Varaha is the half man and half boar avatar of Vishnu. He is also believed to have supported the weight of the cosmos on his back. During the churning of the ocean ( Samudra Manthan), he balances Mount Mandara on his shell to assist the gods and the demons in the churning process. Kurma is the half tortoise half-man form of Vishnu. According to Matsya Puran, Matsya informs Manu, the leader of the humans, of the great flood and helps him save all the motile living beings, the Vedas, and the seeds of all plants. Matsya is the half fish, a half-human form of Vishnu. The Shiva Purana has Balarama on the list as 8th Avatar – Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Narasimha, Vamana, Parashurama, Rama, Balarama, Krishna, and Kalki. The most popular ten avatars based on many Puranas are Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Narasimha, Vamana, Parashurama, Rama, Krishna, Buddha, and Kalki. But, Vayu Purana replaces them with Dattatreya and Vyasa.

Some scriptures do not mention Buddha and Balarama in their list of Dashavatar. The Agni, Padma, Garuda, Linga, Narada, Skanda, and Varaha Puranas list Buddha among Vishnu avatars. There are different versions of the Dashavatar list in different scriptures. Dashavatara of Vishnuįrom Innumerable incarnations of Vishnu, Rishis or Sages selected ten Avatars as a representative of rest these ten incarnations are known in Sanskrit as “Dashavatar.” The Dhashavatara list of Vishnu is introduced in Garuda Purana (1st millennium BCE). Some of the important ones, 24 Avatars of Vishnu, are mentioned in the chapter. When He indirectly empowers some living entity to represent Him, then that living entity is called an Avesa-Avatara.Īmsarup Avatars: Lord Vishnu takes form directly, but He is manifest partially – Matsya, Kurma, VarahaĪccording to Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 1 chapter 3, there are innumerable incarnations of Lord Vishnu. When Lord Vishnu Himself descends on earth, He is called Sakshaty-Avatara. When Lord Vishnu indirectly empowers life to represent him, that living entity is called an Avesa-Avatara – Like Naravada Muni, Parashurama, Vyasa, etc.Īvatars are broadly classified into two kinds. When Vishnu descends on the earth like Lord Krishna, Lord Rama, and Lord Narasimha, he is called Sakshaty-Avatara. Sakshaty-Avatara and Avesa-Avatara are two different types of Avatars. The first chapter of Goloka Kanda of Garga Samhita Narada talks about different types of avatars Let us understand the different types of Avatar Lord Vishnu has taken,

The concept of an avatar is most often associated with Lord Vishnu though Lord Shiva, Lord Brahma, and Goddess Parvati or Adi Shakti also have many Avatars or Incarnations. It is the “appearance” or “manifestation” of God, Deity, or Supreme Self in an earthly embodiment. Avatar (also known as Incarnation) in Sanskrit means – descent.

Dasavatharam order pictures with names