Introduction

Welcome, visitor. For those of you who may not know me, my name is Ganesha, the god of writers and son of Siva. I am scribe of many stories and the ones you will read here are some of my favorites. Vishnu came to me and asked me to help tell of his lives in a storybook and I was honored to help him. Before we get into those, though, it is important that you become educated on the topic of Vishnu and his avatars.

First, it is important that you know about reincarnation. Most people have some idea of what reincarnation is, but for those who do not, it is the idea that one is born again. A very special type of reincarnation is known as an avatar, which is when a god or some other holy being is incarnated as a mortal. Vishnu is one of those great gods who has been incarnated. Vishnu has not just been reincarnated once or twice, though; he has ten avatars that he is famous for.

The ten avatars of Vishnu include: Matsya (the fish), Kurma (the tortoise), Varaha (the boar), Narasimha (the man-lion), Vamana (the dwarf), Prasurama (Rama with an axe), Rama, Krishna, Buddha, and Kalki. Vishnu's incarnations of Rama, Krishna, and Buddha are perhaps his most well-known avatars. Rama and Krishna are both heroes in India's most famous epics, The Ramayana and The Mahabharata. Vishnu has not actually been incarnated as Kalki yet but it is said that he will appear in this form on a white horse at the end of the world. I love Vishnu but I'm not ready for Kalki just yet.

The four avatars that will be the focus of this storybook are those of the animals that Vishnu became: Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, and Narasimha. People may wonder why the great lord Vishnu would be incarnated into a lowly animal and think that an animal would never be able to accomplish anything, but those people would be wrong. Vishnu is incarnated as whatever form he is needed in to help mankind and if that calls for an animal, Vishnu will become the animal.

In the story of Matsya, you will find many resemblances to the Christian story of Noah's Ark. Matsya, the fish, was saved by King Satyavrata when he was a little fish. When Matsya was bigger he returned the favor by warning Satyavrata and saving him from a flood.The whole Earth is covered in a flood but Matsya warns Stayavrata to build a boat to protect his family.

Kurma came to the rescue of the Devas when they lost their strength and immortality because of the disrespectful behavior of their leader, the god Indra. Vishnu told them how to acquire what they needed, which was by churning the Ocean of Milk. The Devas had to work together with their enemies to be able to churn the ocean. When the mountain they are using began to sink, Vishnu then helped them by becoming the tortoise Kurma to hold up the mountain. With Kurma's help they are able to retrieve the nectar of immortality.

Vishnu was incarnated as the boar Varaha to fight the demon Hiranyaksha who had captured the goddess of the earth and had taken it to the bottom of the cosmic ocean. Vishnu is destined to fall in love with this goddess and that cosmic love created the need for him to be reincarnated in order to save her.

Narasimha is a protector of those who look to him for help and defeated the brother of Hiranyaksha, Hiranyakasipu. Kashipu, wanting revenge on lord Vishnu, devised a plan to be granted a boon from Brahma that he believed would give him invicibility and immortality. Vishnu is specifically incarnated to get around the very specific book that Kashipu asked for and defeat the demon. These stories are very important to the Indian culture and I hope that you enjoy them as well.