Ganesha tells us of Vishnu's third incarnation...
This story is not so much what Vishnu told me but a story of what everyone here in the heavens witnessed. It was no secret that Vishnu had fallen in love again. There is no doubt that he still loved his wife Lakshmi very much but this time Vishnu had found the only other woman who he could possibly share his heart with. He found this person in the goddess of the Earth, Prithvi.
When she was captured by the demon Hiranyaksha, Vishnu was called to be reincarnated in order to save her. Only he who loved her so much would have enough strength and endurance for the rescue of the Earth goddess. When he was sent to save the Earth, he was in the form of a strong and enormous boar named Varaha. The battle lasted for thousands of years inside the cosmic ocean, with Vishnu finally being victorious. This story tells of the events leading up to Vishnu's incarnation and what happened after he was sent to save his love.
The goddess Prithvi is the mother of the Earth and the reason why the Earth is such a beautiful place. Because of her the sky is blue, the grass is green, the oceans exist, and flowers bloom. Being the goddess of such a beautiful place of course she is beautiful herself. Even in human form, she resembles the Earth with a light green skin to represent the land, long flowing blue hair to represent the ocean, and eyes that resemble a blooming white lotus. Prithvi is one of the most beautiful creatures to ever walk the Earth, which was her anyways.
All men wanted to be with the beautiful Prithvi whether they were mortal, demon, or god. There was no way anyone could deny her beauty. She was also one of the kindest and gentlest women to live. Many gods and demons offered themselves to her but she always turned them away. Prithvi knew that she would not find love unless she was with the god Vishnu. When the Earth and Prithvi were first created, every brahman she came across told her that she was destined to be with the god Vishnu. Vishnu already had a wife but she knew that one day she would be with him also.
One day, Prithvi was wandering the Earth to make sure that everything was the way it should be. She checked the mountains to make sure they were as she had last sculpted them and made sure that her trees were still growing big and tall. While Prithvi was making her way to the oceans a gigantic demon stepped out in front of her blocking her path. She tried to get around him but he blocked her in every direction. He introduced himself as Hiran, King of of the Ksha clan of demons. He told her that he was looking for a wife and that she was his only choice. He had to have the most beautiful and special creature of Earth and this was Prithvi.
Prithvi told him that her heart was saved to love Vishnu only. She explained her destiny and asked him to leave her alone. He asked a few more times and every time she told him the same answer. Hiran then gave Prithvi no choice in the matter and picked her up off the ground. He threw her over his shoulder and took off with her like a lightning bolt. She demanded to be let down but he would not listen to her. He knew that the gods would notice the goddess whom they all pined over was missing and would come after her. He decided that he needed to hide out with her until the gods believed that she was never coming back. The only place Hiran could think to hide that the gods could not see was the bottom of the cosmic ocean. This ocean seemed almost endlessly deep but Hiran knew he would reach there eventually.
Prithvi bowed her head and began to pray to the god Vishnu. She prayed for her true love to save her from this grim future and to save the Earth as well. With the goddess of the Earth missing, nothing was as it should be. The oceans started to flow the wrong way, the trees lost all of their leaves, the sky turned green and many more horrible things were happening to the Earth. Without the goddess, the Earth was falling apart.
Vishnu heard the prayers of Prithvi and knew he had to save her. Vishnu was incarnated and sent to the Earth as a boar named Varaha. Varaha was enormous in size and charged through the Earth in search of the goddess. When he didn't find her, he knew that he would have to journey to the bottom of the cosmic ocean. When he reached the bottom he found the goddess and told her that he was there to save her. He wiped her tears aside but as he did this he was attacked by the demon Hiran.
Varaha and Hiran battled at the bottom of the cosmic ocean for thousands of years. Neither one giving up on their goals, they battled furiously with each other. Both were large and had what seemed endless strength. Finally, Hiran seemed to tire some and his movements slowed. Varaha saw this and took the opportunity to charge at Hiran. Varaha pierced through Hiran's chest, killing him, and saving the goddess Prithvi.
Varaha gently picked up Prithvi with his tusks and carried her up through the ocean and returned her to the Earth. With her return, the Earth quickly began to become the beautiful place it had once been. Varaha turned back into his true form as the god Vishnu and asked for Prithvi to be his second wife. She told him she would and how their love was destined from the beginning of time.
Varaha
Source: Wikipedia. Link
Avatara 3-Varahavatara (Lord Vishnu in Boar Form)
Web Source: Samasya