Matsya Purana
The Matsya Purana is one of the eighteen major Puranas, among the oldest and better preserved in the Puranic genre of Sanskrit literature in Hinduism. The text is a Vaishnavism text named after the half-fish avatar of Vishnu. However, the text has been called by the 19th-century Sanskrit scholar Horace Hayman Wilson, "although a Shaivism work, it is not so"; the Matsya Purana has survived into the modern era in many versions, varying in the details but all of the published versions have 291 chapters, except the Tamil language version, written in Grantha script, which has 172 chapters. The text is notable for providing one of earliest known definition of a Purana genre of literature. A history written with five characteristics is called a Purana, states Matsya Purana, otherwise it is called Akhyana; these five characteristics are cosmogony describing its theory of primary creation of the universe, chronological description of secondary creations wherein the universe goes through the cycle of birth-life-death and mythology of gods and goddesses, legends of kings and people including solar and lunar dynasties.
The Matsya Purana is notable for being encyclopedic in the topics it covers. Along with the five topics the text defines a Purana to be, it includes mythology, a guide for building art work such as paintings and sculpture and design guidelines for temples and house architecture, various types of Yoga and ethics with multiple chapters on the value of Dāna, both Shiva and Vishnu related festivals, geography around the Narmada river, duties of a king and good government and other topics; the Matsya Purana, like all Puranas, was updated continuously. The composition of the text may have begun in the last centuries of the 1st-millennium BCE, its first version complete by about the 3rd-century of the common era, asserts Ramachandra Dikshitar – known for proposing ancient dates for Indian literature. Other scholars, such as Pandurang Vaman Kane, place the earliest version of the text to between c. 200–500 CE. The Matsya Purana, in chapter 53, includes a note stating that as a Purana, it is supposed to be edited and revised to remain useful to the society.
Wendy Doniger dates the Matsya Purana to have been composed between 250 to 500 CE. The general consensus among scholars is that Matsya Purana is among the older Purana, with its first version complete in the 3rd-century CE, but sections of it were revised and expanded over the centuries, through the 2nd-millennium CE; the Matsya Purana, like all Puranas, has a complicated chronology. Dimmitt and van Buitenen state that each of the Puranas is encyclopedic in style, it is difficult to ascertain when, why and by whom these were written: As they exist today, the Puranas are a stratified literature; each titled work consists of material that has grown by numerous accretions in successive historical eras. Thus no Purana has a single date of composition, it is as if they were libraries to which new volumes have been continuously added, not at the end of the shelf, but randomly. The text is named after the half-fish incarnation of Hindu god Vishnu called Matsya; the Tamil version of the Matsya Purana has two sections and Uttara, it consists of 172 chapters.
Other versions of the published Matsya Purana manuscripts have 291 chapters. The text and tradition asserts. However, extant manuscripts contain between 13,000 to 15,000 verses; the Padma Purana categorizes one that glorifies Shiva or Agni. Scholars consider the Sattva-Rajas-Tamas classification as "entirely fanciful" and there is nothing in this text that justifies this classification, it narrates the story of the first of ten major Avatars of the Hindu god Vishnu. The text describes the mythology of a great flood, where in the world and humans led by Manu, the seeds of all plants and mobile living beings, as well as its knowledge books were saved by the Matsya avatar of Vishnu; the Matsya Purana covers a diverse range of topics, many unrelated to Vishnu, its mixed encyclopedic character led Horace Hayman Wilson – famous for his 19th-century Purana studies and translations, to state, "it is too mixed a character to be considered a genuine Purana" and a collection of miscellaneous topics. The text includes a similar coverage on legends of god Shiva and god Vishnu, dedicates a section on goddess Shakti as well.
