Vishnu, the supreme being, is the preserver, the protector of the good and the guardian of dharma. Seated on Adi Shesha, the many-hooded serpent, in the primeval waters, he watches over his devotees and rewards the pious. And whenever dharma is in danger, he incarnates himself on earth to rid it of evil. Beginning with an investigation of the possible non-Vedic, Dravidian origins of Vishnu, this book describes his form, aspects and attributes, and his avatars or incarnations: Matsya, the fish; Kurma, the tortoise; Varaha, the boar; Narasimha, the man-lion; Vamana, the dwarf; Parashurama; Rama; Krishna; and Kalki, the final destroyer. Combining the skill of a storyteller with the insight of a scholar, Nanditha Krishna has brought to glorious life perhaps the most powerful and revered god in the Hindu pantheon.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Nanditha Krishna
Dr. Nanditha Krishna obtained her Ph.D. from the Department of Ancient Indian Culture, University of Bombay, specializing in Hindu iconography and ethno-archaeology. She has been researching, writing and lecturing extensively on Indian art, culture and society, as well as the environment which is her passion. She has authored The Art and Iconography of Vishnu “ Narayana (D.B. Taraporevala & Sons, Bombay), The Arts and Crafts of Tamilnadu (Mapin Publications, Ahmedabad), Manuscript Paintings of the Sarasvati Mahal Library (Arasvati Mahal Library, Tanjore), Madras Chennai (C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation, Chennai), co-authored Ganesha with her mother Shakunthala Jagannathan (Vakils, Feffer & Simons Ltd.), edited Shakti and Kanchi (both C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation), and written books for children on the environment. Dr. Nanditha Krishna is the Director of the C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation at Chennai (Madras) and of its constituents, the C.P. Art Centre, C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Institute of Indological Research, Saraswathi Kendra Centre for Children and C.P.R. Environmental Education Centre.
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