Etymology and Meaning
Further information: IncarnationThe Sanskrit noun avatāra is derived from the verbal root tṝ "to cross over", joined with the prefix ava "off, away, down". The word doesn't occur in the Vedas, but is recorded in Pāṇini (3.3.120). Avatāra was initially used to describe different deities, then around the 6th century AD it began to be used primarily to describe the manifestations of Vishnu. While earlier texts mention deities taking on different forms, the Bhagavad Gita (4.5-9) is the first text to discuss the doctrine associated with the term even though the word avatāra itself is not mentioned.
According to some scholars like Parrinder, Oduyoye, Vroom and Sheth, the common translation "incarnation" due to its christological implications is somewhat misleading as the concept of avatar corresponds more closely to the view of Docetism in Christian theology, as different from the idea of God 'in the flesh' in mainstream Christology.
Related to the idea of avatar is that of vibhūti, that is, the idea of manifestations of the divine in various aspects of human life and the natural world.
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