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As already stated, myth is an historical element of supernatural world closely related to the particular religion. It is connected with a history of man or a divine personality depicting his obligations and other super natural activities for the betterment of the subjective world of reality. As such, in the literature of Vaisnava religion, as can be read in the Vaisnava Puranas, one finds the delineation of various acivities or of incidents pertaining to the incarnate-forms of Lord Visnu, the Supreme Godhead. The Puranas, major or minor describing the various aspects of different incarnations of Lord Visnu, like Matsya, Kurma etc. are designated by Vaisnava Puranas. And a perusal of such Vaisnava Puranas makes it crystal clear that Lord Visnu had multi-dimensional purposes to achieve goals destroying the evil effects and establishing righteous betterment of the world. Thus, it is essential to read the different incarnations of Lord Visnu as described in the respective Vaisnava Puranas. Strictly speaking, an Avatara means a descent, as its etymology shows, but the word is used to denote any of the three modes (manifestation, descent or birth), of the Lord's contacting us in a tangible form. Lord revealing Himself to Prahlada form a pillar or

144 a royal court, in the form of Nrsimha with a view to saving the prince from the astrocities of his father, Hiranyakasipu, is an instance of the first mode.¹ Visnu's appearing before Dhruva, the son of Uttanapada, who was meditating in Madhu-vana at Mathura, is an example of the 2 second mode. The Lord's birth as Ramachandra in the palace of Ayodhya is an illustration of the third.³ There is no binding on the Almighty as to when He must assume an Avatara form, but He generally does so whenever virtue is over powered by vice and the lives of good people who are in danger. Similarly, He responds to the sincere yearning of His devotees, and condescends to contact them to fulfil their desires. According to the Padma Purana the purpose of an Avatara, as Visnu Himself explained to Svayambhuva Manu, is three-fold: a) protection of those who are noble in character, b) the destruction of those who are wicked, and c) the re-establishment of virtue. 4 1. satyam vidhatum nija bhrtya bhasitam vyaptim ca bhutesvakhilesu catmanah | adrsayatatyad bhutarupamuddhahana stambhe sabhayam na mrgam na manusam | | 2. Bhagavata Purana 7.8.18 bhagavanapi sarvatma tanmayatvena tositah gatva dhruvamuvacedam caturbhujavapurharih | Visnu Puranam I. 12.41 3. kausalya janayah masa putram lokesvaram harim | 4. Padma Purana VI.269. 62-63 yada yada hi dharmasya glanirbhavati bharata | abhyutthanamadharmasya tadatmanam srjamyaham || paritranaya sadhunam vinasayaca duskrtam | dharmasamsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge || Padma Purana V 1.269.7.

145 The Brahma Purana and the Markandeya Purana reiterate the same. 5 Svayambhuva Manu later became king Dasaratha, and according to the Padma Purana, when the lord actually appeared in response to the king's religious rites, He added two more purposes namely, a) the benefit of the deities, b) granting salvation to the people.6 Out of these five purposes, the first three are verbatim the same as preached in the Gita; and the remaining two are peculiar to the Puranas. The deities are always desturbed, if the demons excel them in power. Thus, therefore, request the Lord to intervene, and the result is that He appears. Again when Lord Visnu comes out to us, many a soul achieve their summon bonum by experiencing the divine communion.7 It must not be supposed that Visnu appears in an Avatara form only on this earth. Nay, the Puranas inform us that He manifests Himself on other planes also. For instance, once He was born of Aditi 5. Brahma Purana : 56.35.36 6. Markandeya Purana: IV.53 utpatsye'ham nrpasrestha devaloka hitaya vai | paritranaya sadhunam raksasanam vadhaya ca | muktim pradatum lokanam dharma - samsthapanaya ca || Padma Purana : VI.269.53 7. nrnam nihsreyasarthaya vyaktirbhagavato nrpa | avyayasyaprameyasya nirgunasya gunatmanah || Bhagavata Purana: X.29.14

146 and Kasyapa, who are Indra's celestial parents.³ Similarly an another occasion, the Lord appeared in the form of a 'Hamsa' in the assembly of Brahma-loka.⁹ It is known from Brahma's eulogy offered to Sri Krsna that the Lord appears among gods, sages, human beings, birds and beasts and also among acquatic creatures. 10 Similar is the statement of Akrura who feels happy to anticipate his talk with Krsna who has appeared variously as fish, tortoise, boar, horse, lion and so on to save the creation. 11