewel, which Vishnu took
- Parijata, a wishing tree, which was planted in Indra’s heaven and became His consort Indrani’s possession
- Surabhi, the cow of plenty, which was given to the seven rishis
- Airavata, a wonderful white elephant, which Indra took as steed
- Sankha, a conch of victory
- Dhanus, a mighty bow
- Visha, the poison that foamed out of Vasuki’s mouth as he was strained to extract the amrita. This last was the only reward Shiva reaped out of the churning. To save the world from the extreme venom of the Visha Shiva took the poison in His mouth and kept it trapped in His throat without actually swallowing it. That is why Shiva’s throat is blue in color and He is often called Nilkantha (Nil: Sanskrit for blue and Kantha: Sanskrit for throat.)
The third incarnation of Vishnu was in the form of a huge boar - Varaha. This also is borrowed from an earlier Brahma myth.
Vishnu came down to earth in the form of this avatar to kill Hiranyaksha, an asura (demon) who had become invincible from an inadvertent boon from Brahma. In asking Brahma to grant him invincibility Hiranyaksha cited all the living things on earth and in the universe but forgot to mention the boar and Vishnu took this opportunity to defeat him in this form.
Narasimhavatar:
Vishnu’s fourth avatar is in the form of a man-lion - Narasimha (“Nara” for “Man” and “Simha” for “Lion”) - and He came down to earth in this form to kill Hiranyakasipu, Hiranyaksha’s brother, who had also got Brahma to grant him immunity against human, beast and god. He also got Brahma’s assurance that he could be killed neither by day nor by night and neither inside nor outside his house. Protected by this boon Hiranyakasipu began to conquer and oppress the entire universe.
One day, while Hiranyakasipu was occupied in his daily favorite ritual of tormenting his own son Prahlad, who was an ardent devotee of Vishnu and refused to acknowledge his father’s supremacy, Vishnu, to protect His most devoted follower, came out of the door-jamb of the asura’s house and killed him. Vishnu was in the form of Narasimha, a man-lion and neither human nor beast nor god, the time was evening, neither day nor night, and the place was the door-jamb, neither inside nor outside Hiranyakasipu’s house. Thus the demon was tricked and the universe was saved from his terrible oppression.
It must be noted here that Prahlad, son of asura Hiranyakasipu, is one of the greatest devotees of Vishnu for all time. He remains an example to Vaishnavites of all ages.
Vamanavatar:
Vishnu’s fifth avatar was a vamana a dwarf. Prahlad’s grandson, Bali, was great king and everyone, including the Gods, loved him for his great kindness and generosity but he had one great defect – an overwhelming ambition to rule the entire universe. Eventually he gained great strength and power through sacrifice and conquered the universe and drove the Gods out of Their heavens. So Vishnu came down to earth in the form of the vamana and approached Bali. Bali could not resist anyone asking anything from him. The vamana asked him to grant him three paces of land. Bali immediately granted it to him. Vishnu changed from a dwarf to such a gigantic form that in two strides He straddled the earth and the heavens. Then He asked Bali where He would take His third and last pace. Bali was so committed to his grant that he told Vishnu to put his foot on his head, which was the only place left on the universe that was not Vishnu’s. Bali was driven deep into the earth to the nether regions (Patala) by the weight of Vishnu’s foot. There he still reigns over the demons and dark beings. Every year, at one time, he returns to earth as per an agreement with Vishnu. The people of Malabar celebrate this day every year as they still worship Bali for the great king he was.
Parasuram, the Sixth Avatar:
Parasuram, the sixth avatar, was born on earth to end the oppressive rule of the Kshatriyas, who had become dominant and were not only dominating the other castes but were increasingly becoming a threat to the Gods. Vishnu was born as the son of Jamadagni, a pious sage and his virtuous wife.
The myth weaves around Parasuram killing his own mother on the command of his father and ultimately killing all the families of the Kshatriyas with his axe Parasu which was a special gift from Shiva expressly given to him to help him perform his earthly function. . Parasuram is more renowned as the murderer of his own mother than for the killing of the Kshatriyas.
It is controversial that Parasuram is immortal while all the other avatars of Vishnu have died human deaths to free the God to return to His heaven.
Ramachandra:
Ramachandra is Vishnu’s seventh avatar. His purpose was to extirpate the most potential demon-king of all – Ravana, the ten-headed monster of Lanka (Sri Lanka). Like Hiranyakasipu and Hiranyaksha before him, Ravana, through the practice of stringent austerities, had managed to get Brahma to grant him immunity from gods, demons and gandharvas and, with the blessings of Shiva, whom also he propitiated, he began to maul both Gods and humans alike. The Gods sat down in consultation and it was decided that one of them would have to be born on earth in human form to vanquish the rakshasa (demon). Ravana was so proud of his strength that he had not asked Brahma to grant him immunity from humans, thinking them too inferior to attract notice.
Vishnu was accordingly born to a certain king Dasaratha of Ayodha as his eldest son. Dasaratha was blessed with four sons. Rama acquired a half of Vishnu’s character. He was conceived of Dasaratha’s first wife Kausalya. Dasaratha’s second son Bharata, who acquired a quarter of Vishnu’s character, was conceived of the king’s second wife Kaikeyi while the third and fourth sons respectively Lakshmana and Satrughna were born of Sumitra, the youngest wife and acquired a quarter each of Vishnu’s character. Thus, the seventh incarnation actually comprised of four mortals.
