Dashavatar: Special Issue (Amar Chitra Katha)

by Kamala Chandrakant

The Avatar concept is the very cornerstone of Hindu theology. According to it, the Supreme Power manifests itself in animal or human forms on earth, with the divine mission of cleansing it of the periodically increasing evil. The Avatar concept is closely related to the measurement of time in Hindu theology which has its basis on one working day of Brahma. According to the Bhagwat Purana, Brahma, the creator, is the causal effect of the predetermined periodic creation and dissolution of the universe. Each creation or Kalpa is equal to one day and each dissolution or Pralaya is equal to one night in the life of Brahma. A Kalpa and a Pralaya last for 4,320 million human years each. Every Kalpa has 1000 cycles of 4 Yugas (ages). Each cycle of 4 Yugas is completed in 4,320,000 human years. The Yugas are called Satya, Treta, Dwapara and Kali. The Avatars which are considered most significant are ten in number and they form the 'Dasha Avatar'. These ten avatars start with the form of a lowly fish and work up to the noble man, cast in the image of God. The fanciful find a parallel to Darwin's theory of evolution in the progression of these Avatars. The Avatars enable the common folk to speak of or listen to stories of divine doings which is a simple way of proceeding towards Godhead, particularly in our Kali Yuga with its 'sick hurry and divided aims'.

Genres: Mythology, Comics, Graphic Novels Comics, Indian Literature, Hinduism, Religion, India

Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1978

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau]

Very good introduction to the Hindu concept of avatars and the missions they undertook. I find that there are many concepts in Hinduism that seem very rooted in connection; the Hindu pantheon seems to me much more willing to listen to human beings than the Greek pantheon. Avatars play a vital part in this mutual understanding.

[Pawan]

http://iandbooks.wordpress.com/
I recently read about demise of Anant Pai who was the creator of “Amar Chitra Katha” comic book series and I was immediately reminded of my early school days when these comic books were craze amongst kids. We used to get these comic books as gifts for various contests in school and then we used to read them and exchange them with other kids to read as many stories as possible.

These were short comic books about Indian religion, mythology, history, folk-tales and culture. That was the era when TV was still not popular and TV-series like Ramayana and Mahabharata were still some years away. These books were a great source of learning, entertainment and education for kids in that age. We had read many of those stories before but they came alive through pictures in these books and since the content was kept short and to the point, it was more entertaining.

Of course the series became so popular that it started attracting criticism as well. Many people termed them as too simplistic or idealistic. Some people accused them of racialism and some kind of color discrimination. Some people also said that they were not authentic since their research was not broad-based. But I think a lot of this criticism was unjustified. There was a need to reach out to children through a simple medium that they could understand and make them learn about India’s past. Even if it painted an idealistic picture, it was much better than complete ignorance.

With the changing times, they have also changed. Now there is an online store for these stories.

[Ananya Dalal]

The best part of it is that of Lord Rama

[Shrav]

What can I say, the classic telling of the Dasha Avatar by my favourite Uncle Pai is the best! I remember reading this as a kid. The copy I had then was an old and battered book passed on to me by my elder brothers and sisters. Now, as I hold this brand new book (the old one got lost when we shifted houses) I reminisce the times I read and felt awed by the mighty avatars.

[Naga Vishnu Kanth]

Nice and short read about dasha avataras :)

[Ernesto]

Dentro de la mítica colección Amar Chitra Katha de leyendas hinduistas para un público infantil y juvenil, este volumen de menos de 100 páginas resume el Dashavatar, conjunto de los diez avatares (reencarnaciones en la Tierra para evitar la destrucción del Cosmos) del Dios Vishnu. Las primeras historias me han parecido más adecuadas al formato usado, ya que los últimos avatares de Vishnu (Rama, Krishna y Buda) son historias demasiado complejas como para poder resumirse en siete u ocho páginas. Lo bueno es que entre las notas a pie de pagina, los editores indican los números específicos de la colección monográficos para cada uno de esos personajes. Así que me leeré alguno de ellos para profundizar un poco más en alguno de esos avatares de Vishnu.

[Rituraj Kashyap]

A nice introduction to the 10 avatars of Vishnu. If this piques one's interest, one can read the individual titles to know about each of them in detail.

[Kristen Mohr]

I never thought about it until reading this book, but if this version is accurate, Buddha was kind of a dick. I mean, it's great he felt enlightened or whatever, but he still abandoned his wife and son. Would have done more good for the world if he'd stayed a prince and tried to, like, lessen poverty.

[Nishant]

As someone with little to no prior understanding of Hinduism, this was a neat book to read about Vishnu and how he has helped shape life. The ending shifted how I see “reincarnation”— though I’ve seen it in movies, the thought of having desires always brings you back to “life”. Albeit I do have desires and I’m quite happy with that thought, it does make sense that when you stop seeking pleasures, perhaps your life is complete and then you become “one with god”.

