Book excerpt: Vishnu, the Supreme Being, is the preserver, the protector of the good and the guardian of dharma. Seated on Adi Shesha, the many-hooded serpent, in the primeval waters, he watches over his devotees and rewards the pious. And whenever dharma is in danger, he incarnates himself on earth to rid it of evil. Beginning with an investigation of the possible non-Vedic, Dravidian origins of Vishnu, this book describes his form, aspects and attributes, and his avatars or incarnations: Matsya, the fish; Kurma, the tortoise; Varaha, the boar; Narasimha, the man-lion; Vamana, the dwarf; Parashurama; Rama; Krishna; and Kalki, the final destroyer. Combining the skill of a storyteller with the insight of a scholar, Nanditha Krishna has brought to glorious life perhaps the most powerful and revered god in the Hindu pantheon.