Chapters 54-102 of the text discuss the significance and celebration of Hindu festivals and family celebrations such as those related to the Sanskara. The chapters 215-227 of the text discuss its theories of the duties of a king and good government, while chapters 252-257 weave in a technical discussion of how to identify a stable soil for home construction, different architectural designs of a house along with construction-related ritual ceremonies; the Matsya Purana, along with the texts such as Brihat Samhita, are among the oldest surviving texts with numerous sections on temple and artwork designs. The Purana describes 20 styles of Hindu temples, such as Meru and Kailasa designs; the text lays out guidelines on foundation, spaces within the core temple where people visit, the spire. The text highlights the square design principle, suggesting that the land and design of large temples be set on 64 squares, numerous other square grid designs such as the 16 square gri
Ramayana
Ramayana is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India, the other being the Mahābhārata. Along with the Mahābhārata, it forms the Hindu Itihasa; the epic, traditionally ascribed to the Hindu Valmiki, narrates the life of Rama, the legendary prince of the Kosala Kingdom. It follows his fourteen-year exile to the forest from the kingdom, by his father King Dasharatha, on request of his second wife Kaikeyi, his travels across forests in India with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana, the kidnapping of his wife by Ravana, the great king of Lanka, resulting in a war with him, Rama's eventual return to Ayodhya to be crowned king. There have been many attempts to unravel the epic's historical growth and compositional layers; the Ramayana is one of the largest ancient epics in world literature. It consists of nearly 24,000 verses, divided into about 500 sargas. In Hindu tradition, it is considered to be the adi-kavya, it depicts the duties of relationships, portraying ideal characters like the ideal father, the ideal servant, the ideal brother, the ideal husband and the ideal king.
Ramayana was an important influence on Sanskrit poetry and Hindu life and culture. Like Mahabharata, Ramayana is not just a story: it presents the teachings of ancient Hindu sages in narrative allegory, interspersing philosophical and ethical elements; the characters Rama, Lakshmana, Hanuman and Ravana are all fundamental to the cultural consciousness of India, Sri Lanka, south-east Asian countries such as Thailand, Cambodia and Indonesia. There are many versions of Ramayana in Indian languages, besides Buddhist and Jain adaptations. There are Cambodian, Filipino, Lao and Malaysian versions of the tale; the name Ramayana is a tatpuruṣa compound of the name Rāma. According to Hindu tradition, the Ramayana itself, the epic belongs to the genre of itihasa like Mahabharata; the definition of itihāsa is a narrative of past events which includes teachings on the goals of human life. According to Hindu tradition, Ramayana takes place during a period of time known as Treta Yuga. In its extant form, Valmiki's Ramayana is an epic poem of some 24,000 verses.
The text survives in several thousand partial and complete manuscripts, the oldest of, a palm-leaf manuscript found in Nepal and dated to the 11th century CE. A Times of India report dated 18 December 2015 informs about the discovery of a 6th-century manuscript of the Ramayana at the Asiatic Society library, Kolkata; the Ramayana text has several regional renderings and sub recensions. Textual scholar Robert P. Goldman differentiates two major regional revisions: the southern. Scholar Romesh Chunder Dutt writes that "the Ramayana, like the Mahabharata, is a growth of centuries, but the main story is more distinctly the creation of one mind." There has been discussion as to whether the first and the last volumes of Valmiki's Ramayana were composed by the original author. Most Hindus still believe they are integral parts of the book, in spite of some style differences and narrative contradictions between these two volumes and the rest of the book. Retellings include Kamban's Ramavataram in Tamil, Gona Budda Reddy's Ramayanam in Telugu, Madhava Kandali's Saptakanda Ramayana in Assamese, Krittibas Ojha's Krittivasi Ramayan in Bengali, Sarala Das' Vilanka Ramayana and Balaram Das' Dandi Ramayana both in Odia, sant Eknath's Bhavarth Ramayan in Marathi, Tulsidas' Ramcharitamanas in Awadhi and Thunchaththu Ezhuthachan's Adhyathmaramayanam in Malayalam.
