2023-09-10 12:45:58 by ambuda-bot
This page has not been fully proofread.
xxiv
Bhaktimandakini
The ten incarnations of Viṣṇu
27
The forty-ninth verse of the stotra mentions the ten incarnations of Vișnu.2
Here Pūrṇasarasvatī observes that Balarama is not included among the
ten incarnations because according to him, Balarama is considered to be a
śeṣāvatāra.
He further justifies this point by explaining that Balarama and Kṛṣṇa
coexisted and it is incompatible to have two simultaneous incarnations of
Vişnu. Pūrṇasarasvatī also refers to the following verse to further support
the above-mentioned reasoning:
matsyaḥ kurmo varahaś ca narasimhaś ca vamanah/
rāmo rāmaś ca buddhaś ca kṛṣṇaḥ kalkī ca te daśa //
Pūrṇasarasvatī maintains that here the reading rāmo rāmaś ca buddhas
ca is confirmed, rather than the reading ramo rāmaś ca rāmaś ca, which he
mentions only as a variant.
Thus, according to Pūrṇasarasvatī, Balarama is one of the innumerable
manifestations of Vișnu but certainly not one of the ten principal incarna-
tions. He argues that if Balarama is included as one of the daśavataras
on account of his being an embodiment of Ananta (the serpent of Vișnu),
Lakṣmaṇa would also need to be included, because he too is a manifestation
of Ananta.
Here, one important question as to whether to accept Buddha as an
incarnation or not arises. But Buddha is not included as an avatāra then
Balarama would necessarily have to be included to arrive at the figure of
ten avatāras. But as we have already seen, Pūrṇasarasvatī is not in favour
of including Balarama as one of the ten incarnations, since this would mean
having two incarnations who existed simultaneously. But it may be worth
noting that though Paraśurāma and Śrīrāma belonged to the same period,
Pūrṇasarasvati does not seem to have any objections in accepting both of
them as two of the ten incarnations of Vișnu.
Daśavatāracarita of Kṣemendra while describing the dasāvatāras, ex-
cludes Balarama.28 Kṣemendra enumerates the ten incarnations in the same
order as those described in the Viṣṇupādādikeśastotra, namely (1) Matsya,
(2) Kūrma, (3) Varaha, (4) Narasimha, (5) Vamana, (6) Jāmadagni, (7)
Rāma, (8) Kṛṣṇa, (9) Buddha and (10) Kalki.
27
Viṣṇupādādikeśastotra 49.
28 devah payad apayāt tribhuvanabhuvanastambhabhūtaḥ sa yuşmān/ ayuṣmān
yasya bhaktyā prabhavati puruṣaḥ svargamärge 'pavarge// matsyaḥ kurmo varāhaḥ
puruşaharivapur vamano jāmadagnyaḥ/ kakutsthaḥ kamsahantā sa ca sugatamuniḥ
karkināmā ca vişnuh// Daśavatāracarita of Kṣemendra, Verse No. 2, p. 1.
Bhaktimandakini
The ten incarnations of Viṣṇu
27
The forty-ninth verse of the stotra mentions the ten incarnations of Vișnu.2
Here Pūrṇasarasvatī observes that Balarama is not included among the
ten incarnations because according to him, Balarama is considered to be a
śeṣāvatāra.
He further justifies this point by explaining that Balarama and Kṛṣṇa
coexisted and it is incompatible to have two simultaneous incarnations of
Vişnu. Pūrṇasarasvatī also refers to the following verse to further support
the above-mentioned reasoning:
matsyaḥ kurmo varahaś ca narasimhaś ca vamanah/
rāmo rāmaś ca buddhaś ca kṛṣṇaḥ kalkī ca te daśa //
Pūrṇasarasvatī maintains that here the reading rāmo rāmaś ca buddhas
ca is confirmed, rather than the reading ramo rāmaś ca rāmaś ca, which he
mentions only as a variant.
Thus, according to Pūrṇasarasvatī, Balarama is one of the innumerable
manifestations of Vișnu but certainly not one of the ten principal incarna-
tions. He argues that if Balarama is included as one of the daśavataras
on account of his being an embodiment of Ananta (the serpent of Vișnu),
Lakṣmaṇa would also need to be included, because he too is a manifestation
of Ananta.
Here, one important question as to whether to accept Buddha as an
incarnation or not arises. But Buddha is not included as an avatāra then
Balarama would necessarily have to be included to arrive at the figure of
ten avatāras. But as we have already seen, Pūrṇasarasvatī is not in favour
of including Balarama as one of the ten incarnations, since this would mean
having two incarnations who existed simultaneously. But it may be worth
noting that though Paraśurāma and Śrīrāma belonged to the same period,
Pūrṇasarasvati does not seem to have any objections in accepting both of
them as two of the ten incarnations of Vișnu.
Daśavatāracarita of Kṣemendra while describing the dasāvatāras, ex-
cludes Balarama.28 Kṣemendra enumerates the ten incarnations in the same
order as those described in the Viṣṇupādādikeśastotra, namely (1) Matsya,
(2) Kūrma, (3) Varaha, (4) Narasimha, (5) Vamana, (6) Jāmadagni, (7)
Rāma, (8) Kṛṣṇa, (9) Buddha and (10) Kalki.
27
Viṣṇupādādikeśastotra 49.
28 devah payad apayāt tribhuvanabhuvanastambhabhūtaḥ sa yuşmān/ ayuṣmān
yasya bhaktyā prabhavati puruṣaḥ svargamärge 'pavarge// matsyaḥ kurmo varāhaḥ
puruşaharivapur vamano jāmadagnyaḥ/ kakutsthaḥ kamsahantā sa ca sugatamuniḥ
karkināmā ca vişnuh// Daśavatāracarita of Kṣemendra, Verse No. 2, p. 1.