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Title: Expansions of God
User: Swami Gaurangapada Date: 2006-08-16 05:19:39
Expansions of the Lord
Gauranga Krishna
Introduction
Dashavataras
Purusha-avataras
Lila-avataras
Guna-avataras
Manvantara-avataras
Yuga-avataras
Shaktyavesha-avataras
Recognizing the real Avatara
Chart of All Expansions1. Introduction
Lord Gauranga explained
to Sanatana Gosvami that the expansions of Lord Krishna who come to the
material creation are called avataras. The word 'avatara' means 'one who
descends' (from Sanskrit avatarati) and in this case the word specifically
refers to one who descends from the spiritual sky. In the spiritual sky there
are innumerable Vaikuntha planets, and from these planets the expansions of the
Supreme Personality of Godhead come into this universe.
Sometimes the word
'incarnation' (lit. 'one who entered flesh', ie. accepted a material body) is
used but this word from the theological point of view does not refer to the
Lord. Shrimad Bhagavatam 5.5.19 describes the body of the Lord as
'durvibhavya', materially inconceivable, since it may sometimes seem to be
material or the Lord may manifest a material body for some purpose if it is
required in the lila (like when He 'left His body' at the end of Dvaraka-lila).
This type of body shouldn't be mistaken as a usual human body. Also, humans and
other jivas cannot themselves manifest avataras (if they are endowed with
specific potency, they are called saktyavesa-avataras though). Using this word
for icons in internet forums, etc., is therefore incorrect. ;)
There are six kinds of
incarnations: (1) the purusa-avataras, (2) the lila-avataras, (3) the
guna-avataras, (4) the manvantara-avataras, (5) the yuga-avataras, and (6) the
saktyavesa-avataras.
Lord Gauranga explains
some of them to Sanatana Gosvami just to give him an idea of how the Lord
expands and enjoys. These conclusions are also confirmed in Shrimad-Bhagavatam
(1.3.26). There it is said that there is no limit to the incarnations of the
Supreme Lord, just as there is no limit to the waves of the ocean.
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2. Dashavataras
Q: Lord Buddha described
as one of the Dasavataras and as a saktyavesa avatara. Which is correct? What
kind of avatar is Lord Ramacandra?
A: Both are correct. The
word "dasavatara" or "dasa-avatara" denotes not a category
of avataras like yuga-, lila-, manvantara-, or other avataras but the most
famous list of ten avataras (in Sanskrit "dasa" = "10").
This list is to be found e.g. in Garuda Purana 1.86.10-11 (or, according to
other numbering, 2.30.37). There are other lists as well, like 25 avataras in
Bhagavata Purana 1.3 but these ten are the most popular ones. They are often
depicted by artists and celebrated by poets like Jayadeva Gosvami in his
Dasavatara-stotra.
Saktyavesa-avataras is a
category of avataras who are not visnu-tattva but jiva-tattva (jivas, or living
beings, empowered for a special mission).
The system of avatara
categories is quite complex and some avataras belong to more than one category.
If you wish to delve into this technical topic, consult books like
Chaitanya-charitamrita by Krishnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami, Laghu-bhagavatamrta by
Rupa Gosvami, etc.
Dasavataras are
practically all lila-avataras (some are more than that, like Krishna, who is
avatari, the source of all avataras). Shri Rama is the famous lila-avatara,
also listed among those 25 in Bhagavata Purana. His lila is described in the
epic Ramayana.
