Every incarnation reveals God's superior intelligence and compassion for His creation across cosmic ages.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Lord Varāha's Appearance Day Lecture Dasāvatāra-stotra Purport — February 18, 1970, Los Angeles 700218VA-LOS ANGELES [47:02 Minutes] VarahaApp_700218VA-LOS ANGELES Prabhupāda: [Sings Dāsavatāra-stotra] [23:39] Pralaya-payodhi-jale-dhṛtavān asi vedam, vihita-vahitra-caritram akhedam. Today is the incarnation day of Lord Kṛṣṇa's appearing as the Boar. He lifted the world when it was submerged within the water of Garbhodakśa, Garbhodaka Ocean. The universe which we are seeing, it is only half.
The other half is filled with water, and in that water is Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu lying. So one demon, Hiraṇyākṣa, he pushed this earthly planet within that water, and Lord Kṛṣṇa delivered this earthly planet from water in the shape of a boar. So that auspicious day is today, Varāha-dvadaśī. This is called Varāha-dvadasi. So on this day it is better to sing, to glorify the different incarnations of Lord within this universe.
The first incarnation is the fish form. So these prayers were offered by Jayadeva Gosvāmī. One Vaiṣṇava poet advented about seven hundred years before Lord Caitanya's appearance. He was a great devotee, and his specific poetry, Gīta-govinda, is very famous all over the world. Gīta-govinda.
Gīta-govinda is the subject matter of Kṛṣṇa playing on flute about Rādhārāṇī. That is the subject matter of Gīta-govinda. So the same poet, Jayadeva Gosvāmī, has offered this prayer, pralaya-payodhi-jale-dhṛtavān asi vedam **. He says, "My dear Lord, when there was devastation within this universe, everything was filled with water. At that time You saved the Vedas, stacked in a boat.
And You held the boat from being drowned in the water, in the shape of a big fish." This fish first of all was caught in the waterpot just like a small fish. Then it enlarged, and the fish was kept in a bigger water reservoir. In this way the fish was increasing. Then the fish informed that "Devastation is coming.
You just save all the Vedas on a boat, and I shall protect it." So Jayadeva Gosvāmī is offering prayer, "My Lord, You saved the Vedas when there was devastation in the shape of fish." The next is Kūrmāvatāra. There was churning of the ocean. One side all the demigods and one side all the demons. And the churning rod was a great hill called Mandara-pārvata.
And the resting place was on the back of the Lord appeared as a tortoise. So he's offering his prayer, that "You appeared as a tortoise just to become the resting place. And this happened because You were feeling some itching sensation on Your back. So You accepted this big rod, Mandara Hill, to itch, as the itching instrument." Then the next incarnation is this Varāha, boar, or hog.