According to Hindu mythology, Lord Vishnu, the God of Preservation is supposed to be responsible for the sustenance, protection and maintenance of the Universe. To establish righteousness and destroy injustice in the world, he has incarnated in different life forms in various ages. Each incarnation has an interesting story associated with it which describes the feats of Vishnu. Such personifications are popularly believed to be ten in all though there is no upper limit to them. Children are inquisitive by nature and have often wondered why God incarnated himself time and again. In this book, each incarnation of Lord Vishnu has been presented in a manner that will be enlightening, educational and fun for children as well as grown-ups.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Divya Jain writes for children in English and Hindi. She has written several short stories and research based articles. These have been published as books, in children’s magazines, and as part of various collections. She is on the editorial board of ‘Writer and Illustrator’, the quarterly journal published by the Association of Writers and Illustrators for Children (AWIC).

CONTENTS:
1. Matsya Avatara
2. Kurma Avatara
3. Varaha Avatara
4. Narsimha Avatara
5. Vamana Avatara
6. Parasurama Avatara
7. Rama Avatara
8. Krishna Avatara
9. Buddha Avatara
10. Kalki Avatara


AN EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK

Rama Avatara

There have been bad demons and there have been wicked demons but the one most infamous for his evil ways is probably the ten-headed Ravana. As mentioned earlier, Vishnu\\\'s doorkeepers — Jay and Vijay had been cursed that they would be born as demons for three lives. Previously they were born as Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu, and then as Ravana and Kumbhkarana.

In order to please Brahma, both the brothers and especially Ravana underwent severe austerities. For ten thousand years, he went without food. After every thousand years, he sacrificed one of his heads into the fire. At the end of the ten thousandth year, when he was about to sacrifice his last head, Lord Brahma appeared.

“Ravana! What boon do you seek?” asked Brahma.

“Make me immortal!” demanded Ravana.

“It\\\'s not possible to grant a wish like this,” explained Brahma. “Ask for something else.”

“All right, then let me not be overcome in battle by either god or demon.”

Brahma granted him his request and also restored the ten heads.

“Ha! Ha! Ha!” laughed Ravana. “If gods and demons can\\\'t kill me then nobody can. I\\\'m as good as immortal!”
The conceited king never once thought that a man or an animal could be a threat to him. Armed with this boon, Ravana took possession of his stepbrother\\\'s kingdom— Lanka.

Ravana then started troubling the various gods. He invaded the lower world and attacked Yama, the god of death. Poor Yama had to finally flee from there. He then attacked heaven and fought a long battle with Indra, the god of heavens. Ravana\\\'s son captured Indra and took him to Lanka. Henceforth Ravana\\\'s son came to be known as Indrajeet (the conqueror of Indra).

The entire universe was in terror of Ravana. The sun was scared to shine, the wind was scared to blow and the waves of the ocean were scared to move. Everything was in control of the wicked Ravana.

The gods were miserable and when they could take it no more, they appealed to Lord Vishnu for help. Well aware of Brahma\\\'s boon, Vishnu decided to take a human incarnation in order to put an end to Ravana.

In Ayodhya, there was a king named Dashratha, who was carrying out the Ashwamedha sacrifice in order to procure an heir for his throne. Lord Vishnu rose out of the sacrificial fire and offered a bowl of kheer (a sweet made from rice, milk and sugar) to the king.

“Divide this kheer amongst your three queens and your wish will be fulfilled,” said Vishnu.

Dashratha folded his hands in gratitude and accepted the divine gift. He gave half the contents to his senior queen Kaushalya. She gave birth to Rama. The other two queens received the rest. Sumitra gave birth to Lakshmana and Shatrughana. The third queen Kaikeya bore Bharata. The four princes grew up to be strong, brave and just.

Due to a certain situation, Rama, his wife Sita and Lakshmana had to leave their kingdom. While they were in exile, Ravana abducted Sita, and the two brothers went off in search of her.

It was not possible for Rama to overcome Ravana alone, so he took the help of bears and monkeys who had divine powers. Rama and Lakshmana, with their army of bears and monkeys, attacked Ravana\\\'s Lanka. Ravana and Kumbhkarana were both killed.

Rama\\\'s deeds of valour are described at length in the epic Ramayana.

In north India, the festival of Dussehra is very popular. It is celebrated to mark the victory of Rama over Ravana. But the brightest and gayest Hindu festival is no doubt Diwali, which is again related to Rama. On this day, Rama returned to his kingdom after fourteen years of exile and was crowned king. To welcome him, the people of Ayodhya illuminated the whole city.