Dasavatara and Bhagavatgita

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Dasavathara

in the light of the Gita

 

1. What

is an avathara?

A descent from higher to lower. The Lord coming from

Vaikunta or KsheerabDhi to the mortal world in a form visible to all. This is

the common conception. But avatharana, the descent means not from a place but

from a higher realm of consciousness to a lower plane of consciousness. The

divinity is everywhere , in every being but unmanifest. When it is manifest in

a gross form it is an avathara. In this sense the avathara is happening always. Whenever

the good overpowers the evil it

is avathara. Gita says `parithraaNaaya saadhoonam vinaaSaaya cha

dhushkrthaam Dharma samsThaapanaarThaaya sambhavaami yuge yuge, to

protect the good and to punish the wicked I make myself manifest in every

yuga.' The words yuge yuge should not be understood as once in a yuga. It means `in all yugas,'

whenever necessary. But the dasavatharas among the 24 avataras described in

Bhagavatapurana, in which the divinity has manifested for all to see, are the

prominent ones.

 

2. What are Puranas and Ithihasas like Bhagavatapurana and

Ramayana?

 

There are 18 puranas out of which Bhagavatapurana and

vishnupurana are the ones where we find the description of the dasavataras of

Lord Narayana. The purnas and Ithihasas are not cock and bull stories or

fairytales as many think in modern days. They are not figments of imagination

of the sages or mere mythology. They are pregnant with meaning. The sages, out

of mercy for those who could not study and understand the sruthi and smrthi have given out the same truths in the form

of stories that everyone can understand.

 

3. The whole Sanskrit literature can be classified into

three heads.

Sruthi and smrthis- Vedas are sruthis and Bhagvat

gita , Manusmrthi etc. which are

corollary to Vedas are called smrthis. These are classified under the name

Prabhusamhitha, because like a prabhu or master they give commands in the form

of injunctions, prohibitions and instructions.

Puranas and Ithihasas are called suhrthsamhitha because

like a suhrth, friend, advising what is good for us, they tell us about the

same truths contained in the sruthi and smrthi in the form of stories in a

friendly and suggestive manner.

 

There is a third class of works known as kavyas,

comprising of drama, prose and poetry like the works of Kalidasa and other

poets, which also contain the values of dharma and spirituality but like a

kantha , a wife they convey the message in an entertaining and unobtrusive

manner. A wife has to tell her husband what is good for him in an indirect and

pleasant manner because no husband likes to be advised or instructed by his

wife!

 

4. Dasavatara and Gita.

As the dasavatharas are the most important subject of the

Bhagavathapurana and Vishnupurana, the Bhagavt gita is the most important part

of Mahabharatha, and therefore inspite

of its occurrence in the ithihaasa it has been elevated to the status of

smrthi.

 

5. Gita is the gospel of humanity. It is essential in

every walk of life and the view that the study of it can be postponed to the

old age is wrong. It was told in the battlefield and not in forest, urging

Arjuna to do his duty. Unless the seed is sown while young, the wisdom of the

scriptures will not bear fruit in the old age. Whether one is a student, or an

executive or a householder, he will be more efficient in his work if he has

mastered the principles of Gita. When the same is done without anxiety for the

result and with detachment it is karmayoga.

 

6. Dasavathara in the light of Gita.

The Dasvatharas are the illustrations of the Gita. What

the Lord said in the Gita, He has demonstrated in His incarnations. While

the avatharas except Ramavathara and

krishnavathara are the illustrations of the Gita , the Ramavathara is the

elucidation of Gita and the Krishnavathara is embodiment of Gita.

 

 

 

Matsyavathara

 

The purpose of the Matsyavathara was to retrieve the Vedas

which were stolen by Hayagreevasura, while Brahma was asleep during naimitthika

pralaya which was the night of Brahma,

and hidden under the ocean. The

Lord took the form of a large fish and retrieved them, killing Hayagreevasura.. Now the Hayagreevasura

stands for perverted intellect strong enough to influence the world to eclipse

the wisdom of the Vedas. The word haya means, besides a horse, a class of men

strong like wood, arrogant, perverted and fearless. kaashtaa thulya vapuH

Dhrshtah miThyaachaaraScha nirbhayaH. Vedas being immersed in the

ocean, wisdom and Dharma being submerged in aDharma due to the absence of the

guidance of Vedas, it requires the divine grace in the form of Mhamathsya.

