| Name ▲▼ | Origin ▲▼ | Description ▲▼ |
|---|---|---|
"Kesava (long-haired)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Minor avatara of VISINU. His SAKTI is KIRTI.... |
| Deities name "Krishna" | Indian | The modern deity Krishna is the most celebrated hero of Indian mythology, and the most popular of all the deities. He is said to be the eighth Avatara or incarnation of Vishnu, or rather a direct manifestation of Vishnu himself. This hero, around whom a vast måśś of legend and fable has been gathered, probably lived in the Epic age, when the Hindus had not advanced far beyond their early settlements in the north-west. |
| Demon name "Kurma" | Hindu / Puranic / Epic | Avatar of Visnu. In the form of a tortoise he placed himself at the bottom of the sea of milk, and made his back the base or pivot of the mountain Mandara. The gods and demons twisted the great serpent Vasuki round the mountain' and, dividing into two parties, each took an end of the snake as a rope, and thus churned the sea until they recovered the desired objects. Hindu / Puranic / Epic |
| Deities name "Kurma(vatara)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Incarnation of the god VIS'NU. The second avatara of Vis'nu, Kurma appears in the form of a tortoise which acts as a pivot for the mountainous churning rod the gods employ to make ambrosia from the primal sea of milk after the flood. Kurma is depicted with a human torso surmounting a tortoise shell. Vis'nu is said to have appeared in this form in order to recover some of the possessions lost during the deluge. Attributes: club, conch, lotus and prayer wheel. Also the name for a vehicle of various deities.... |
"Kurma[vatara]" | Hindu / Puranic / Epic | An avatar of Visnu |
| God name "Mandhata (thoughtful)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | God. Minor avatara of VISNU. One of the lords of the universe.... |
| Demon name "Matsya" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Incarnation of the god VIS'NU. In this first avatara Vis'nu appears as a fish which, according to one legend, tows a ship carrying the law-giver MANU to safety after the primal flood. Matsya engages in an epic battle with the demon HAYAGRIVA who stole the Vedas from a sleeping BRAHMA. Usually depicted with a human torso carrying symbols, e.g. wheel and conch, on a fish's body.... |
"Mohini" | Hindu | One of the 25 avatars of Vishnu found in the Puranas. Hindu |
| Demon name "Mohini (illusion)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Minor incarnation of VIS'NU. Mohini is an avatara who appears in the form of an enchantress whose form Vis'nu adopted briefly to deceive demons attempting to remove the ambrosia created by churning the primeval ocean of milk (see also GARUDA). Vis'nu used the same guise to dupe and seduce the god SIVA.... |
| God name "Nara (man)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Minor incarnation(s) of the god VISNU. Some authorities place these as separate avataras, but they are usually linked.... |
| Goddess name "Narasinha (man-lion)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Incarnation of the god Vis'nu. The fourth avatara of the god is depicted as a man-lion hybrid. According to legend, the demonic king Hiranyakasipu had taken on a dangerous invulnerability. To thwart this, VIS'NU took the form of Narasinha and hid inside a pillar of the king's palace whence he sprang, capturing Hiranyakasipu and tearing out his entrails. IconographicalIy, the scene is portrayed with the victim thrown across Narasinha's lap and the god's claws plunged into his body. Narasinha may also appear seated in a yoga position with the goddess LAKSMI on his knee.... |
| Goddess name "Padma (lotus)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | (1) Snake god. One of a group of seven MAHANAGAS. Attributes: rosary and water jar. Three-eyed.(2) Goddess. An incarnation of LAKSMI, the consort of an avatara of VIS NU. She is depicted as emanating from the padma or lotus (Nelumbium speciosum) which is the symbol of creation and one of the most important iconographic devices in Hinduism. Also KAMALA.... |
| Demon name "Parasurama (Rama-with-the-ax)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Incarnation of the god VIS'NU. The sixth avatara of Vis'nu (see also RAMA) in which form he saved the world from an army of tyrannical warriors. According to legend, Rama, the son of a wise man, became a skilled bowman and in gratitude he went to the Himalaya where he stayed, devoting himself to SIVA. His consort is DHARANI. Though without his bow, Rama acted as a champion of the gods in a war against the demons and was rewarded with an ax. In another legend, Vis'nu took the form of Parasurama to rid the world of despotic rulers. This avatara appears in human form, with two arms and with an ax in the right hand. Other attributes: arrow, bow, knife, skin and sword. Also Parasuramavatara.... |
| God name "Prthu (broad)" | Hindu / Vedic | Creator god. The head of the solar pantheon who introduced Agriculture to the human race and who, in later Hinduism, is identified as an avatara of VIS'NU.... |
| God name "Purusa" | Hindu / Vedic | Primeval creator god. Described as the primordial being from whom the cosmos was formed, possibly the male component of the great mother, MATA. In later Hinduism regarded as an avatara of VIS'NU.... |
| Demon name "Rama (pleasing)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Incarnation of the god VIS NU. The seventh avatara (sun aspect) of Vis nu. Rama began as a comparatively minor incarnation who became one of the great heroes of the Ramayana epic, as well as featuring in the Mahabharata. The son of Dasaratha and Kausalya, he was a king of Ayodhya who, in the Ramayana, slew the demon Ravana that had captured his consort SITA and was upheld as a deity par excellence in respect of manhood and honor, though his subsequent treatment of his wife might be regarded as cavalier (see Sita). The Ramayana epic was composed by the poet and sage Valmeeki during the reign of Ramachandra and it gave form to a story that had been in existence for many centuries as an oral tradition. Valmeeki portrayed Rama not as an incarnate deity but as a great mortal hero. The saga is strongly political and serves to unite a vast and fragmented people in a common focus, irrespective of caste and language. It defines the historical schism between the Hindu culture of India and the largely Buddhist tradition of Sri Lanka. Rama rides in a chariot and is depicted in human form with two arms, typically holding a sugar cane bow and with a quiver at his shoulder. Also Ramacandra.... |
"Raumas or Raumyas" | India | Hairy; a race sweated from the pores of Virabhadra, one of the avataras of Siva. They had a thousand heads and a thousand arms. India |
| God name "Rsabha (the bull)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | God. An unusual avatara of VIS'NU. Said to be similar to the Jain deity Rsabhanatha and therefore may represent an attempt to meld the two religions by absorbing Jainism locally.... |
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