Rama and Lakshmana were particularly close and their fraternal love is still upheld as an ideal among Hindus today. They did most of the fighting assisted in their efforts by Hanuman, the monkey hero, and an assorted army of animals like monkeys and bears. Also involved in the fray was Rama’s beloved wife Sita, who is still upheld as an epitome of wifely devotion by Hindu women today. Ultimately the demon-king Ravana was defeated and killed. Before dying he acknowledged his errors and was pardoned and gained entry into heaven.
Since Ravana was a Brahmin and brahminicide is absolutely unpardonable Rama and his brothers had to die. There are also other reasons cited in the Ramayana, the epic story of this struggle to vanquish Ravana, for their demise.
Ramachandra and his brothers and wife are still revered in India by Hindus and the place where Ayodhya once stood is regarded as holy ground.
Krishnavatar:
Vishnu’s eight avatar attracted to Himself an even greater body of myth than His seventh one Rama though Krishna’s purpose in being born was simple: to kill the demon king Kansa who was conducting a tyrannical rule from his capital in Mathura. Krishna’s role in this aspect as the slayer of the demon Kansa is not the reason why He is so revered even today and worshipped as a Supreme God in His own right! It is for His role as the principal protagonist in the epic battle of the Mahabharata in which His commentaries on the subjects of Dharma (religion) and Bhakti (devotion) to Arjuna, all of which is well-documented in the Bhagavad Gita, one of the major religious texts of the Hindus.
Krishna’s life can be divided into four parts: childhood, when He performed feats of great strength including slaying the demon Kansa who, incidentally, was His own maternal uncle; youth, when He dallied with the cowgirls and acquired for Himself a reputation as a lover that not even the current top stars of Bollywood can yet rival; manhood when He took up the Kingship of Dwarka and showed His mettle in statesmanship and middle age when He joined the fray in the battle of the Mahabharata and gave His famous speech of advice to the warrior Arjuna.
Krishna took no active part in the epic battles but only gave advice and let the mortal warriors fight it out. The most important advice He gave was to Arjuna and it was that all is illusion (Maya), including battle and death in arms, and that it is not the prerogative of human beings to question their duty, they only have to perform it and leave the greater perspective to the Gods. This is contained in the Bhagavad Gita.
Ultimately Krishna dies, tragically, for the death and sorrow He brought to millions leaving for us the message that not even the Gods can deflect that which is preordained and that every action has a reaction and the causes are inextricably interwoven with their effects. That is, one receives as one does and, thus, Karma (duty) is Dharma (religion).
Buddha:
The Buddha himself is the surprise ninth avatar of Vishnu. This is observed in some quarters as an attempt to subvert Buddhism into becoming a sect within Hinduism, which it definitely is not.
Hinduism in some way distorts the Buddha’s teachings as a sort of hedonistic view of the universe in which the Buddha observes that there is no actual Hindu triad but the trio of Gods are merely human, the greater idea of samsara (the world) and humans following their duty according to their castes as dharma have no real value as death is only a sleep and an annihilation, that heaven is only pleasures on earth and hell the mundane sufferings, that sacrifices are of no value because the only salvation humans are capable of achieving is release from ignorance and that, since the body crumbles back to earth after death, the only pleasure possible on earth is mostly sensual.
Hinduism thus uses the Buddha as a foil against whose faulty preaching the original religion prospers as misbelievers are led astray and, in disarray, return to Hinduism for their salvation. In a sense Buddhism has done just that but never at the cost of relinquishing the Buddha as the supreme teacher.
On the ground level, most Hindus regard the Buddha as a revered incarnation of Vishnu and he is loved for his gentle teachings which ultimately further preservation, Vishnu’s prime function. Hindus untaught in the scriptures regard the Buddha as an extension of the triad and refuse to be fuddled by the notion that Hinduism and Buddhism are two entirely separate religions.
On its part Buddhism has, since its inception, acquired a number of elements of Hinduism that has ultimately drawn it closer to the older religion its founder, the Buddha, had initially sought to reform.
Kalkiavatar:
Vishnu’s tenth and last incarnation is yet to come and will usher in the end of this present age, the Kaliyuga, while bringing in the next age, the Mayayuga. Social and spiritual life will have degenerated to the level where, ultimately, humans will begin living like animals in the forest and men and women will wear only the barks of trees as clothes and fight and quarrel among each other as the beasts. To bring on the ultimate decline the rulers will be power-hungry immoral personages whose only desire will be to gain power and wealth, even at the expense of their subjects. Even the Brahmins will have nothing of worth except the outward show of their sacred threads. The wealth of materialists will be the only show as all real worth will have departed from everything. Truth and love will have disappeared from the earth and the only currency will be dishonesty and the only bond among humans and man and wife will be sensuality. The land of the Hindus will lose all its sacred associations and the earth will be worshipped only as a reservoir of mineral wealth. The sacred rites will disappear, mere washing will be deemed as purification, mutual assent will replace the marriage ceremonies and bluff will replace real learning. No man or woman shall live longer than twenty-three years.
At this point of degeneration, Vishnu will ride in on a white horse, Kalki, his tenth avatar, and exterminate all the immoral and establish virtue as the prime human objective, as before, and the mighty Mayayuga, the next set of four Yugas, will set in.