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3. Purusha Avataras and
Their Expansions
Krishna first incarnates
as the three purusa-avataras, namely the Maha-Vishnu or Karanodakasayi avatara,
the Garbhodakasayi avatara and the Ksirodakasayi avatara. This is confirmed in
the Satvata-tantra:
visnos tu trini rupani
purusakhyany atho viduh
ekam tu mahatah srastr
dvitiyam tv
anda-samsthitam
trtiyam sarva-bhuta-stham
tani jnatva vimucyate
"For material
creation, Lord Krishna's plenary expansion assumes three Vishnus. The first
one, Maha Vishnu, creates the total material energy, known as mahat-tattva. The
second, Garbhodakasayi Vishnu, enters into all the universes to create
diversities in each of them. The third, Ksirodakasayi Vishnu, is diffused as
the all-pervading Supersoul in all the universes and is known as Paramatma. He
is present even within the atoms. Anyone who knows these three Vishnus can be
liberated from material entanglement." (Satvata-tantra quoted in Bg. 7.4
purport)
Krishna is the original
Personality of Godhead. His expansion is Balarama, who expands the original
catur vyuha or quadruple expansions.
1) Vasudeva 2) Sankarsana
3) Pradyumna 4) Aniruddha
These original catur
vyuha expansions reside in Mathura and Dvaraka. From them twenty four forms of
Vishnu expand. They are named differently according to the arrangement of the
conch, disc, lotus and club in Their hands. All of these twenty four forms
reside in each Vaikuntha planet with the predominating Deity of that planet.
From the original catur vyuha the second catur vyuha expands. In this second
catur vyuha the form of Sankarsana is also called Maha Sankarsana. It is from
Maha Sankarsana that Maha Vishnu becomes manifested.
KRISHNA OR GAURANGA
Original Personality of
Godhead
|
BALARAMA OR NITYANANDA
First expansion
|
ORIGINAL CATUR VYUHA
Vasudeva, Sankarsana,
Pradyumna, Aniruddha
|
SECOND CATUR VYUHA
Vasudeva, Sankarsana,ż
Pradyumna, Aniruddha
(each expand into three
andłthen another two expansions)
|
(Maha Sankarsana)
|
MAHA VISNU
1) MAHA VISNU lies on the
Causal Ocean which appears in one corner of the spiritual world. He manifests
the mahat tattva (or the sum total of material energy). It is into this mahat
tattva that He exhales all of the seedlike universes through the pores of His
skin. These seedlike universes then expand as the different material elements
form coverings around them. Each of the coverings is ten times thicker than the
previous covering and form a shell-like covering. When Maha Vishnu impregnates
the living entities by His glance into the material nature it begins to
manifest its various energies.
2) When the universes
have thus developed in the womb of material nature, Maha Vishnu expands as
GARBHODAKASAYI VISNU, Who enters into each universe with the living entities of
that particular universe and thus activates each universe by His presence. He
lies down on Ananta Sesa who lies on the Garbha ocean, which is the
perspiration from the Lord's body and half fills the universe. From His navel
comes a lotus bud which is the total form of the living entities' fruitive
activity. The lotus grows dissipating the darkness of the universe. On top of
the lotus Brahma, the first living being appears. Situated on the lotus, Brahma
could not understand anything. He began entering the stem and climbed down to
find its origin. Not finding anything, Brahma again returned to the top of the
lotus where he heard the word ta-pa (austerity). Hearing the sound Brahma
underwent penance for one thousand celestial years; (6x30x12x1000 earthly
years). Being very pleased with Brahma's tapasya, the Lord manifested the
Vaikuntha planets to him. Seeing Vaikuntha, Brahma became very happy and bowed
to the Lord. Being very pleased with Brahma the Lord shakes his hand and
reveals how to create the universe.
3) To maintain the
universe Garbhodakasayi Vishnu expands as KSIRODAKASAYI VISNU, Who is the
all-pervading Supersoul (Paramatma). By His entering into every atom He
maintains the whole universe. His abode is Svetadvipa, an island in the ocean
of milk.
Krishna's energies can
also be divided into three: His energy of thinking feeling and acting. When He
exhibits His thinking energy, He is the Supreme Lord; when He exhibits His
feeling energy, He is Lord Vasudeva; when He exhibits His acting energy, He is
Sankarsana Balarama. Without His thinking, feeling and acting, there would be
no possibility of creation. Although there is no creation in the spiritual
world - for there the planets are beginningless - there is creation in the
material world. In either case, however, both the spiritual and material worlds
are manifestations of the energy of acting, in which Krishna acts in the form
of Sankarsana and Balarama.
