Varaha Avathara

While we know of the ten avataras of Lord Vishnu, the Lord in fact incarnated many more times. Sage Suka, in Srimad Bhagavatham, says that it is easier to count the grains of sand on the beach than to count His avataras. Suka tells Pareekshit that Brahma had detailed many of these avataras to Sage Narada. One such avatara of the Lord was the Kapila avatara. In this avatara, the Lord was the son of Kardama Prajapathi and Devahuthi. The Lord also appeared as Dathan, the son of sage Atri; He appeared to bless the child devotee Dhruva; He appeared as Nara and Narayana — the twin sons of Dharma Deva; He took the Hayagriva avatara in which He had the face of a horse, and so on. Brahma told Narada that even Adi Sesha could not tell how many avataras the Lord would take. After giving a glimpse into these details, P.T. Seshadri elaborated on the Varaha avatara in a discourse. When the demon Hiranyaksha hid the Earth, Brahma beseeched Lord Narayana to rescue the Earth from the clutches of the demon. A small boar then emerged from Brahma’s nostrils and soon assumed gigantic proportions. The boar was none other than Lord Narayana Himself. Lord Varaha found Bhu Devi and lifted Her with His tusk.