Avatars of Vishnu in Hindu Culture

Abstract

According to the Hindu religion, Vishnu, the God of Preservation, incarnates on earth in times of trouble. Whenever there is a threatening evil, Vishnu comes down to Earth in various forms, or avatars, to defend righteousness by eliminating the evil. Thereare a total of ten major avatars of Vishnu that Hindu tradition focuses on. These avatars are collectively known as the dashavatar, which literally translates to "ten avatars" in the ancient language of Sanskrit. This presentation focuses on three specific incarnations of Vishnu: Matsya, Kurma, and Narasimha. Matsya is a fish-form avatar who saves humanity from devastating floods. Kurma is a giant turtle incarnation who steadies a mountain on his shell. Narasimha is a half-lion half-man avatar who defeats an evil tyrant. This presentation will introduce and then show a video that was made as a Humanities project, which highlights the stories of Matsya, Kurma, and Narasimha. Utilizing Final Cut Pro and incorporating high quality images, the video explains the significance of Vishnu and of these three incarnations in the Hindu religion.