The Role and Nature of Avatars and Vibhutis

The long, slow and steady evolutionary progression in the world occasionally reaches a point where a focused, concentrated action can move it along, prepare the advent of the next stage, and set some new directions in motion. These special efforts generally are associated with a specific person who stands as the representative of the change. For those who are conscious of their role as representatives of the Divine Intention, the name ‘Avatar’ has been used. For those who possess and wield a specific special force of action, but who are not necessarily fully conscious instruments in unity with the Divine, the term ‘Vibhuti’ is used. The founders of the major world religious or spiritual traditions are generally considered to be Avatars bringing forth a particular principle to fix into the conscious evolution through which humanity is moving.

A Vibhuti need not be a religious or spiritual leader, and this term may encompass individuals who have much more focused efforts and directions in any field of human endeavour, including arts and sciences, socio-political development, etc. A Vibhuti will generally harness an existing power in the world-play and focus and accentuate its action.

An Avatar may primarily work within the framework of Nature, as it is part of the divine manifestation through Nature, but at critical junctures it may be necessary to undertake an evolutionary leap that brings in an entirely new action which will then, to some degree or other, move beyond the limits of the current status quo of that time.

Sri Aurobindo notes: “There are two sides of the phenomenon of Avatarhood, the Divine Consciousness and the instrumental personality. The Divine Consciousness is omnipotent but it has put forth the instrumental personality in Nature under the conditions of Nature and it uses it according to the rules of the game — though also sometimes to change the rules of the game. If Avatarhood is only a flashing miracle, then I have no use for it. If it is a coherent part of the arrangement of the omnipotent Divine in Nature, then I can understand and accept it.”

“An Avatar, roughly speaking, is one who is conscious of the presence and power of the Divine born in him or descended into him and governing from within his will and life and action; he feels identified inwardly with this divine power and presence.”

“A Vibhuti is supposed to embody some power of the Divine and is enabled by it to act with great force in the world, but that is all that is necessary to make him a Vibhuti: the power may be very great, but the consciousness is not that of an inborn or indwelling Divinity. This is the distinction we can gather from the Gita which is the main authority on this subject.”

“The Avatar is necessary when a special work is to be done and in crises of the evolution. The Avatar is a special manifestation while for the rest of the time it is the Divine working within the ordinary human limits as a Vibhuti.”

Sri Aurobindo, Integral Yoga: Sri Aurobindo’s Teaching and Method of Practice, Chapter 12, Other Aspects of Sri Aurobindo’s Teaching and Method of Practice, The Avatar and the Vibhuti, pp. 347-349