References: SB 1.3.1-5,
2.9.4-9, 3.8.11-21, 10.46.31.
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4. Lila Avataras (Pastime
Avataras)
During Brahma's one day
there are twenty-five Lila-avataras also known as Kalpa avataras because they
appear in every Kalpa. Out of these, the incarnation of Hamsa and Mohini are
not permanent, but Kapila, Dattatreya, Rsabha, Dhanvantari and Vyasa are five
eternal forms, and they are more celebrated. The incarnations of the tortoise
Kurma, the fish Matsya, Nara-narayana, Varaha, Hayasirsa, Prsnigarbha, and
Balarama are considered to be vaibhava-avataras.
1) Catursana - The four
Kumaras, sons of Lord Brahma
They appeared in the
beginning of creation and are specifically empowered to distribute
transcendental knowledge. They are empowered with the Lord's jnana-sakti and
therefore they are also known as saktyavesa-avataras.
2) Narada Muni - The son
of Lord Brahma
He is empowered with the
Lord's bhakti-sakti and therefore he is also saktyavesa-avatara.
3) Varahadeva - Sukara or
the Boar incarnation
The Boar incarnation
appeared in two different millenniums. During the period of Svayambhuva Manu,
the earthly planet remained submerged in the water of devastation, so the Lord
appeared as a white boar and lifted the earth and set it properly. During the
period of Caksusa Manu Lord Boar was red and He killed the demon Hiranyaksa.
4) Matsya - The Fish
incarnation
He appeared to show
special mercy to Satyavrata Muni. After the period of Caksusa Manu when there
was a partial inundation, he also protected Satyavrata Muni (who later became
Vaivasvata Manu) by keeping him safe on a boat.
5) Yajna - The son of
Prajapati Ruci and Akuti
During the period of
Svayambhuva Manu there was no qualified Indra. So the Lord appeared as Yajna
and took that position.
6) Nara Narayana - The
twin sons of King Dharma and Murti
They are partial
expansions of Krishna and Arjuna. Nara and Narayana Rsis exhibited the Lord's
renunciation.
7) Kapiladeva - The son
of Kardama Muni and Devahuti
He explained the original
(personal) Sankhya philosophy. Kapiladeva exhibited the Lord's transcendental
knowledge.
8) Dattatreya - The son
of Atri Muni and Anasuya
He is a combined
incarnation of Lord Vishnu, Brahma and Siva. He spoke on the subject of
transcendence to Alarka, Prahlada, Yadu, etc.
9) Hayasirsa - Lord
Hayagriva
At the end of the
millennium ignorance personified took the form of a demon, stole the Vedas and
took them to the planet Rasatala. At that time the Lord, at the request of
Brahma, retrieved them after assuming the form of a horse.
10) Hamsa - The Swan
incarnation
Due to bewilderment,
Brahma, could not answer some questions put forward by his sons. At that time
the Lord appeared as a swan and answered the questions.
11) Prsnigarbha - The
incarnation who appeared before Dhruva
He created the planet
known as Dhruvaloka for the habitation of Dhruva Maharaja.
12) Rsabha - The son of
King Nabhi and Merudevi
His oldest son was
Bharata Maharaja of which the earth was named after as Bharat-varsa. He
instructed his sons to follow the path of perfection by tapasya (asceticism).
13) Prthu - The
incarnation of the Lord's ruling force
Due to the demonic nature
of King Vena, the sages killed him by a curse. They prayed for the Lord to
appear and churned the two arms of the dead body according to a specific method
and the Lord appeared as Prthu.
14) Nrsimhadeva - The
half-man half-lion incarnation
He appeared to protect
Prahlada by killing his demoniac father Hiranyakasipu.
