Vaman Avtaar

King Bali was Prahalad’s grandson.He was very powerful and popular king. To reach the maximum height he performed a yagya. This rose an alarm for the Gods because after that Bali would become an invincible.They went to Vishnu for help. King Bali proceeded with the sacrificial ceremony under the guidance of his Guru, Shukracharya. As part of the sacrificial rites, Bali decided that he would grant special favours to anyone who asked him. He would immediately give whatever that person wanted. All of a sudden, a dwarf joined the gathering and started chanting from the Vedas, the Upanishads and other holy scriptures. Bali was impressed by the dwaf and asked him for his wish. At that moment, Shukracharya sensed that the dwarf was actually Lord Vishnu and warned Bali not to grant his wish.But in those days keeping a promise was an ultimate thing. So he ignored his advise. As a ritual Bali ordered the vessel(Kamandal) of water to sprinkle the feet of dwarf. At that moment Shukracharya occultly entered into the vessel and sealed up the opening with his body. He felt that if he could stop the flow of the water, the purification ceremony could not be performed and Bali would not be able to fulfil the dwarf’s wish.Bali did not knew that his Guru was inside the earthen vessel. When Bali sat at the feet of the dwarf and tried to pour the water, he discovered that the mouthpiece of the vessel was sealed. Bali used a straw of hay to remove the blockage. Unfortunately, the straw pierced one of his Guru’s eyes, leaving him blind in that eye. Naturally, When Shukracharya emerged from the vessel holding his left eye, Bali felt sad. But Bali was determined and performed the ceremony of purification of dwarf. After that he asked dwarf for the wish. The dwarf asked for 3 steps of earth.Bali was surprised as it was next to nothing for him to fulfill this desire. So, he agreed. Upon hearing Bali’s words, the dwarf, who was Lord Vishnu himself, resumed his universal form. With one stride, he covered the whole world; with his second stride, he covered the Brahmaloka. For his third king Bali offered his head.Lord Vishnu kept his 3^rd step on Bali’s head and send him to Pataal Lok. This is the story of Lord Vishnu in his incarnation as a dwarf, who was called Vamana. Since then this day is celebrated as "Bali Pratipada" on the next day of Diwali