 

Mathsya form of the Lord is called mahaamathsyaH , It

represents the pure intellect , all pervading, sarvajna, which alone could save the Vedas and

dharma.

 

The brhadharyanaka Upanishad says, yaThaa mahaamathsyaH

ubhe koole anusancharathi poorvam cha aparam cha, which means, `as

the large fish goes along the two banks being

in contact with one and the other.'

 

Small fish are agitated by the current of the river and

run to this bank and the other whereas

the mahamathsya goes touching both the banks and not affected by the

current of the river, mahaan cha asou mathsyaScha naadheeyena

srothasa ahaaryaH.

 

The two banks are doubt and delusion. Born out of the

dhvandhvas, raga and dvesha, sukha and duhkha etc. between which the jiva oscillates

like a pendulum.

 

When the intellect

is not mature with wisdom it is oscillating between doubt and delusion, running

hither and thither like small fish

swimming alternately between the two banks. But when it is grown fully, all the

doubts are resolved and the delusion is no more. Gita says, `raagadvesha

viyukthaisthu vishayaan indhriyaischaran athma vaSairviDheyaathmaa (2.64)

the one who contacts the sense objects with his senses fully controlled due to

the absence of likes and dislikes is disciplined and self-controlled The two

banks have now become vivika and vairagya. The same intellect becomes all pervading, being established in

Brhaman, the Absolute reality, and is firmansd unaffected by the cross currents

of samsara, the transmigratory existence.

 

In the story, the Lord as matsya instructs the king

satyavrata to take pairs of all beings and seeds of the plants and herbs when

the world is submerged in water during deluge and get into a boat drawn by mahamatsya which would come

there He did so and the Lord took him to

safety and the reproduction continued. The deluge was the effect of maya which

could be crossed only with the help of the Lord as said in the Gita dhaivee

hyeshaa guNamayee mama maayaa dhurathyayaa maamevaye prapdhyanthe maayaam

ethaam tharanthi the(BG.7.14) "This divine delusion formed by the gunas created by Me is difficult to cross and those who resort to Me alone are able to cross over."

 

Koormavathara

 

Next is Koormavathara. This incarnation was taken to help

amrthamathana. Amrtha is the nectar of brahmajnana which secures immortality.

The mount mandhara is the firm resolve as said in the 5th chapter of

the Gita, thath budDhayaH thadhaathmaana HthannishTaah thathapraayaNaaH

gacChanthi apunaraavrtthim jnaana nirDhootha kalmashaaH (BG.5.17) Their

intellect riveted in the self, being engrossed in the self, contemplating on

the self and fixing their goal as the self, the yogis whose impurities are

washed away by jnana reach the state of no return.

 

The fight between devas and asuras , who denote good and

bad impulses is going on always inside the mind. The only solution to end that,

is to acquire jnana which is signified by amrtha. The milky ocean is the mind

full of turbulence but calm on the surface. Vasuki is the king of serpents,

whch stand for the desires. The king of

desires is the desire for moksha. When the desire for moksha,

vasuki, is wound around firm resolve, mandhara mountain, the amrtha can be

gained. But it needs the help of the Lord at each and every step. He had to

help in lifting mandhara and to put it in the ocean, helped by supporting it on

his back as koorma, churned the ocean along with the devas , entered into them

to give strength and finally as Mohini He took the amrtha away from the asuras and gave it to the devas. This shows that one

needs the divine grace at each and every step of spiritual progress.

 

First the poison halahala came out which was swallowed by

Siva. Halahala is the bad vasanas or

impulses stored in the mind through several births which have to eradicated as

the first step. It was absorbed by Siva the annihilator. The Lord as Siva out

of mercy takes away the sinful propensities to make the mind pure.

Vedantadesika, the foremost of Vaishnava acharyas after Ramanuja and composer

of several devotional and philosophical works, says in his dayasatakam, in which he personifies

the daya , mercy of the Lord, as dhayaadhevi, that, she eats the sins of the

devotees to make them pure and worthy of the grace of the Lord. Theshaam eva

anukamoaarTham aham ajnaanajam thamaH naasayaami, the Lord says in the

Gita.(BG.10.11) "I destroy the darkness

of ignorance (which is the cause of sins) for them out of mercy."

 

All the good things that came out of the ocean like

Airavatha, ucchaisravas etc, are the various siddhis that come to one who

aspires for jnana at different levels. The devas were warned against being

tempted by these and stop churning. The siddhis are impediments to progress and

the aspirant for mukthi is not tempted by them. Mahalakshmi represents the

mercy of the Lord which is why she chose His heart as her residing place. She

is called o purushakarbhooha, who recommends the case of the devotee to the

Lord , making Him forgive the faults of the devotee and shower His grace.

