Dasavatara Stotra

In the fish incarnation,the primary purpose was the recovery of the vedas,which had been stolen by a deamon and hidden in the waters.This required the destruction of deamon.This symbolizes the restoration of true knowledge ,subverted by egoism,which has to be destroyed in the process.

The second incarnation is the Tortoise.The gods and demons undertook the churning of milk ocean with mount Meru as the churn to obtain the nectar of immortality.They found the churn sinking in to the ocean and were unable to hold it up.Then god appeared as the great Tortoise on whose back the mountain could rest and allow the process of churning to proceed,bringing up differnt products,and ultimately the nectar of immortality.

When we proceed to churn the ocean of experience with churn of knowledge, in search of reality we find that knowledge itself requires a base to prove its validity.The attempt to find an ultimate base on which to erect our structure of reasoning can end in an infinite regress,unless it rests on the immovable,all-sufficient,all sustaining basis of self evident truth symbolized by the Tortoise form of God.

Varaha-The Boar

The third is the Boar, God incarnated this time to lift up the Earth which had been taken away into the regions of darkness, under the Water by Hiranyaksha, a Demon.  This demon was destroyed when earth was retreived.  In both Vishnu Puranam and Bhagavatha, the Boar form of God is identified with sacrifice And sacrifice, in its form is non different from God Himself.

The Man-Lion incarnation, the emphasis is on devotion.  This guarded the child devotee Prahlada, he was put to endless torture by his father Hirayanakshapu, a Demon, for repeating God's name instead of his own. But Prahlada  withstood all these tortures with steadfast devotion.  Finally God appeared as Man-Lion of terrible form and killed the demon.

This incarnation indicates that God is incomprehensive ,ie., He is not limited by our knowledge. It also illustrates that the real devotee alone is truly fearless and the terrible form has no terror for him.

Vaamana-The Dwarf

The Dwarf incarnation shows us that valour finds its fulfilment only in complete surrender to God.  King Bali, the mighty vanquished all gods including Indra, the Lord of Heaven.  But he found his true fulfilment when he surrendered himself to God.

    When the power conferred for protection, grown mighty  by its proper exercise, had how ever degenerated into an oppressive tyranny, it had to be crushed ruthlessly. The terrible Parasurama was the appropriate form for this need.

This incarnation demonstrates how a man can rise to divinity by unswerving adherence to the law of his being, his Dharma in all its details. Sri Rama was perfect in his general

dharma as man and in his particular dharma as King.

Balaram is elder brother of Lord Krishna

Krishna , the eighth avatar, or incarnation, of the god Vishnu. According to tradition, Vishnu appeared as Krishna to rid the world of a tyrannical king named Kamsa, the son of a demon.

 He appears prominently  in the epic poem Mahabharata, in which he sides with the Pandavas, one of two contending families, and acts as the charioteer of the hero Arjuna. Krishna delivers the celebrated discourse on duty and life known as the Bhagavad-Gita.

The last incarnation is yet to be as Kalki, the mighty warrior born in a pious family to rid the world of the oppression of its  unrighteous rulers.

DASAVATARA STOTRA
 

pralaya-payodhijale dhrtavanasi vedam
vihitavahitra- caritra- makhedam
kesava dhrta minasarira
jaya jagadisa hare
O God, in the form of a fish! In the flood of dissolution you have held up the revealed knwoledge of the Vedas, like a boat, without effort.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

ksitirati-vioulatare tava tishati prsthe
dharani-dharanakina-cakragarishte
kesava dhrta kacchaparupa
jaya jagadisa hare
O God, in the form of Tortoise! On the ample expanse of your back, calloused by the burden of the earth that it bears, securely stands the world.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

vasati dasanasikhare dharani tava lagna
sasini kalankakaleva nimagna
kesava dhrta sukararupa
jaya jagadisa hare
O God, in the form of the Boar! The world restsin peace on the tip of your tusk, like the dark marking ont he disc of the moon.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

tava kara kamalavare
nakhamadbhutasrngam
dalita hiranyakasipu varabrngam
kesava dhrta naraharirupa
jaya jagadisa hare
O God, in the form of Man-Lion! In your hand of lotus like beauty, are the finger nails with their wonderful tips which have torn as under the most powerful demon Hiranyakasipu, as if he was a huge insect.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

Chalayasi vikramane balim adbhutavamana
padanakhantra-janita-janapavana
kesave dhrta vamanarupa
jaya jagadisa hare
O God, in the form of dwarf! By planting your feet you have cheated Bali, the mighty .  Ganga, the river which sanctifies the world, has come out of you rtoe-nails.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

ksatriyarudhiramaye jagadapagata papam
snapayasi payasi samitabhavatapam
kesave dhrta bhrgupatirupa
jaya jagadisa hare.
O God, in the form of the Lord of the Bhrigus, you have bathed the world in the blood of the tyrannous rulers, thus cleansing it of sin and destroying the misery of its relative existence.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

vitarasi diksu rane dikpatikamantyam
dasamukha-mauli-balim ramaniyam
kesava dhrta ramasarira
Jaya jagadisa hare
O God in the body of Sri Rama! You have a made a beautiful offering of the ten heads of the demon Ravana in battle to the  guardians of the cardinal directions.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

Vahasi vapusi visade vasaanam jaladabhanam
hala-hati-bhiti-milita-yamunabham
keshava dharta-haladharrupa
jaya jagadisha hare.
O God , in the form of Balarama,the bearer of the plough! You wear on your immaculate body a garment of  the colour of the clouds, blue like the Yamuna, darkened by the fear of being dragged by your plough.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

nindasi yajnavidhe-rahaha srutijatam
sadaya - hrdya darshitapasughatam
kesava dharta buddhasarira
jaya jagadisha hare.
O God, in the body of Buddha, the enlightened! Out of compssion of your heart you have condemned the ritualistic portion of the vedas ordaining the killing of the animals .
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

maleccha-nivaha-nidhane kalayasi karavalam
dhumaketumiva kimapi karalam
kesava dharta kalsisarira
jaya jagadish hare.
O God, in the form of Kalki! For the destruction of wicked , you carry a meteor-like sword in your hand, trailing a train of disaster to them.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!

srijayadevakeverida-muditmudaram
srnu subhadam sukhadam bahvasaram
kesave dharta dasavidhiraupa
jaya jagadish hare.
O God, who took ten forms! Please listen to the song of Jayadeva.It bestows goodness, and joy; it is the essence of life.
Hail! Hari, God of the world, Victory to Thee!