The Okapi Avatar

Probably not a Darwinist...

"Hindu views on evolution" is an extremely misguided (and entertaining) entry from Wikipedia, trying to harmonize the ten avatars of Vishnu with Darwinian evolution. An old trick and one that still doesn´t work. The comment about the okapi and Archaeopteryx is priceless! :D 

>>>The order of the Dashavatara (ten principal avatars of the god Vishnu) is interpreted to convey Darwin's evolution. British geneticist and evolutionary biologist J B S Haldane opined that they are a true sequential depiction of the great unfolding of evolution. 

>>>According to them, like the evolutionary process itself, the first avatar of God is a fish - Matsya, which depicts aquatic life, then comes the aquatic reptile turtle, Kurma, which depicts creatures moving to land, then a mammal - the boar Varaha, then Narasimha, a man-lion being, which is sometimes taken to mean creatures like Okapi, Archaeopteryx and others, then comes Vamana, the dwarf hominid. 

>>>Then Parashurama depicts humans when they were in the caveman stage. And then, Rama depicts the rise of civilization and kingdoms. (Sometimes, when Balarama is taken into account, he is taken to represent the growth of agriculture.) Krishna is taken to symbolize the growth of art and crafts and Buddha is taken to depict the embarking on philosophical and religious thought. Kalki is not yet born. 

>>>Various saints, thinkers and authors like Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Helena Blavatsky, Monier Monier-Williams, Nabinchandra Sen, C D Deshmukh have associated the Dashavatara with evolution.

Let´s be honest. The ancient Hindus probably thought the Earth was flat. And no, they had no idea that the fair Okapi even existed!