The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (1341 page)

 
Back
  -  
 
New Search

(Skt., ‘tortoise’). In Hindu mythology an animal which is associated with
Vi
u
in various ways. In the ancient fourfold cosmography of the
Pur
as
, it is said to be the form of Vi
u which supports Bh
rata (India). In the earliest known versions of the myth of the Churning of the Ocean, the tortoise allows the gods and demons to use its back as a base for the mountain which serves as their churning-stick, and in later versions Vi
u himself takes the form of a tortoise in order to do this. K
rma is the second in the standard list of Vi
u's ten
avat
ras
.