Amshavatara, Aṃśāvatāra, Amsha-avatara: 5 definitions
Introduction:
Amshavatara means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, Marathi, Hindi. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
The Sanskrit term Aṃśāvatāra can be transliterated into English as Amsavatara or Amshavatara, using the IAST transliteration scheme (?).
Alternative spellings of this word include Anshavtar.
In Hinduism
Purana and Itihasa (epic history)
Source: archive.org: Puranic EncyclopediaAṃśāvatāra (अंशावतार).—The incarnation of God on earth is called avatāra. When the incarnation is only partial, that is, when only some of the divine elements incarnate, it is called aṃśāvatāra (Aṃśa=part). Chapters 54 to 64 of Ādi Parva of the Mahābhārata give us a list of the gods who have incarnated partially. The following list of devas and their aṃśāvatāras is based upon the account given in the fourth Skandha of Śrī Mahādevī Bhāgavata.
Name of the god — Name of the aṃśāvatāra;
Kaśyapa — Vasudeva;
Ādiśeṣa — Balabhadra;
Nārāyaṇarṣi — Śrī Kṛṣṇa;
Yamadharma — Yudhiṣṭhira;
Aśvinīdevas — Nakula and Sahadeva;
Dharma — Vidura;
Śiva — Aśvatthāmā;
Gandharvarāja — Devaka;
Aṣṭavasu — Bhīṣma;
Marudgaṇa Kṛpa; — Kṛtavarmā;
Aditi — Devakī;
Nararṣi — Arjuna;
Vāyu — Bhīmasena;
Sūrya — Karṇa;
Bṛhaspati — Droṇa;
Varuṇa — Śantanu;
Marut — Virāṭa;
Haṃsa — Dhṛtarāṣṭra;
Dvāpara — Śakuni;
Pāvaka — Dhṛṣṭadyumna;
Kali — Duryodhana;
Rākṣasa — Śikhaṇḍī;
Varuṇa — Drupada;
Viśvedevas — Sons of Pāñcālī;
Dhṛti — Mādrī;
Vipracitti — Jarāsandha;
Hayagrīva — Keśi;
Bāṣkala — Bhagadatta;
Lamba — Pralamba;
Sanatkumāra — Pradyumna;
Lakṣmī — Pāñcālī;
Siddhi — Kuntī;
Mati — Gāndhārī;
Jaya — Hiraṇyākṣa;
Vijaya — Hiraṇyakaśipu;
Hiraṇyākṣa — Rāvaṇa;
Hiraṇyakaśipu — Kumbhakarṇa;
Rāvaṇa — Śiśupāla;
Kumbhakarṇa — Daṇḍavaktra;
Prahlāda — Śalya;
Kālanemi — Kaṃsa;
Anuhlāda — Dhṛṣṭaketu;
Khara — Dhenuka.
(For more details see under the word, AVATĀRA).

The Purana (पुराण, purāṇas) refers to Sanskrit literature preserving ancient India’s vast cultural history, including historical legends, religious ceremonies, various arts and sciences. The eighteen mahapuranas total over 400,000 shlokas (metrical couplets) and date to at least several centuries BCE.
Languages of India and abroad
Marathi-English dictionary
Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionaryaṃśāvatāra (अंशावतार).—m (S) A descent or incarnation of an emanation from the divine essence;--as disting. from pūrṇāvatāra.
Marathi is an Indo-European language having over 70 million native speakers people in (predominantly) Maharashtra India. Marathi, like many other Indo-Aryan languages, evolved from early forms of Prakrit, which itself is a subset of Sanskrit, one of the most ancient languages of the world.
Sanskrit dictionary
Source: DDSA: The practical Sanskrit-English dictionaryAṃśāvatāra (अंशावतार).—[ṣa. ta.] descent (on earth) of parts of deities, partial incarnation; °तार इव धर्मस्य (tāra iva dharmasya) Daśakumāracarita 153; °रमिव कृतान्तस्य (ramiva kṛtāntasya) K.31; °उच्चैःश्रवसः (uccaiḥśravasaḥ) 79; so अंशावतीर्णमिव (aṃśāvatīrṇamiva) 18; Name of a sub-parvan covering Adhyāyas 64-67 of Ādiparvan of Mb. Even without the compound अंश (aṃśa) means partial incarnation, अंश, आवेश (aṃśa, āveśa), and अवतार (avatāra) are the three kinds of Lord's manifestations.
Derivable forms: aṃśāvatāraḥ (अंशावतारः).
Aṃśāvatāra is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms aṃśa and avatāra (अवतार). See also (synonyms): aṃśāvataraṇa.
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
Hindi dictionary
Source: DDSA: A practical Hindi-English dictionaryAṃśāvatāra (अंशावतार) [Also spelled anshavtar]:—(nm) a partial incarnation.
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Kannada-English dictionary
Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpusAṃśāvatāra (ಅಂಶಾವತಾರ):—[noun] a partial incarnation of a deity on the earth in a human form .
Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Partial matches: Amsha, Avatara.
Starts with: Amshavatarana.
Full-text: Anshavtar, Avatara, Mohini, Dashavatara, Amshavatarana, Amrithamantha, Mahisha, Hamsa, Vyasa.
Relevant text
Search found 21 books and stories containing Amshavatara, Amsa avataras, Aṃśa-avatāra, Amsa-avatara, Aṃśāvatāra, Amsavatara, Amśāvatāra, Amsha-avatara, Amsha-avataras; (plurals include: Amshavataras, Amsa avatarases, avatāras, avataras, Aṃśāvatāras, Amsavataras, Amśāvatāras, avatarases). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Vaishnava Myths in the Puranas (by Kum. Geeta P. Kurandwad)
The concept of Amsa Avatara < [Chapter 4 - Significance of Vaishnava Myths]
The concept of Buddha-Avatara (incarnation) < [Chapter 4 - Significance of Vaishnava Myths]
Chaitanya Bhagavata (by Bhumipati Dāsa)
Verse 2.169 < [Chapter 2 - The Lord’s Manifestation at the House of Śrīvāsa and the Inauguration of Saṅkīrtana]
Verse 1.2.17 < [Chapter 2 - The Lord’s Appearance]
Brihad Bhagavatamrita (commentary) (by Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Nārāyana Gosvāmī Mahārāja)
Verse 1.3.73 < [Chapter 3 - Prapañcātīta (beyond the Material Plane)]
Verse 1.3.25 < [Chapter 3 - Prapañcātīta (beyond the Material Plane)]
Verse 1.5.8 < [Chapter 5 - Priya (the beloved devotees)]
Garga Samhita (English) (by Danavir Goswami)
Verse 1.11.10 < [Chapter 11 - Description of Śrī Kṛṣṇacandra’s Birth]
Bhagavad-gita (with Vaishnava commentaries) (by Narayana Gosvami)
Verse 4.7 < [Chapter 4 - Jñāna-Yoga (Yoga through Transcendental Knowledge)]
Notices of Sanskrit Manuscripts (by Rajendralala Mitra)
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