Ramayana predates Mahabharata. However, the general cultural background of Ramayana is one of the post-urbanization periods of the eastern part of north India and Nepal, while Mahabharata reflects the Kuru areas west of this, from the Rigvedic to the late Vedic period. By tradition, the text belongs to second of the four eons of Hindu chronology. Rama is said to have been born in the Treta Yuga to king Dasharatha in the Ikshvaku dynasty; the names of the characters are all known in late Vedic literature. However, nowhere in the surviving Vedic poetry is there a story similar to the Ramayana of Valmiki. According to the modern academic view, who, according to Bala Kanda, was incarnated as Rama, first came into prominence with the epics themselves and further, during the puranic period of the 1st millennium CE. In the epic Mahabharata, there is a version of Ramayana known as Ramopakhyana; this version is depicted as a narration to Yudhishthira. Books two to six form the oldest portion of the epic, while the first and last books are additions, as some style differences and narrative contradictions between these two volumes and the rest of the book.
The author or authors of Bala Kanda and Ayodhya Kanda appear to be familiar with the eastern Gangetic basin region of northern India and with the Kosala and Magadha regions during the period of the sixteen Mahajanapadas, based on the fact that the geographical and geopolitical data accords with what is known about the region. Dasharatha is father of Rama, he has three queens, Kausalya, Ka
Rukmini
Rukmini is the principal wife and queen of the God Krishna, the prince of Dwaraka. Krishna heroically kidnapped her and eloped with her to prevent an unwanted marriage at her request and saved her from evil Shishupala. Rukmini is the most prominent queen of Krishna. Rukmini is considered an avatar of Lakshmi, the Goddess of fortune. According to traditional accounts, princess Rukmini is believed to have been born on Vaishakha 11. Although born of an earthly king, her position as an incarnation of Goddess Lakshmi is described throughout Puranic literature: A hero among the Kurus, the Supreme Lord himself, married King Bhishmaka's daughter, Vaidarbhi Rukmini, a direct expansion of the Goddess of fortune. Dwaraka's citizens were overjoyed to see Krishna, the Lord of all opulence, united with Rukmini, the Goddess of fortune Rama. Lakshmi by Her portion took birth on earth as Rukmini in the family of Bhismaka. Rukminidevi, the Queen Consort of Krishna is the Swarupa-shakti, the essential potency of Krishna and she is the Queen / Mother of the Divine World, Dwaraka/Vaikuntha.
She was born at a royal princess from Vedic Aryan tribe. The daughter of a powerful king Bhishmaka; the Shrutis which are associated with the narrations of the pastimes of the Vraja-gopis with svayam-rupa Bhagavan Shri Krishna, the Parabrahma, have declared this truth. They cannot be separated; as Lakshmi is Vishnu's Shakti so as Rukmini is Krishna's strength. Rukmini was the daughter of the king of Vidarbha. Bhismaka was the vassal of King Jarasandha of Magadha, she fell in love with and longed for Krishna, whose virtue, character and greatness she had heard much of. Rukmini's eldest brother Rukmi though was a friend of evil King Kansa, killed by Krishna and was set against the marriage. Rukmini's parents wanted to marry Rukmini to Krishna but Rukmi, her brother opposed it. Rukmi was an ambitious prince and he did not want to earn the wrath of Emperor Jarasandha, ruthless. Instead, he proposed that she be married to his friend Shishupala, the crown prince of Chedi and a cousin of Krishna. Shishupala was a vassal and close associate of Jarasandha and hence an ally of Rukmi.
Bhishmaka gave in but Rukmini, who had overheard the conversation was horrified and sent for a brahmana, whom she trusted and asked him to deliver a letter to Krishna. She asked Krishna to come to Vidarbha and kidnap her to avoid a battle where her relatives may be killed, she suggested. Rukmini asked. Krishna, having received the message in Dwarka set out for Vidarbha with Balarama, his elder brother. Meanwhile, Shishupala was overjoyed at the news from Rukmi that he could go to Kundina Amravati district and claim Rukmini. Jarasandha, not so trusting, sent all his vassals and allies along because he felt that Krishna would come to snatch Rukmini away. Bhishmaka and Rukmini received the news. Bhishmaka, who secretly approved of Krishna and wished he would take Rukmini away had a furnished mansion set up for him, he made them comfortable. Meanwhile, at the palace, Rukmini got ready for her upcoming marriage, she went to Indrani temple on the day of Jyeshtha star to pray but was disappointed when she did not see Krishna there.
