https://ganeshdalvicpf.blogspot.com/2019/03/dashavtaars-of-facilitator-iii.htmlDASHAVTAARS OF A FACILITATOR - PART IIVamana, the dwarf. The fourth descendant of Vishnu, Bali, with devotion and penance was able to defeat Indra, the god of firmament. This humbled the other deities and extended his authority over the three worlds. The gods appealed to Vishnu for protection and he descended as a boy Vamana. During a yajna of the king, Vamana approached him and Bali promised him for whatever he asked. Vamana asked for three paces of land. Bali agreed, and the dwarf then changed his size to that of a giant Trivikrama form. With his first stride he covered the earthly realm, with the second he covered the heavenly realm thereby symbolically covering the abode of all living beings. He then took the third stride for the netherworld. Bali realized that Vamana was Vishnu incarnate. In deference, the king offered his head as the third place for Vamana to place his foot. The avatar did so and thus granted Bali immortality and making him ruler of Pathala, the netherworld. The 5th avtaar, Vamana taught me that as a Facilitator, I need to be non-bearing, harmless & my presence in front of my participants should be non-consequential. To derive the maximum from the participants I must be humble, have the attitude of a servant out to serve them rather than being dominating. I should be okay being a dwarf to achieve the desired outcome, allow the participants pour out their wisdom the way Bali gave away everything he had. In the end, just like Bali let me have the humility to bow before my participants & the outcome of the session.6 - Parashurama, the warrior with the axe. He is son of Jamadagni and Renuka and received an axe after a penance to Shiva. He is the first Brahmin-Kshatriya in Hinduism, or warrior-saint, with duties between a Brahmin and a Kshatriya. King Kartavirya Arjuna and his army visited the father of Parashurama at his ashram, and the saint was able to feed them with the divine cow Kamadhenu. The king demanded the cow, but Jamadagni refused. Enraged, the king took it by force and destroyed the ashram. Parashurama then killed the king at his palace and destroyed his army. In revenge, the sons of Kartavirya killed Jamadagni. Parashurama took a vow to kill every Kshatriya on earth twenty-one times over and filled five lakes with their blood. Ultimately, his grandfather, rishi Rucheeka, appeared before him and made him halt. He is a Chiranjivi(immortal), and believed to be alive today in penance at Mahendragiri.Parashurama … the warrior!! The way he killed his enemies 21 times, as a facilitator I should be able to slay my ego, my status, my opinions, my beliefs, my world views, my likes & dislikes. As a facilitator I need to earn weapons of facilitation by learning, following the masters & being focussed. 7 - Rama, the prince and king of Ayodhya. He is a commonly worshipped avatar in Hinduism, and is thought of as the ideal heroic man. His story is recounted in one of the most widely read scriptures of Hinduism, the Ramayana. While in exile from his own kingdom with his brother Lakshman and the God Hanuman, his wife Sita was abducted by the demon king of Lanka, Ravana. He travelled to Lanka, killed the demon king and saved Sita.The avtaar of Shri Rama taught me that I need to be truthful towards my ‘Dharma’ as a facilitator. The commitment, contracting that I make with my client sponsor, stakeholders needed to be adhered to similar to him. The way Shri Rama believed in the valour & wisdom of Vanaras, I too need to believe in the wisdom of people around me in the workshop & try to get maximum help from them. Shri Rama also teaches me to be calm, poised & thoughtful (Which is so difficult for me).