15) Kurma - The Tortoise
incarnation
He appeared to become the
resting place of the Mandara Hill, used as a churning rod by the demons and
demigods to produce nectar.
16) Dhanvantari - The
father of Ayurveda
He appeared from the
ocean of milk with the pot of nectar.
17) Mohini - The Lord's
form of a beautiful woman
The Lord tricked the
demons by appearing in the form of a beautiful woman and asked the demons for the
nectar and distributed it to the demigods.
18) Vamanadeva - The
dwarf incarnation, son of Kasyapa Muni and Aditi
Assuming the form of a
dwarf brahmacari the Lord visited the fire sacrifice of Bali Maharaja. He
begged three steps of land and with those steps He took the whole universe. He
is the son of Kasyapa and Aditi.
19) Parasurama -
Bhrgupati, the son of Jamadagni Muni and Renuka
He annihilated the
ksatriyas twenty-one times because of their rebellion against the brahmanas.
20) Raghavendra - Lord
Ramacandra, son of King Dasaratha and Kausalya
He came to perform
pleasing work for the demigods, protect His devotees and kill Ravana and his
followers. The Lord assumed the form of a human being and exhibited superhuman
powers by controlling the Indian Ocean.
21) Vyasadeva - The son
of Parasara Muni and Satyavati
He divided the one Veda
into several branches and sub-branches, seeing that the people in general were
becoming less intelligent.
22) Lord Balarama - The
first plenary expansion of the Lord
He acts as Lord Krishna's
older brother in Their pastimes in Vrndavana.
23) Lord Krishna - The
original form of the Lord
Both Balarama and Krishna
appeared in the family of Vrsni (Yadu dynasty) and in doing so removed the
burden of the world.
24) Buddha - The son of
Anjana
He appeared in the
province of Gaya in the beginning of Kali-yuga to delude those who are inimical
to the faithful. He also appeared to stop animal slaughter in the name of Vedic
sacrifices by preaching non-violence and by not accepting Vedic authorities.
There is also another Buddha incarnation mentioned in another Kali-yuga when
Lord appeared to bewilder the demons who were destroying the inhabitants of
other planets by flying unseen in space ships made by the demon Maya.
25) Kalki - The son of
brahmana Vishnu-yasa
He will appear in the
village Sambhala at the end of Kali-yuga. He will mount a horse, Devadatta, and
taking His sword, will kill millions upon millions of degraded barbarian
humans. He will also commence Satya-yuga.
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5. Guna Avataras
(Incarnations of the
qualitative modes of nature)
They are Brahma
(rajo-guna), Vishnu (sattva-guna) and Siva (tamo-guna). Brahma is one of the
living entities, but due to his devotional service he is very powerful. This
primal living entity, master of the mode of material passion, is directly
empowered by the Garbhodakasayi Vishnu to create innumerable living entities.
In Brahma-samhita (5.49) Brahma is likened to valuable jewels influenced by the
rays of the sun, and the sun is likened to the Supreme Lord Garbhodakasayi
Vishnu. If in some kalpa there is no suitable living entity capable of acting
in Brahma's capacity, Garbhodakasayi Vishnu Himself manifests as Brahma and
acts accordingly.
Similarly, by expanding
Himself as Lord Siva, the Supreme Lord is engaged when there is a need to
annihilate the universe. Lord Siva, in association with maya, has many forms,
which are generally numbered at eleven. (They are not, technically speaking, avataras
since this term is used only for Shri Vishnu's manifestations. Hanuman could be
called an expansion of Siva, Siva-amsa or so. He is not a jiva.) Lord Siva is
not one of the living entities; he is a transformation of Krishna Himself. The
example of milk and yogurt is often given in this regard - yogurt is a
preparation of milk, but still yogurt cannot be used as milk. Similarly, Lord
Siva is an expansion of Krishna, but he cannot act as Krishna, nor can we
derive the spiritual restoration from Lord Siva that we derive from Krishna.