As she stepped out, she saw. They both started to ride off. All of Jarasandha's forces started chasing them. While Balarama occupied most of them and held them back Rukmi had caught up with Krishna and Rukmini, he overtook Krishna near Bhadrod. Krishna and Rukmi dueled with the inevitable result of Krishna's victory; when Krishna was about to kill him, Rukmini fell at the feet of Krishna and begged that her brother's life be spared. Krishna, generous as always, but as punishment, shaved Rukmi's head and let him go free. There was no greater shame for a warrior than a visible sign of defeat. Rukmi was worshipped as Gaudera by villagers, he was known as the God of shame. According to folklore, Krishna came to the village of Madhavpur Ghed after kidnapping Rukmini and got married to her at this place. In the memory of that event, there is a temple built for Madhavrai. A celebration of this event is held at Madhavpur in memory of this marriage every year in a cultural fair. At Dwaraka and Rukmini were welcomed with great pomp and ceremony.
The Tulabharam is an incident in the life of Rukmini, that reveals the extent to which humble devotion is worth more than material wealth. Satyabhama, another queen of Krishna, prides herself about the love Krishna has for her and her grasp over his heart. Rukmini, on the other hand is a devoted wife, humble in her service of her Lord, her devotion is her real inner beauty. On one occasion, sage Narada arrived in Dwaraka and in the course of conversation hinted to Satyabhama that the love that Krishna exhibits towards her is not all that real and in fact it is Rukmini who has real control over his heart. Unable to bear this, Satyabhama challenges Narada to prove it. Narada, with his way with words, tricked her into accepting a Vrata where she has to give Krishna away in charity to Narada and reclaim him by giving the weight of Krishna in wealth. Narada lures her into accepting this vrata by telling her that Krishna's love to her will in
Vahana
Vahana denotes the being an animal or mythical entity, a particular Hindu deity is said to use as a vehicle. In this capacity, the vahana is called the deity's "mount". Upon the partnership between the deity and his vahana is woven much mythology. Deities are depicted riding the vahana. Other times, the vahana is depicted at the deity's side or symbolically represented as a divine attribute; the vahana may be considered an accoutrement of the deity: though the vahana may act independently, they are still functionally emblematic or syntagmatic of their "rider". The deity may be seen standing on the vahana, they may be riding on a saddle or bareback. Vah in Sanskrit means to transport. In Hindu iconography, positive aspects of the vehicle are emblematic of the deity that it carries. Nandi the bull, vehicle of Shiva, represents virility. Dinka the mouse, vehicle of Ganesha, represents sharpness. Parvani the peacock, vehicle of Skanda, represents majesty; the hamsa, vehicle of Saraswati, represents wisdom and beauty.
However, the vehicle animal symbolizes the evil forces over which the deity dominates. Mounted on Parvani, Skanda reins in the peacock's vanity. Seated on Dinka the rat, Ganesh crushes useless thoughts. Shani, protector of property, has a vulture, raven or crow in which he represses thieving tendencies. Under Shani's influence, the vahana can make malevolent events bring hope; the vehicle of a deity can vary according to the source, the time, the place. In popular tradition, the origin of each vehicle is told in thousands of different ways. Three examples: While the god Ganesha was still a child, a giant mouse began to terrorize all his friends. Ganesha made him his mount. Mushika was a gandharva, or celestial musician. After absent mindedly walking over the feet of a rishi named Vamadeva, Mushika was cursed and transformed into a mouse. However, after the rishi recovered his temper, he promised Mushika that one day, the gods themselves would bow down before him; the prophecy was fulfilled. Before becoming the vehicle of Shiva, Nandi was a deity called Nandikeshvara, lord of joy and master of music and dance.