Finally the amrtha came, only to be seized by the asuras at the last moment.

This is to show that one should not be complacent about his spiritual progress

as there is many a slip between the cup and the lip. The Gita says, indhriyaaNi

pramaaTheeni haranthi prasbham manaH.(Bh.2.60) the senses of an aspirant

till he reaches the final stage remain strong

and carry his mind unaware and

indhriyasyendhriyasyaarThe raagadhveshou vy avasThithou thayorna vasam

aagacCheth thou hyasya paripanThinou (Bh3.34) Desire

and aversion is attached to each sense object through the respective sense

organ. One should not come under their sway because they are his enemies.

That is

, the senses may get the better of even a wise man who he has controlled

them.

 

There is a story to illustrate this: A guru who has

mastered the sasthras was teaching his

disciples in the forest these linesfrom Mahabharatha. balavaan indhriyagramo vdhvaamsam api

karshthi (MB) which means that the senses are strong and

tempt even the man of knowledge. The

guru, who was proud of himself as a master of his senses changed it to balavaan

indhriyagramo vidhvaamsam naapi karshathi, that is, the senses do no

tempt the learned man. Sage Veda Vyasa, the author of

mahabharatha was angered by this and wanted to teach him a lesson. He created a

heavy shower and took the form of an attractive woman and came to the place

where he was teaching, seeking shelter. The guru told her to go inside his hut

and take shelter from the rain. When she brushed past him the guru was

attracted by her and dismissed his students. Then he knocked on the door of the

hut which she did not open. Then he got on the roof and tried to get in but was

caught in between the bamboos of the roof and called out to his students to

come for his rescue. Then he found, when the door was opened that there was

nobody inside He learnt his lesson and later

taught the same passage as balavaan indhriyagraamo vidhvaamsam api

karshathi karshathi karshathyeva.

 

Koorma signifies the sthithaprajna portrayed in the second

chapter of the Gita. Yadhaa samharthe

chaayam koormaangaaneeva sarvaSaH indhriyaaNi indhriyaarThebhyaH thasya prajnaa

prathishTithaa (BG.2.58). When one

withdraws his senses from sense objects on all sides like the tortoise

withdraws its limbs, his wisdom is firm. The koorma is the aadhikoorma

who supports the entire universe on His back to whom the mandhara mountain was

nothing. Desika says in his dasavathra sthothra that the Lord was not at all

affected by the churning and felt as

though his back was being scratched. This is the state of sthitha prajna

described in the Gita.baahyasparSeshu askthaathmaa vindhathi aathmani yath

sukham(BG.5.21) The one whose senses are not drawn towards sense objects

outside, acquires joy within himself, being engrossed in Brahman which gives

him undiminished joy.

 

 

Varahavathara

 

Varaha means wild boar. HiranYaksha hid the earth in the

ocean and the Lord took the form of Varaha and killed him and brought back the

earth. Hiranya means gold and HiraNye akshiNee yasya, one whose eyes

are on gold is Hiranyaksha, who represents the materialistic outlook, hiranyabudDhi,

as opposed to bhagavathbuddhi , thoughts on the Lord. The earth is

immersed in materialism and the Lord brings it back and puts it on the waters

of bhagavtbuddhi. Mahavaraha, as the incarnation is called, is also known as vrshaakapi,

(Vishnusahasaranama), meaning dharma varaha, embodiment of dharma, vrsha

meaning dharma and kapi also means varaha besides monkey.

Srimadbhagavatham describes Varaha as yajna varaha, while Gita says sarvagatham brahma nithyam yajne

prathishTitham, Brahman the supreme reality is established in yajna.

Further in Gita the Lord says aham krathuh aham yajnaH , "I am the

sacrifice." In Narsimhavathra Hiranyakasipu stopped all the yajnas since Lord

Vishnu is present in yajna.

 

In Varahapurana the Lord says that if one contemplates on

Him always while he has control over his faculties , The Lord will remember him

even if the man is not able to think of the Lord in his last moments. He says

in the Gita ye thu sarvaaNikarmaaNi mayi

sannyasya mathparaaH ananyenaiva yogena maam Dhyaayantha upaasathe theshaam

aham samyudDhartha mrthyusamsaarasaagaraath (BG.12.6), I uplift those, who

offer all there actions tome and worship Me with unfailing devotion, from the

sea of samsara. This is the implication of varahavathara. Bhoodevi prayed to

the Lord when she was immersed in the

ocean and she is not only His consort but also a devotee and a dependent. Hence

the Lord took the form of a wild boar and

lifted her from the ocean.