The essential difference is that Lord Siva has a connection with material
nature, but Vishnu or Lord Krishna has nothing to do with material nature. In
Shrimad-Bhagavatam (10.88.3) it is stated that Lord Siva is a combination of
three kinds of transformed consciousness known as vaikarika, taijasa and
tamasa.
The Vishnu incarnation,
although master of the modes of goodness within each universe, is in no way in
touch with the influence of material nature. Although Vishnu is equal to
Krishna, Krishna is the original source. Vishnu is a part, but Krishna is the
whole. This is the version given by Vedic literatures. In Brahma-samhita the
example is given of an original candle which lights a second candle. Although
both candles are of equal power, one is accepted as the original, and the other
is said to be kindled from the original. The Vishnu expansion is like the
second candle. He is as powerful as Krishna, but the original Vishnu is
Krishna. Brahma and Lord Siva are obedient servants of the Supreme Lord, and
the Supreme Lord as Vishnu is an expansion of Krishna.
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6. Manvantara Avataras
There are fourteen
manvantara-avataras who appear during the fourteen ruling periods of Manus
(manvantaras) in one day of Brahma (kalpa). They are unlimited in number. Each
manvantara is presided over by different Indra. Presently the rule of the 7th
Vaivasvata Manu is going on and we are in the 28th Chatur Yuga. Each Manu has
around 71 Chatur Yugas (Cycle of four yugas each of total 4,320,000 years). In
that way there are 14 Manus i.e. 1000 Chatur Yugas (71 x 14) in 12 hours of
Brahma which is our 4,320,000,000 years. The original source of all expansions
and incarnations Lord Krishna or Lord Gauranga, who are both the same Person,
advent only once in 24 hours of Shrila Brahma which is once in our
8,640,000,000 years. Brahma lives for a total of 100 years which is around our
8,640,000,000 x 365 x 100 = 315,360,000,000,000 years after there is a complete
annihilation when all the universes enter again into the body of Lord
Karanodakashayi or Maha Vishnu, the first Purusha Avatara of Lord Gauranga
Krishna.
1. Svayambhuva Manu:
Father Brahma, Avatara Yajna, Indra Yajna.
2. Svarocisa Manu: Father
Agni, Avatara Vibhu, Indra Rochana.
3. Uttama Manu: Father
Priyavrata, Avatara Satyasena, Indra Satyajit.
4. Tamasa Manu: Father
Priyavrata, Avatara Hari, Indra Trisikha.
5. Raivata Manu: Father
Priyavrata, Avatara Vakuntha, Indra Vibhu.
6. Chakshusha Manu:
Father Priyavrata, Avatara Ajita, Indra Mantradruma.
7. Vaivasvata Manu:
Father Chakshu, Avatara Vamana, Indra Purandara.
8. Savarni Manu: Father
Vivasvan, Avatara Sarvabhauma, Indra Bali.
9. Daksha Savarni Manu:
Father Varuna, Avatara Rishabha, Indra Adbhuta.
10. Brahma Savarni Manu:
Father Upashloka, Avatara Vishvakshena, Indra Shambhu.
11. Dharma Savarni Manu:
Father Upashloka, Avatara Dharmasetu, Indra Vaidhrita.
12. Rudra Savarni Manu:
Father Upashloka, Avatara Svadhama, Indra Ritadhama.
13. Deva Savarni Manu:
Father Upashloka, Avatara Yogeshvara, Indra Divaspati.
14. Indra Savarni Manu:
Upashloka, Avatara Brihadbhani, Indra Suchi.
Out of these fourteen
manvantara-avataras, Yajna and Vamana are also lila-avataras. These fourteen
manvantara-avataras are also known as vaibhava-avataras.
In SB 3.11.27 and 4.24.42
p. manvantara-avataras are confused with Manus as seen also from SB 1.3.5 p.
Yajna is the manvantara-avatara in Svayambhuva Manu's reign, Vibhu is the
manvantara-avatara in Svarocisa Manu's reign, and so on as per SB 8.13, CC 2.20.246
p., 2.20.319.