Without warning, his name and his functions were transferred to the aspect of Shiva known as the deity Nataraja. From half-man, half-bull, he became a bull. Since that time, he has watched over each of Shiva's temples. Kartikeya, the war-god known as Murugan in Southern India, is mounted on a peacock; this peacock was a demon called Surapadma, while the rooster was called the angel. After provoking Murugan in combat, the demon repented at the moment, he began to pray. The tree was cut in two. From one half, Murugan pulled a rooster, which he made his emblem, from the other, a peacock, which he made his mount. In another version, Karthikeya was born to kill Tarakasura, he was led the divine armies when he was 6 days old. It is said that after defeating Tarakasura, the god forgave him and transformed him into his ride, the peacock; the vahana and deity to which they support are in a reciprocal relationship. Vahana are served in turn by those who engage them. Many vahana may have divine powers or a divine history of their own.
Case in point, the aforementioned Nataraja story, represents a conflation of Hindu gods with local gods, syncretizing their mythos as their territories began to overlap. According to one source, "they could be a synthesis between Vedic deities and autochthonous Dravidian totemic deities; the animal correspondences of Hindu vehicles are not consistent with Greek and Roman mythology, or other belief systems which may tie a particular animal to a particular deity. For example, the goddess Lakshmi of the Hindus has elephants, or an owl, or the lotus blossom as her vehicle; the goddess Athena of ancient Greece had an owl as her emblematic familiar, but the meanings invested in the owls by the two different belief systems are not the same, nor are the two goddesses themselves similar, despite their mutual identification with owls. Lakshmi is, among other things the goddess of wealth, her owl is a warning against distrust and isolationism selfishness. Athena, though a goddess of prosperity, is the goddess of wisdom, her owl symbolizes secret knowledge and scholarship.
Due to their shared geography, the Greco-Roman interpretation is paralleled in Roman Catholic iconography, in which St. Jerome, most famed for editing the New Testament, is depicted with an owl as a symbol of wisdom and scholarship. Depending on the tribe, Native American religious iconography attributes a wide range of attributes to the owl, both positive and negative, as do the Ainu and Russian cultures, but none parallel the Hindu attributes assigned to the owl as Lakshmi's divine vehicle; some hold that similar analyses could be performed cross-culturally for any of the other Hindu divine vehicles, in each case, any parallels with the values assigned to animal totems in other cultures are to be either coincidence, or inevitable, rather than evidence of parallel development. In dialectic, this is countered by the retort that each totem or vahana, as an aspect of ishta-devata, has innumerable ineffable
Pradyumna
Pradyumna is the name of a character in the Srimad Bhagavatam. He was the son of Lord Rukmini. Pradyumna is considered as one of the four vyuha avatars of Vishnu. According to some accounts, Pradyumna was an incarnation of the god of love. Pradyumna is a name of the Hindu god Vishnu, he is one in 24 Keshava Namas, praised in all pujas. It is the only name in Sanskrit with all the 3 letters joint The Harivamsa describes intricate relationships between Krishna Vasudeva, Sankarsana and Aniruddha that would form a Vaishnava concept of primary quadrupled expansion, or avatar. Pradyumna was 61st grandson of Adinarayan, his mother was Rukmini, whom Lord Krishna got from her father Bhimkashen Narayan and brother Bhimkaraya Rukmi. Pradyumna was born in Dvaraka, he was the incarnate of god Kamdev. In the sat Yuga, Kamdev was burnt by Shiva. Shiva blessed Kamdev's distraught wife and promised her that in his next birth Kamdev will be a part of Krishna and Rati will be the daughter of Bhimkaraya Rukmi and that she will marry him.
