Introduction:

Lord Vishnu is the most sacred, kind hearted and devotee’s centered god. He is the god of wealth and prosperity.

Lord Vishnu is one of the supreme powers in Hindu mythology. He is the preserver and protector of our Universe. Lord Vishnu is recognized by various names, some of them are; Hari, Narayana and vasudeva etc..

Om namo bhagwate vasudevaye (ॐ नमोः भगवते वासुदेवाये) and om namo Narayana (ॐ नमोः नारायण) are the mantras of Lord Vishnu.

Lord Vishnu has appeared in various incarnations on the earth called Dashavatars. Several times he came to the earth to help human and maintain balance between good and evil. Goddess Lakshmi is the wife of lord Vishnu.

Vaikunth and Kshir sagar are the region where lord Vishnu stays (as per Hindu beliefs).

Posture of Lord Vishnu:

The graphical attributes of lord Vishnu are the human body with blue colored skin and four arms carrying four objects the conch (shankh), the discus (chakra), the lotus flower and the mace (gada).

Incarnations of lord Vishnu:

According to Hindu mythology, the numbers of incarnations of lord Vishnu are twenty four. Out of 24 incarnations, ten are the most popular and well known. Lord Vishnu has appeared on  the earth several times to save his devotees and to kill demons. Here is the list of the ten incarnations of lord Vishnu.

1. Matasaya – Lord Vishnu appeared in the form of a big fish to preserve man, grains and living creatures in a boat from the coming flood.
2. Kachaypa – Lord Vishnu appeared in the form of a turtle. He took the mountain on his back to support in the churning of ocean(sagar manthan).
3. Varha – Lord Vishnu appeared in the form of a pig. He recovered the stolen earth by a demon from the ocean.
4. Narasimha – Lord Vishnu appeared in the form of half lion and half man to save his devotee’s life Prahlad from his demon father Hiranyakashaypa.
5. Vaman- Lord Vishnu appeared as a dwarf. He tricked to demon king Bali to return the empire of gods. He covered the earth in one step and the heaven in second step by growing his shape.
6. Parshurama – Lord Vishnu appeared as an angry priest who comes to the earth to kill evil demons and to protect humanity.
7. Rama – This is the widely known incarnation of lord Vishnu. He appeared as an ideal man. He killed the demon Ravana, who kidnapped his wife Sita.
8. Krishna – This is also the most popular incarnation of lord Vishnu. It is also called Purnavatar.

He killed several demons like Kansa. He performed a major role in the Mahabharata and gave the knowledge of Bhagwat Gita to the world.

9. Buddha – In this incarnation lord Vishnu gave the message of peace, non-violence and humanity to the world.
10. Kalki – This is the future incarnation of lord Vishnu according to Hindu mythology. He will appear at the end of Kalyuga (कलयुग).

Names of other incarnations of Lord Vishnu are as follows:

• Sankadik
• Narada
• Nar-narayana
• Kapil
• Dattatreya
• Yagya
• Rishabhdev
• Prithu
• Dhanvanatari
• Mohini
• Haygriv
• Vyasa
• Hansa