During each manvantara,
in the Dvapara-yuga of each divya-yuga (maha-yuga), different sages accept the
position of Vyasa or the compiler of the Vedas, Puranas, etc. In the Vaivasvata
manvantara there were until now 28 Vyasas (Vishnu Purana 3.3 - 3.4.5):
1) Brahma
2) Prajapati or Manu
3) Usana, Sukracarya
4) Brhaspati
5) Savitri
6) Yamaraja
7) Indra
8) Vasistha
9) Sarasvata
10) Tridhama
11) Trivisana
12) Bharadhvaja
13) Antariksa
14) Vapra 15) Trayyaruna
16) Dhananjaya
17) Krtanjaya
18) Rina
19) Bharadvaja
20) Gautama
21) Uttama
22) Vena
23) Somasusmapana
24) Riksa or Valmiki
25) Sakti, father of
Parasara Muni
26) Parasara Muni
27) Jaratkaru
28) Krishna Dvaipayana
Vyasa (Shri Narayana Himself)
In the next Dvapara-yuga
the Vyasa will be Asvatthama, the son of Drona.
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7. Yuga-avataras
The four yuga-avataras
are also described in Shrimad-Bhagavatam. In the Satya-yuga, the incarnation of
God is white; in the Treta-yuga He is red; in the Dvapara-yuga, He is blackish;
and in the Kali-yuga He is also blackish, but sometimes, in a special
Kali-yuga, His color is yellowish as in the case of Gauranga Mahaprabhu.
This particular
incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is foretold in Shrimad-Bhagavatam
(11.5.32):
krishna-varnam
tvisakrishnam
sangopangastra-parsadam
yajnaih
sankirtana-prayair
yajanti hi sumedhasah
"In the age of Kali
the Lord incarnates as a devotee, yellowish in color, and is always chanting
Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama,
Rama Rama, Hare Hare. Although He is Krishna, His complexion is not blackish
like Krishna's in Dvapara-yuga but is golden. It is in Kali-yuga that the Lord
engages in preaching love of Godhead through the sankirtana movement, and those
living entities who are intelligent adopt this process of
self-realization."
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8. Shaktyavesha Avataras
There is no limit to the
saktyavesa-avataras. The saktyavesa incarnations are of two kinds - direct and
indirect. When the Lord Himself comes, He is called saksat, or a direct
saktyavesa-avatara, and when He empowers some living entity to represent Him
that living entity is called an indirect or avesa incarnation.
Examples of direct or
saksad-avataras are the Sesa incarnation and the Ananta incarnation. In Ananta
the power for sustaining all planets is invested, and in the Sesa incarnation
the power for serving the Supreme Lord is invested.
Examples of indirect
avataras are the four Kumaras, Narada, Prthu and Parasurama. These are actually
living entities, but there is specific power given to them by the Supreme
Personality of Godhead. When a specific opulence of the Supreme Lord is invested
in specific entities, they are called avesa-avataras. The four Kumaras
specifically represent the Supreme Lord's opulence of knowledge. Narada
represents the devotional service of the Supreme Lord. Devotional service is
also represented by Lord Gauranga, who is considered to be the full
representation of devotional service. In Brahma the opulence of creative power
is invested, and in King Prthu the power for maintaining the living entities is
invested. Similarly, in Parasurama the power for killing evil elements is
invested.
As far as vibhuti, or the
special favor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is concerned, it is
described in the Tenth Chapter of Bhagavad-gita that a living entity who
appears to be especially powerful or beautiful should be known to be especially
favored by the Supreme Lord.
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9. Recognizing the Real
Avatara
When Lord Gauranga
described the incarnation for this age of Kali, Sanatana Gosvami, who had been
a government minister and was perfectly capable of drawing conclusions, directly
asked of the Lord, "How can one understand the advent of an
incarnation?" By the description of the incarnation for the Kali
millennium, Sanatana Gosvami could understand that Lord Gauranga was indeed
that incarnation of Krishna, and he could also understand that in the future
there would be many people who would try to imitate Lord Gauranga.