I would definitely read another one of these; especially because it was so easy to read. I’ll be honest, I kind of skimmed over the long names and different event names, but the general gist of the stories are easy to pick up on. If I read this book when I was younger, things said at the temple and stories my relatives told me would’ve made more sense.

Though, I’m still curious, why a boar of all animals if Vishnu was a fish in the first story? :p

To my really good friend, your perspective on life and the “after-life” (depending on how karma affects you) resonates with my understanding of the book, so thank you for sharing that sentiment with me.

[Namita Das]

This book has all 10 stories of the 10 avatars of Lord Vishnu. I found this a great book for kids to introduce them to the mythological characters.

Reading this I remembered how my mom used to tell us these stories. Nostalgic. :)

For more such reviews visit - https://penitratherkeyit.com/category...

[Suraj]

More like Ekadash Avatar considering Mohini also.

[Arjunan]

Quintessential Introduction to Indian Mythology

Read it free on prime. Beautifully resplendent colors, a delight to re read as an adult. Do give it a read !

[Sooryaprakash]

I dont find fault on reading these comics while I was a kid. But today I feel more disgusted by the fact these comics indirectly welcomes the aryan race (devas) as a pure race with fair skin color while the asuras (dark skinned, fat, not good in shape) as immoral, weak in character. The Publisher should rectify these illustrations and make the a better story with a perspective irrespective of race. Having read Dashavataram in tamil which has a lot of details on how these stories happened and why Lord Vishnu incarnated into this World through eachtime. Here, this was very bland made for kids below 10. Comics should be accessed by all ages. When this subject itself is integral part of Indian culture and one must take responsibility to the sensitivities of people here.
Recently I watched a Video essay by "India in Pixels by Ashris" - Sanskrit Iceberg Explained https://youtu.be/RqVuAfceAGo?si=EvF4I..., were they explained that iran was once a part of indic culture. They worshipped asuras and competetive towards devas (seen as enemy) but 1500 yrs ago from now Iran was islamized. The point is Iran (Aryan) people who lived in their region called themselves aryan. The logic here proves most of it. But these books are in circulation with incorrect illustrations leads to a narrow society.

[Christie Peters]

The Amar Chitra Katha comic books are very interesting. I discovered them at the Thrift Store and now I have found them on Kindle.
This one was amazing. It goes through 10 different Avatars of Vishnu and gives a brief explanation to each ones adventures. The stories are interesting and the Art is great.
These comic books have no peers as they are a completely unique genre with hundreds of titles. They are meant to be educational but are equally entertaining as they are informative.
I highly recommend these books!

[Anamika]

I am in love with blue gods, and Lord Vishnu was the original blue god, the inspiration for James Cameron's Na'vi. I've grown up reading about Vishnu, writing stories about him, drawing pictures of his incarnation, Krishna, and so an illustrated book that chronicles his ten (dasha) incarnations (avatar) has to be at the top of my legends-and-mythology list.

[Aditya iyer]

Too many shortcuts and missouts !

I am very disappointed with ACKatha. Always loved them in my growing up years. I thought of collecting them for my grand children but I am sad with the quality . The story doesn’t hold in continuity. Many explanations while story is progressing which loses the interest in reading. Many slips of important events . Basically, NOT WORTH IT !!

[Mahak Jain]

Inadequate research

Incomplete research...only superficial information which is poorly referenced...even mythology should be fact checked when writing for children.. could have been much better

[Tejaswini Rao]

This book contains the stories of the 10 avatars of Lord Vishnu. It is illustrated beautifully and the stories are to the point. Thus, making it a wonderful read!

It is recommended to all Mythology lovers.

[Anit Kumar]

A succinct book about Lord Vishnu's Avatars

This book will give you a brief idea about various incarnation of lord Vishnu and why they abode earth. A nice read.

[Swetha G]

Okayish

Not a detailed one. Could have been included more important things in every avatars especially in the first 4 avatars

[Nidhi Chopra]

Jrasandh was killed by bheem.

[Ravi Kumar Dandapani]

nice

[Naveen]

Ok good.

Could have been more detailed. Little more backdrop to each story would have been great. All in all a good read.

[Bristi Choudhury]

Beautiful compilation

Precise and beautiful compilation of all the Vishna avatars. Well scripted and definitely recommended among goodreads especially kids at home.

[Sumon Sarkar]

This is one of the longest books of Amar Chitra Katha. I really wanted to know about all the Avatars of Lord Vishnu. I've really enjoyed while reading this book.

Recommended.

[Sharvil]

h

[Polappan]

Too good.

[Jason Baldauf]

A very good introduction to the avatars of Vishnu in an approachable comic book format.

[Naga Mahanth]

,

[Apurva Kale]

A perfect pick for anyone who cherishes Krishna, values accuracy, and enjoys learning through imagery.