When he was a baby he was abducted by the demon Sambara. He was cast into the sea and swallowed by a fish, but that fish was caught and carried to the house of Sambara; the fish was opened and the child was found inside. He was given to a woman in Sambara's house to raise. Narada informed her about the true identity of the child; when Pradyumna grew up, he killed him using the Vaishnavastra. Soon after Pradyumna became a constant companion of his father Krishna and was well liked by the people of Dvaraka. Pradyumna was a mighty Maharathi warrior, he possessed the rare Vaishnavastra, the most powerful weapon in the universe. He was one of the few people to know the secret of the Chakra Vyuha. According to Mahabharata Pradyumna trained Abhimanyu and Upapandavas in warfare, but Pradyumna did not participate in the Kurukshetra War as he went on a pilgrimage with his uncle Balarama and other yadavas. But he was an active participant In ashwameda yagna, conducted by Yudishtira, he along with Krishna fought against the demon Nikumbha.
Nikumbha hung he began to vomit blood. When Nikumbha's head was cut off by Krishna, Arjuna began to fall down from the sky. Pradyumna held hence his life was saved. In accordance to Lord Shiva's boon to Rati, he married her incarnation, Princess Mayavati, the Princess of Vidarbha and daughter of his maternal uncle, Bhimkaraya Rukmi, it is said that Mayavati found his valor and charm beyond words and insisted on marrying him at her swayamvara. With her, he fathered, Krishna's grandson and favourite considered a vyuha avatar of Vishnu, Prince Aniruddha. Pradyumna was killed in an intoxicated brawl at Dvaraka that resulted in the death of most Yadava warriors. Aniruddha was the son of Pradyumna, he is said to have been much like his grandfather Krishna, to the extent that he may be a jana avatar, avatar of Vishnu. Aniruddha had a son named Vajra. Vajra was known as an invincible warrior and would remain among the few survivors of the Yadus' battle. King Vajra had 16 idols of Krishna and other gods carved from a rare, imperishable stone called Braja and built temples to house these idols in and around Mathura so as to feel the presence of Lord Krishna.
The Jain version of the story of Pradyumna is mentioned in the Pradyumna-charitra of Rajchandra, written in 1618 AD. Krishnamachariar, M. History of Classical Sanskrit Literature, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 81-208-0284-5
Avatar
An avatar, a concept in Hinduism that means "descent", refers to the material appearance or incarnation of a deity on earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearance" is sometimes used to refer to any guru or revered human being; the word avatar does not appear in the Vedic literature, but appears in verb forms in post-Vedic literature, as a noun in the Puranic literature after the 6th century CE. Despite that, the concept of an avatar is compatible with the content of the Vedic literature like the Upanishads as it is symbolic imagery of the Saguna Brahman concept in the philosophy of Hinduism; the Rigveda describes Indra as endowed with a mysterious power of assuming any form at will. The Bhagavad Gita expounds the doctrine of Avatara but with terms other than avatar. Theologically, the term is most associated with the Hindu god Vishnu, though the idea has been applied to other deities. Varying lists of avatars of Vishnu appear in Hindu scriptures, including the ten Dashavatara of the Garuda Purana and the twenty-two avatars in the Bhagavata Purana, though the latter adds that the incarnations of Vishnu are innumerable.
The avatars of Vishnu are important in Vaishnavism theology. In the goddess-based Shaktism tradition of Hinduism, avatars of the Devi in different appearances such as Tripura Sundari and Kali are found. While avatars of other deities such as Ganesha and Shiva are mentioned in medieval Hindu texts, this is minor and occasional; the incarnation doctrine is one of the important differences between Vaishnavism and Shaivism traditions of Hinduism. Incarnation concepts similar to avatar are found in Buddhism and other religions; the scriptures of Sikhism include the names of numerous Hindu gods and goddesses, but it rejected the doctrine of savior incarnation and endorsed the view of Hindu Bhakti movement saints such as Namdev that formless eternal god is within the human heart and man is his own savior. The Sanskrit noun is derived from the Sanskrit roots ava and tṛ; these roots trace back, states Monier-Williams, to -taritum, -tarati, -rītum. Avatar means "descent, alight, to make one's appearance", refers to the embodiment of the essence of a superhuman being or a deity in another form.
