Home > Mind , Body & Soul > Grandma stories >Kurma avtaar This is the second avtaar of Lord Vishnu-The Kurma Avtaar

We all know that the previous era was destroyed by a deluge that God thought would be the best way to end as the inhabitants of the earth were steeped in deceit and falsehood.

The Devas (who were the Gods) and the Asuras (the demons) were always at loggerheads with each other. They were always trying to out shine each other. So things started becoming worse when the Asuras got the better of the Devas and tried to drive out the Devas from Heaven.

It was at this time that all the Devas (there were 33 crore devas in the hindu pantheon, the head of them all being Lord Vishnu) approached Vishnu and requested Him to intervene and help them out in this crisis. They also appealed to Him to make the Devas immortal as then they would not have to fear for their lives from the Asuras.

Vishnu agreed and He told them that there was a nectar of immortality which was hidden deep within the recesses of the ocean waters which would have to be got by the Devas. If the Devas drank this nectar, then they would never meet with death. He also told them that the process of procuring was a very tedious one and that it would be impossible without the physical help of the Asuras.

So the Devas approached the Asuras and garnered their resources and help. The Asuras were only too willing to do so as they thought that they would also be partakers of this precious nectar. They all decided to work in total harmony for the purpose.

The nectar had to be churned out of the ocean depths. This churning could only be done only with a thick rope. The mountain Mandhara agreed to be the instrument of churning and the king of the snakes, Vasuki agreed to be the so-called rope to be wound around the mountain and pulled. The head of the snake was to be held by the Asuras and the tail by the Devas.

The operation started and both the groups churned the mighty ocean with all their might.Suddenly the huge mountain Mandhara started to sink. Down.. down.. and down until both the groups could not do much as the whole mountain sank under the ocean. The whole operation became chaotic and everyone was really helpless. No one had any remedy for this. They had never anticipated this kind of a fiasco. Then all of them pleaded to Lord Vishnu, who appeared and decided on the spur of the moment that the situation had to be rectified as fast as possible.

Hence, He assumed the form of a Turtle. Do you know why? The shell of turtles and tortoises are so strong that they can withstand any amount of weight that is loaded on them. And, as the mountain Mandhara was a mighty one, the only creature that could easily bear the mountain's weight was the turtle. Vishnu in His form as a Turtle went under the waters and the mountain was allowed to rest on His back. The churning resumed with a renewed vigour as now the Devas were much stronger in morale and mind as their Preceptor was with them. This avtaar was eventually called the Kurma Avtaar. Kurma means the turtle.