Vishnu’s 10 Incarnations and the Evolution of Human Civilization

Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva are the Trimurtis in the Hindu religion. Their functions are Creation, Preservation, and Destruction, respectively. Vishnu is the deity who preserves the Universe by protecting it from danger and neutralizing rogue elements which threaten its order and stability. For this purpose, he takes different forms or avatars from time to time. Though he has taken many avatars, there are 10 which are the most popular and well-known, and these are called Dasavataram. “Das’ means ‘ten’. According to mythology, Vishnu has appeared 9 times on earth till now. His 10th avatar is Kalki, and he is expected to appear during Kali Yuga, which is the current epoch. All the avatars of Vishnu battle evil forces which cause chaos in the Universe and pose a threat to Dharma or righteousness. Interestingly, the 10 avatars of Vishnu also mirror the evolution of human life and the progress of human civilization. <img src="https://www.astroved.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/vishnu.jpg" alt="Vishnu’s 10 Incarnations" width="550" height="340" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-97326" /> The sequence in which the different avatars of Vishnu appear on earth corresponds with the evolutionary theory and can be termed an amazing recording of the progress of human civilization. What makes it all the more amazing is that Hindu sages recorded these things thousands of years before the birth of Christ. The first avatar of Vishnu was Matsya, a big fish. Scientific studies have confirmed that the very first life forms on earth evolved underwater. The second avatar of Vishnu was Kurma, a huge tortoise. The tortoise is an amphibious creature that can live both on land and in water. The shift from underwater to land is a stage in the evolutionary process as well. Life forms that dwelt under water evolved to survive on land as the next step of their evolution. Vishnu’s third incarnation was the boar called ‘Varaha’. The boar is an animal that can survive only on land. So, in this incarnation, the life form has adapted to land. The fourth incarnation of Vishnu is Narasimha, the half-man and half-lion form. With this avatar, the shift from animal to human form begins. Vishnu’s fifth incarnation is the dwarf or Vamana. In Vamana, the animal form transitions to a human form completely and develops the faculty of intelligence. The sixth avatar of Vishnu is the forest dweller, Parasurama. He owns weapons like the ax. In ancient days, sharp stones were fashioned into weapons, including axes. Thus, this avatar represents the first settlement of human beings in forests and the use of weapons and tools to hunt and kill. Vishnu’s seventh incarnation is Rama. He is civilized and owns superior weapons like bows and arrows. The humans of Rama’s time could clear forests, and they lived in small communities or villages. Rama is a leader who protects his villages and the people who reside in it. Balarama is the eighth incarnation of Vishnu. He is depicted with a plow. The plow is an agricultural tool. This signifies the beginning of farming and the cultivation of crops. Human beings are now involved in agricultural activities and do not depend on meat and forests for food. The agrarian economy has begun. Vishnu’s ninth incarnation is Krishna. He is a cowherd. During this period of evolution, people domesticated animals and owned livestock. The tenth avatar of Vishnu is Kalki. He is yet to manifest. It is said that he will appear in this epoch, which is Kali Yuga. The scriptures say that he will come riding a white horse called Devadatha, brandishing a naked sword and blazing like a comet. Representations of him in the form of paintings and sculptures are less common than those of the other Vishnu avatars. Some legends claim that when the world is about to end, Kalki’s horse will stamp the earth with its right foot. This will cause the tortoise on which the world rests to drop into the deep. Then the gods will make the earth pure again. Kalki avatar suggests that human beings will eventually destroy life on earth. Due to human activities, we are experiencing many calamities like wars and extreme weather events like tsunamis, floods, droughts, etc. We are also living under the shadow of nuclear warfare, with rogue nations stockpiling nuclear weapons and threatening to unleash them on the world. After the earth is completely destroyed, Vishnu alone is said to float on a peepal leaf - the only life form that will remain. Thousands of years after annihilation, life will be born again in water.