The Buddha’s Inclusion in Daśāvatāra: A Brief Study

Despite representing a doctrine distinct from Brahmanical system, the Buddha somehow came to hold a highly significant position in Hindu faith through his identification as the ninth incarnation of Viṣṇu. Different texts portray the Buddha Incarnation in different aspects—giving numerous possibilities about the requirements, applied methods and circumstances in this incorporation. Scholars, however, have been monotonous in explaining this multifaceted inclusion like a socio-political scheme organised by Brahmins to bring the Buddha’s popular creed under their feet, whereas the Buddhist scriptures show almost no desperate protest against this assimilation, a silence that would be quite unusual if the Buddhist hierarchy had really perceived any existential threat. The current work suggests that the Buddha’s inclusion in Daśāvatāra may not be a mere scheme suddenly framed out by Brahmins, but a long-term profound spiritual course, to which even Buddhists themselves made willing or unwilling contributions.

Keywords: Buddha Viṣṇu Mahāyāna Buddhism Hinduism Daśāvatāra