Varaha

Varaha (Sanskrit वराह Varaha " boar " ) in Hinduism is the third incarnation ( avatar ) of Lord Vishnu in the form of a boar.

Legends

His reputation as a sustainer / preserver of the world will meet Vishnu in the incarnation as Varaha. According to Varaha Purana the earth sank once, as a new era had dawned, in the waters of prehistoric times. As a mother whose child is dropped into water, do not hesitate hinterherzuspringen him to save it, was Vishnu's first thought the preservation of the earth. He took the form of the boar, the most powerful swamp beast; a good swimmer he dived down into the primeval ocean. There he kills the dangerous demon Hiranyaksha, picked up his colossal tusks the earth in the form of the goddess Bhudevi - also called Prthivi - up and saved them from sinking in the primordial chaos.

In another version, the demon kidnapped Hiranyaksha who had attained immortality of Brahma, the earth in the depths of the primeval ocean.

Another version of the legend says that the earth is the act of creation Brahma accidentally fell into the primeval ocean, whereupon Brahma Vishnu asked for help, who assumed the form of a boar.

Representations

Medieval Varaha sculptures are spread all over India, with two different modes of representation are distinguished:

• Full -dimensional representations (eg, Eran, Khajuraho )

• Reliefs (eg Udaigiri; Halebid; Mahabalipuram )

Basically, the fully plastic, zoomorphic representation Varahas is endemic in northern India ( Madhya Pradesh ), most representations of this kind - about a dozen are still preserved - are in museums ( Delhi, Gwalior, Indore ).