The word implies "to overcome, to remove, to bring down, to cross something". In Hindu traditions, the "crossing or coming down" is symbolism, states Daniel Bassuk, of the divine descent from "eternity into the temporal realm, from unconditioned to the conditioned, from infinitude to finitude". An avatar, states Justin Edwards Abbott, is a saguna embodiment of Atman. Neither the Vedas nor the Principal Upanishads mention the word avatar as a noun; the verb roots and form, such as avatarana, do appear in ancient post-Vedic Hindu texts, but as "action of descending", but not as an incarnated person. The related verb avatarana is, states Paul Hacker, used with double meaning, one as action of the divine descending, another as "laying down the burden of man" suffering from the forces of evil. Mahesh is an avatar of Lord Vishnu; the term is most found in the context of the Hindu god Vishnu. The earliest mention of Vishnu manifested in a human form to empower the good and fight against evil, uses other terms such as the word sambhavāmi in verse 4.6 and the word tanu in verse 9.11 of the Bhagavad Gita, as well as other words such as akriti and rupa elsewhere.
It is in medieval era texts, those composed after the sixth century CE, that the noun version of avatar appears, where it means embodiment of a deity. The idea proliferates thereafter, in the Puranic stories for many deities, with ideas such as ansha-avatar or partial embodiments; the term avatar, in colloquial use, is an epithet or a word of reverence for any extraordinary human being, revered for his or her ideas. In some contexts, the term avatara just means a "landing place, site of sacred pilgrimage", or just "achieve one's goals after effort", or retranslation of a text in another language; the term avatar is not unique to Hinduism. It is found in the Trikaya doctrine of Mahayana Buddhism, in descriptions for the Dalai Lama in Tibetan Buddhism, many ancient cultures; the manifest embodiment is sometimes referred to as an incarnation. The translation of avatar as "incarnation" has been questioned by Christian theologians, who state that an incarnation is in flesh and imperfect, while avatar is mythical and perfect.
The theological concept of Christ as an incarnation, as found in Christology, presents the Christian concept of incarnation. According to Oduyoye and Vroom, this is different from the Hindu concept of avatar because avatars in Hinduism are unreal and is similar to Docetism. Sheth disagrees and states that this claim is an incorrect understanding of the Hindu concept of avatar. Avatars are true embodiments of spiritual perfection, one driven by noble goals, in Hindu traditions such as Vaishnavism; the concept of avatar within Hinduism is most associated with Vishnu, the preserver or sustainer aspect of God within the Hindu Trinity or Trimurti of Brahma and Shiva. Vishnu's avatars descend thereby restoring Dharma. Traditional Hindus see themselves not as Vaishnava, Shaiva, or Shakta; each of the deities has its own iconography and mythology, but common to all is the fact that the divine reality has an explicit form, a form that the worshipper can behold. An oft-quoted passage from the Bhagavad Gita describes the typical role of an avatar of Vishnu: The Vishnu avatars appear in Hindu mythology whenever the cosmos is in
Narada
Narada is a Vedic sage, famous in Hindu traditions as a traveling musician and storyteller, who carries news and enlightening wisdom. He appears in a number of Hindu texts, notably the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, as well as in the Puranas. In Indian texts, Narada travels to distant realms, he is depicted carrying a khartal and tambura with the name Mahathi and is regarded as one of the great masters of the ancient musical instrument. This instrument is known by the name "mahathi" which he uses to accompany his singing of hymns and mantras. In the Vaishnavism tradition of Hinduism, he is presented as a sage with devotion to Lord Vishnu. Narada is described as both wise and mischievous, in humorous tales. Vaishnav enthusiasts depict him as a pure, elevated soul who glorifies Vishnu through his devotional songs, singing the names Hari and Narayana, therein demonstrating bhakti yoga; the Narada Bhakti Sutra is attributed to him. Other texts named after Narada include Narada Purana and the Nāradasmṛti, the latter called the "juridical text par excellence" and represents the only Dharmaśāstra text which deals with juridical matters and ignoring those of righteous conduct and penance.
