Chapter Five: Avatāra Doctrine and Rama Worship

Yuga avatāras

One yuga avatāra appears in each of the four ages: white in Satya Yuga, red in Treta, dark in Dvapara, and Krishna-coloured in the age of Kali. In every kalpa, these avatāras are further distinguished as invested, prābhava, vaibhava, and supreme.

Examples of partial descents have already been given. Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanatana, Sanatkumara, Narada, Prithu, and others are conventionally described as partial avatāras. Bhagavan enters them and thereby raises them to the order of avatāra. This is the path of ascent.

Among prābhava and vaibhava avatāras, figures such as Mohini, Hamsa, and Shukla disappear once their work is complete. A second class includes scriptural teachers such as Dhanvantari, Rishabha, Vyasa, and Kapila. The vaibhava avatāras include Kurma, Matsya, Nara-Narayana, Varaha, Hayashirsha, Prishnigarbha, Balarama, and the fourteen Manvantara avatāras.

These avatāras have their own particular realms: Mahatala for Kurma; Rasatala for Matsya; Badari for Nara-Narayana; Maharloka for the two-legged Varaha; Patala for the four-legged Varaha; Talatala for Hayashirsha; a realm above Brahma’s Janaloka for Prishnigarbha; Sri Krishna’s own realm for Balarama; Svargaloka for Vaikuntha; Dhruvaloka for Ajita; Tapoloka for Trivikrama; and Bhuvarloka for Vamana. All these avatāras, however, inhabit realms below the transcendent sky or Maha-Vaikuntha.

Complete avatāras

Parāvasthā means the complete state. In this condition the avatāra possesses the six divine opulences and is perfectly complete. Narasimha, Rama, and Krishna are of this order. Rama abides in Ayodhya and Maha-Vaikuntha. According to the Padma Purāṇa, Rama is Narayana, Lakshmana is Shesha, Bharata is the Sudarshana discus, and Shatrughna is the Panchajanya conch. According to the Puranas, Krishna abides in four places: Vraja, Mathura, Dvaraka, and Goloka.

Bhagavan’s sixteen arts are his sixteen powers: Sri, Bhu, Kirti, Ila, Lila, Kanti, Vidya, Vimala, Utkarshini, Jnana, Kriya, Yoga, Prahvi, Satya, Ishana, and Anugraha.

The fundamental doctrine of avatāra

At the root of avatāra doctrine lies the principle that in one form Bhagavan eternally sports in his eternal realm, while in another he carries forward the activity of the universe.¹ What has been explained above may be summarized as follows:

1. Though the Supreme Self is one, he can reveal himself in many forms. Every one of his forms is complete, real, eternal, and apprehensible only through single-pointed spiritual understanding.