"As one can
understand the different incarnations for different millenniums by referring to
Vedic literature," the Lord replied, "one can similarly understand
who is actually the incarnation of Godhead in this age of Kali." In this
way the Lord especially stressed reference to authoritative scriptures. In
other words, one should not whimsically accept a person as an incarnation but
should try to understand the characteristics of an incarnation by referring to
scriptures. An incarnation of the Supreme Lord never declares Himself to be an
incarnation, but His followers must ascertain who is an incarnation and who is
a pretender by referring to authoritative scriptures. Real avatara does not
want to be glorified (SB 4.15.23):
parokse 'smad-upasrutany
alam
stotram apicya-vacah
uttamasloka-gunanuvade
na stavayanti sabhyah
O gentle reciters, offer
such prayers in due course of time, when the qualities of which you have spoken
actually manifest themselves in me. The gentle who offer prayers to the Supreme
Personality of Godhead do not attribute such qualities to a human being, who
does not actually have them.
Purport:
"Gentle devotees of
the Supreme Personality of Godhead know perfectly well who is God and who is
not. Nondevotee impersonalists, however, who have no idea what God is and who
never offer prayers to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, are always
interested in accepting a human being as God and offering such prayers to him.
This is the difference between a devotee and a demon. Demons manufacture their
own gods, or a demon himself claims to be God, following in the footsteps of
Ravana and Hiranyakasipu. Although Prthu Maharaja was factually an incarnation
of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he rejected those praises because the
qualities of the Supreme Person were not yet manifest in him. He wanted to
stress that one who does not actually possess these qualities should not try to
engage his followers and devotees in offering him glory for them, even though
these qualities might be manifest in the future. If a man who does not
factually possess the attributes of a great personality engages his followers
in praising him with the expectation that such attributes will develop in the
future, that sort of praise is actually an insult."
Any intelligent person
can understand the characteristics of an avatara by understanding two features
- the principal feature, called personality, and the marginal features. In the
scriptures there are descriptions of the characteristics of the body and the
activities of an incarnation, and the description of the body is the principal
feature by which an incarnation can be identified. The activities of the
incarnation are the marginal features. This is confirmed in the beginning of
Shrimad-Bhagavatam (1.1.1) where the features of an avatara are nicely
described. In that verse, the two terms param and satyam are used, and Lord
Gauranga indicates that these words reveal Krishna's principal feature. The
other marginal features indicate that He taught Vedic knowledge to Brahma and
incarnated as the purusa-avatara to create the cosmic manifestation. These are
occasional features manifest for some special purposes. One should be able to understand
and distinguish the principal and marginal features of an avatara. No one can
declare himself an incarnation without referring to these two features. An
intelligent man will not accept anyone as an avatara without studying the
principal and marginal features. When Sanatana Gosvami tried to confirm Lord
Gauranga's personal characteristics as being those of the incarnation of this
age, Lord Gauranga Himself indirectly made the confirmation by simply saying,
"Let us leave aside all these discussions and continue with a description
of the saktyavesa-avataras."
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10. Chart of All
Expansions
Posted by Bhakta Jan
Mares at veda.harekrishna.cz
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Title: Re: Expansions of God
User: candrika Date: 2006-08-16 07:03:10
Thanks Swami
Gaurangapada, this is a very interesting article about avataras.
On reading Shrimad
Bhagavatam I see we are instructed to respect guru as we would respect God but
he is not God but His representative.
Chandrika Gauranga dasi
Happy Janmashtami!
![http://www.gaurangapada.org/photoplog/images/1/1_avataras.gif"]http://www.gaurangapada.org/photoplog/images/1/large/1_avataras.gif[/IMG](http://www.gaurangapada.org/photoplog/images/1/1_avataras.gif){kind=link}