The name Narada, referring to many different persons, appears in many mythical legends of Hinduism, as an earlier birth of Sariputta in the Jataka tales of Buddhism as well as names of medieval Buddhist scholars, in Jainism. In the Mahabharata, Narada was conversant with the Vedas and the Upanishads and was acquainted with history and Puranas, he had mastery of the six Angas: pronunciation, prosody, religious rites and astronomy. All celestial beings worshiped him for his knowledge - he is supposed to be well versed in all that occurred in ancient Kalpas and is termed to be conversant with Nyaya and the truth of moral science, he was a perfect master in re-conciliatory texts and differentiating in applying general principles to particular cases. He could swiftly interpret contraries by references to differences in situation, he was eloquent, resolute and possessor of powerful memory. He knew the science of morals, skilled in drawing inference from evidence, proficient in distinguishing inferior things from superior ones.
He was competent in judging the correctness and incorrectness of complex syllogistic statements consisting of 5 proponents. He was capable of arriving at definite conclusions about religion, wealth and salvation, he possessed knowledge of this whole everything surrounding it. He was capable while arguing, he was the master of the Sankhya and Yoga systems of philosophy, conversant with sciences of war and treaty and proficient in drawing conclusions of judging things not within a direct knowledge. He knew about the six sciences of treaty, military campaigns, maintenance of posts against the enemy and strategies of ambushes and reserves, he was a thorough master of every branch of learning. He was fond of war and music and was incapable of being repulsed by any science or any course of action; the Bhagavata Purana describes the story of Narada's spiritual enlightenment: He was the primary source of information among Gods, is believed to be the first journalist on Earth. In his previous birth Narada was a Gandharva, cursed to be born on an earthly planet for singing glories to the demigods instead of the Supreme Lord.
He was born as the son of a maid-servant of some saintly priests. The priests, being pleased with both his and his mother's service, blessed him by allowing him to eat some of their food offered to their lord, Vishnu, he received further blessings from these sages and heard them discussing many spiritual topics. After his mother died, he decided to roam the forest in search of enlightenment in understanding the'Supreme Absolute Truth'. Reaching a tranquil forest location, after quenching his thirst from a nearby stream, he sat under a tree in meditation, concentrating on the paramatma form of Vishnu within his heart as he had been taught by the priests he had served. After some time Narada experienced a vision wherein Narayana appeared before him and spoke "that despite having the blessing of seeing him at that moment, Narada would not be able to see his divine form again until he died". Narayan further explained that the reason he had been given a chance to see his form was because his beauty and love would be a source of inspiration and would fuel his dormant desire to be with the lord again.
After instructing Narada in this manner, Vishnu disappeared from his sight. The boy awoke from his meditation both disappointed. For the rest of his life Narada focused on meditation upon and worship to Vishnu. After his death Vishnu blessed him with the spiritual form of "Narada" as he became known. In many Hindu scriptures Narada is considered a saktyavesa-avatara or partial-manifestation of God, empowered to perform miraculous tasks on Vishnu's behalf. Narada temples are Sri Narada Muni Temple at Chigateri, Karnataka. In Jainism, there are a total of 9 Naradas in every cycle of Jain Cosmology, current cycle's Naradas were Bhima, Rudra, Kala, Durmukha and Adhomukha. Bhagavata Purana Narad Bhakti Sutra Nāradasmṛti Sangita Makarandha Four Kumaras Vishnu Doniger, Wendy, ed. Encyclopedia of World Religions, Merriam-Webster, ISBN 0-87779-044-2 Translation by Richard W. Lariviere; the Nāradasmr̥ti. University of Philadelphia. Narada's Instructions on Srimad-Bhagavatam for Vyasadeva R
