O Kesava! O Lord of the universe! O Lord Hari,
who have assumed the form of a fish! All glories
to You! You easily acted as a boat in the form of
a giant fish just to give protection to the Vedas,
which had become immersed in the turbulent
sea of devastation.
Sri Dasavatara Stotra, 1st Sloka
Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. HDG A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada.
The passage above and those on the following Dasavatara pages are Srila Prabhupada's translation of Sri Dasavatara Stotra. The Dasavatara Stotra is a Hymn in salutation to the ten incarnations of Lord Maha Vishnu. The Stotra forms the first section of Gita Govinda, the masterpiece work of Sri Jayadeva, who was court poet of King Lakshmanasena in 12th Century Bengal. Sri Jayadeva was a mystic and great devotee of Lord Krishna. Sri Krishna Chaitanya took great inspiration from his songs. In the Sri Krishna temple of Guruvayoor in Kerala, Jayadeva's songs are sung daily in Carnatic Music ragas. In Nepal, they are sung during the Spring festivals.
This series of paintings is from the collection of St. Petersburg Institute of Oriental Studies. The artist represented the Balarama incarnation with an image of Radha-Krsna. This has been replaced with a more accurate image, that of Krsna-Balarama.
Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. HDG A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada.
