बुद्धावतार

धर्म और परम्परा 

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Dharma and Religion.

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Dharma is the very first purpose / principle of all life and living beings. Next to Dharma, There are Artha, KAma and MokSha.

These four together are the way of life, and everyone has to follow this way fou-fold way of life. The same has been pointed out in the  following :

अहिंसा परमो धर्मः धर्म हिंसा तथैव च।।

धर्म सर्वदा वर्तते आपद्धर्म कदाचन।।

Accordingly, Dharma is Prakriti / nature, or the very essential tendency inherent in all. This is again of the four kinds :

आहार, निद्रा, भय, मैथुन। 

Or, the breath, hunger and thirst, sleep, fear and progeny.

For example, a carnivorous animal tries to prey for the food, while a herbivorous one never. A lion or a tiger can't feed in grass, but a cow or a goat will feed grass or such other vegetables kinds of food. In case, their natural food is not available, a cat or a dog may try and relish something like milk.

A cow is an example of a vegetarian animal,  its nature or natural Dharma is non-violence or अहिंसा, but in case, there is danger or fear to life, to defend itself becomes aggressive and violent. 

The chemical element Phosphorus is a word derivation from the Sanskrit verb-root :

√स्फुर् - स्फुरति -प्रस्फुरस् - phosphorus.

स्फुर्  is synonymous with resplendent,  self-shining. 

The word "spirit" is cognate of "स्फुरति" .

Dharma is the natural tendency that arises from within. Therefore the Dharma is verily what is the "Spiritual".

Mind of the human is verbal memory, while that of an animal is a memory of the sensory perceptions only. May be the photographic or of the audio-visual kind.

The transition of consciousness :

The ten avatar in the Sanatana Dharma is symbolic of the transition of consciousness in the life of species, what Charles Darwin might have tried to study.

The mankind is such a stage of evolution in this transition of consciousness. The man or the mankind is the only living being that has designed and devised language to speak and convey the assumed and intended meaning of a "spoken word" . And subsequently has developed the same to a great extent.

Gita 4/1 points out :

इमं विवस्वते योगं प्रोक्तवानहमव्ययम्।।

विवस्वान् मनवे प्राह मनुरिक्ष्वाकवेऽब्रवीत्।।१।।

(अध्याय ४, Chapter 4,verse 1)

In the stage of evolution the same knowledge of Yoga came to man from विवस्वान्  The Sun, for the Sun Himself received this knowledge from the

Ultimate Supreme Principle the "Self " / Atman / आत्मा / आत्मन्,

This is evident that the "Self"  / "self" or the consciousness alone is the

The Ever- present, Ever-known  Reality ,

Always available to all and everyone without exception. Rationally, logically also, no one can ever deny or refute this spontaneous Realization, that comes to one from within. Therefore this Dharma or The Spirituality is what prevails always at least in all the living beings or the living organisms.

Owing to this inherent spontaneous Dharma that is verily the Spirituality only, evolution of all life assumes the manifest form.

Everyone indeed without exception knows this truth that is otherwise called the 

"The I-am sense". 

But it is only for the humans who are also  aware of this truth. 

अजोऽपि सन्नव्यात्मा भूतानामीश्वरोऽपि सन्।।

प्रकृतिं स्वामधिष्ठाय संभवाम्यात्ममायया।।६।।

(अध्याय ४,  Chapter 4, verse 6)

Who is "विवस्वान्" the literal meaning is :

One who is present immanent in all beings.

But "life" as such is because of the Sun only, therefore the Sun is synonymous of life and of "vivaswan" also.

After the life was manifest, consciousness was manifest and evolved in and through different innumerable forms.

That is that Supreme Truth I-am is ever so known to one and all without exception or doubt.

The I-am is verily the cognate of the Sanskrit word  अहम्  -- meaning the self or the Self.

After the evolution of species took place the consciousness too evolved in the following in this sequence :

कूर्म / कच्छप - मत्स्य - वराह - नृसिंह - वामन - परशुराम - राम - कृष्ण-बलराम - बुद्ध - कल्कि

कूर्म / कच्छ / कच्छप  us the shell - the transition from शिला shell - cell to first life-form.

मत्स्य / the cell into the fish,

वराह / the boar 🐗 

नृसिंह / half man half lion,

वामन / वा मन / बौना / the dwarf / pygmy,

परशुराम / भार्गव / गौतम / कौशिक / उलूक / ओलूक्य --

all these are the tribals, those manlike living in forests, woods and jungles, wielding a परशु / sword / scythe.  

राम / Rama wielding an arrow and bow.

He was accompanied by वानर  / वन  वानर, vAnara  those who lived in forests, woods and jungles.

The two, namely Parashurama and Rama as above had this weapon, but Rama was the one living in a city, an अर्वण् / urban, 

ऋग्वेद describes this how the mankind began to establish a colony / city and the kingdoms evolved.

I have written about this in one of my posts where Rigveda describes the origin of  अर्वण्  from the ocean or from the sands.

After Rama, the evolution of the collective consciousness manifested in the  avatar  or the form of Krishna-Balarama 

This is symbolic of when mankind began to learn and discover use if the weapons.

Afterwards we see The Buddha The limit of and beyond the बुद्धि / Intellect .

बोध   / The Intelligence.

The present age is of the

कल्कि-अवतार / Kalki avatara.

Kalki 

symbolizes संकलनं / कलनं / कला  / calculation.

This is the "The Conclusion"

The end of the evolution in consciousness.

May be, the beginning of End.

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