having but
one rival in the popular esteem. But the lines on which the change
took place are clear. Even in his own Church, Vishnu himself claims
comparatively little attention. He is not a force like Siva that makes
and mars, but a benevolent and retiring personality who keeps things
as they are. His worship, as distinguished from that of his
incarnations, is not conspicuous in modern India, especially in the
north. In the south he is less overshadowed by Krishna, and many
great temples have been erected in his honour. In Travancore, which is
formally dedicated to him as his special domain, he is adored under
the name of Padmanabha. But his real claim to reverence, his appeal to
the Indian heart, is due to the fact that certain deified human
heroes, particularly Rama and Krishna, are identified with him.

Deification is common in India.[355] It exists to the present day and
even defunct Europeans do not escape its operation. In modern times,
when the idea of reincarnation had become familiar, eminent men like
Caitanya or Vallabhacarya were declared after their death to be
embodiments of Krishna without more ado, but in earlier ages the
process was probably double. First of all the departed hero became a
powerful ghost or deity in his own right, and then this deity was
identified with a Brahmanic god. Many examples prove that a remarkable
man receives worship after death quite apart from any idea of
incarnation.

The incarnations of Vishnu are most commonly given as ten[356] but
are not all of the same character. The first five, namely, the Fish,
Tortoise, Boar, Man-Lion and Dwarf, are mythical, and due to his
identification with supernatural creatures playing a benevolent role
in legends with which he had originally no connection. The sixth,
however, Parasu-rama or Rama with the axe, may contain historical
elements. He is represented as a militant Brahman who in the second
age of the world exterminated the Kshatriyas, and after reclaiming
Malabar from the sea, settled it with Brahmans. This legend clearly
refers to a struggle for supremacy between the two upper castes,
though we may doubt if the triumphs attributed to the priestly
champion have any foundation in fact. The Ramayana[357] contains a
singular account of a contest between this Rama and the greater hero
of the same name in which Parasu-rama admits the other's superiority.
That is to say an epic edited under priestly supervision relates how
the hero-god o