 

Narasimhavathara

 

Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakasipu were brothers and alike in

attitude. Kasipu means food and clothing. hiraNyam kasipuH yasya saH hiraNyakasipuH, meaning, one to whom

gold is the food and clothing. Prahlada represents bhagavathbuddhi which is hindered by hiranyabuddhi. When the true devotee is persecuted by the

materialistic world the Lord comes to his rescue as he protected Prahlada every

time when Hiranyakasipu tried to kill him. Finally when his faith was

challenged the Lord appeared as Narasimha and killed Hiranyakasipu. Prahlada

told his father that the Lord Hari is everywhere and when Hiranyakasipu asked

him whether his Lord would protect him

if Hirnyakasipu kills him by his sword right then, Prajhlada replied

"no, He would not because the Lord would not allow you to raise the sword in the first place." Such

faith was rewarded which confirms the declaration in the Gita kountheya

prathijaaneehi name bhaakthaH praNaSyathi,(BG9.31) " affirm on my behalf ,

Arjuna , that my devotee never perishes.

 

The reason the Lord appeared as half man half lion was to

protect the words of another devotee, Brahma, who has given the boon to

Hiranyakasipu that he would not be killed either by man or animal, either

during day or night , either inside or outside and by any weapon. The Lord had to satisfy all the conditions to

make true the words of Brahma though He could have killed Hiranyakasipu in any

manner He liked. Also to prove true the words of Prahlada that the Lord is

everywhere, in a blade of grass or in a pillar Narasimha was occupying all

places at that moment ready to come out of whichever place Hiranyakasipu was

going to point at. Deiska says in his varadarajapanchasat that the whole

universe except that one pillar out of which the Lord came , is nrsimhagarbha,

occupied by Narasimha even today.

 

Narasimha was described as na mrgam na maanusham,

neither man nor animal, being half man

half lion. This signifies that he was dhvandhvaatheetha, beyond the

pairs of opposites, dhvandhvas such as love and hate, gain and loss and joy and sorrow, while

the boons of Hiranyakasipu denote the dhvandhvas. The meaning of

Narasimhavathara is that only one who has transcended the dhvandhvas,

like raga-dvesha, likes and dislikes can win over the hiranyabuddhi.

 

Prahlada is the example of a true devotee as described in

the Gita, vaasudhevassarvam ithi sa mahaathmaa sudhurlabhaH (BG. 7.19), the

great soul who considers that vasudeva is

everything is very rare.

The Lord proved by His protecting Prahladha the

declaration in the gita yo maam

paSyati sarvathra sarvam cha mayi paSyathi thasya aham na praNasyaami sa cha me

na praNasyathi(BG.6.30) One who sees Me everywhere and everything in Me, I

never perish (cease to exist) in him nor he perishes in Me.

 

The story goes that the Dvarpalakas of Vaikunta were

cursed by the sages sanakadhi to be born on earth and the Lord granting their

request that they will be taking three births as His enemies so that they wpuld

return to vaikunta soon. Their first birth was Hiranyaksha and Hiranya kasipu,

and the next was as Ravana and Kumbhakarna and the last was as Sisupala and

Dhanthavakra. The pride of the dvarapalakas had to be quelled and since the

pride is associated with the other five

enemies of man, they had to be conquered.

 

The Lord says in the Gita, ahamkaaram balam dharpam kaamam krDham cha samSrithaaH maam

aathmaparadheheshu pradhvishanthaH abhyasooyakaaH, while describing the

nature of asuree sampath, demonic qualities. It means, arrogance, brutal

strength, pride, lust, anger and cavil and jealousy which make them inimical

towards the Lord.

 

Hiranyaksha stands for madha, arrogance and

Hiranyakasipu denotes krodha , anger. Ravana signifies kama,

desire and kumbhakarna, moha, delusion Sisupala and Dhanthavakra denote maathsarya,

jeolousy, and lobha, greed respectively. It is significant that the Lord destroyed

Ravana and kumbhakarna in one incarnation as Rama and Sisupala and Dhanthavakra

in the next as Krishna. But to destroy the two

brothers Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakasipu He had to take two incarnations which

shows that it is more difficult to conquer arrogance and anger.