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Incarnation literally means embodied in flesh or taking on flesh. It is the conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or an Anthropomorphism form of a god. It is used to mean a god, deity, or Divine Being in human or animal form on Earth. The proper noun, Incarnation, refers to the hypostatic union in Jesus.
Historian David R. W. Bryer defines the Druzes as ghulat of Isma'ilism, since they exaggerated the cult of the caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah and considered him divine; he also defines the Druzes as a religion that deviated from Islam. He also added that as a result of this deviation, the Druze faith "seems as different from Islam as Islam is from Christianity or Christianity is from Judaism".
Some scholars believe Christian elements are deeply embedded in Druze beliefs, introduced through Isma’ili traditions. This is evident in the Druze creed, which deifies al-Hākim bi Amrillāh. The initiation text, "Mīthāq Walī al-Zamān" (Pact of Time Custodian), which begins with, “I rely on our Moula Al-Hakim the lonely God, the individual, the eternal,... Obedience of almighty Moulana Al-Hākim, exalted be him and that obedience is worship and that he does not have any partners ever, present or coming”, (2012). 9781400845842, Princeton University Press. ISBN 9781400845842 closely resembles Christian beliefs about Christology. The Druze also view figures like Jesus, al-Hākim bi Amrillāh, and Hamza ibn Ali as the Messiah or Mahdi. They believe al-Hākim will return at the end of times to judge the world and establish his kingdom, while Hamza ibn Ali is considered a reincarnation of Jesus, the Universal Mind 'Aql, closely associated with al-Hākim.
Since the time of Maimonides, mainstream Judaism has mostly rejected any possibility of an incarnation of God in any form.L. Jacobs 1973 A Jewish Theology p. 24. N.Y.: Berman House
However, some modern-day Hasidism believe in a somewhat similar concept. Menachem Mendel Schneerson, a prominent Hasidism leader, said that the Rebbe is God's essence itself put into the body of a tzadik. Likkutei Sichos, Vol. 2, pp. 510-511.
Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974, is traditionally seen by Rastas as the Second Coming of Jesus or Jah incarnate, and is sometimes referred to as "the living God". To others, he is a human who embodies the teachings of Christ, or a distinct human prophet who symbolises the divinity within humankind. Leonard Barrett has argued that many Rastas believe in a form of reincarnation, where Moses, Elijah, Jesus and then Haile Selassie are of Jah.Barrett, Leonard E. (2018). The Rastafarians (Reprint ed.). Boston, MaA: Beacon Press. p. 112. . R. Matthew Charet has argued that Christ is a title for Rastas much as Buddha is for Buddhists, and that Christ's divine connection is not unique to Jesus but may be attained by all humans through a "discovery of the Christ-consciousness in us all".Charet, R. Matthew. "Jesus was a Dreadlocks: Rastafarian Images of Divinity." Sydney Studies in Religion (1999). p.126.
In Tibetan Buddhism, an enlightened spiritual teacher (lama) is believed to reincarnate, and is called a tulku. According to Tulku Thond, there are three main types of tulkus. They are the emanations of buddhas, the manifestations of highly accomplished adepts, and rebirths of highly virtuous teachers or spiritual friends. There are also authentic secondary types, which include unrecognized tulkus, blessed tulkus, and tulkus fallen from the path.Tulku Thondup (2011) Incarnation: The History and Mysticism of the Tulku Tradition of Tibet. Boston: Shambhala.
Neither the Vedas nor the Principal Upanishads ever mentions the word avatar as a noun. The verb roots and form, such as avatarana, do appear in ancient post-Vedic Hindu texts, but as "action of descending", but not as an incarnated person (avatara). The related verb avatarana is, states Paul Hacker, used with double meaning, one as action of the divine descending, another as "laying down the burden of man" suffering from the forces of evil.
The term is most commonly found in the context of the Hindu god Vishnu. The earliest mention of Vishnu manifested in a human form to empower the good and fight against evil, uses other terms such as the word sambhavāmi in verse 4.6 and the word tanu in verse 9.11 of the Bhagavad Gita, as well as other words such as akriti and rupa elsewhere. It is in Middle Ages texts, those composed after the sixth century CE, that the noun version of avatar appears, where it means embodiment of a deity. The incarnation idea proliferates thereafter, in the Purana stories for many deities, and with ideas such as ansha-avatar or partial embodiments.James Lochtefeld (2002), "Avatar" in The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A-M, Rosen Publishing, , pages 72-73
While avatars of other deities such as Ganesha and Shiva are also mentioned in medieval Hindu texts, this is minor and occasional.James Lochtefeld (2002), "Shiva" in The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 2: N-Z, Rosen Publishing, , page 635 The incarnation doctrine is one of the important differences between Vaishnavism and Shaivism traditions of Hinduism.
Lai Ah Eng (2025). 9789812307545, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore. . ISBN 9789812307545
Avatar versus incarnation
The translation of avatar as "incarnation" has been questioned by Christian theologians, who state that an incarnation is in flesh and imperfect, while avatar is mythical and perfect. The theological concept of Christ as an incarnation into the womb of the Virgin Mary and by work of the Holy Spirit, as found in Christology, presents the Christian concept of incarnation. Mercy Amba Oduyoye and H. M. Vroom state that this is different from the Hindu concept of avatar because avatars in Hinduism are unreal and the Christian concept is similar to Docetism.Mercy Amba Oduyoye, H. M. Vroom, One gospel – many cultures: case studies and reflections on cross-cultural theology, Rodopi, 2003, , p. 111. Sheth disagrees and states that this claim is an incorrect understanding of the Hindu concept of avatar. Avatars are true embodiments of spiritual perfection, one driven by noble goals, in Hindu traditions such as Vaishnavism.
Serer religion
The Serer religion of West Africa rejects any notions of incarnation or manifestation of the supreme deity Roog (also called Koox in the Cangin languages language). However, the reincarnation ( ciiɗ)Faye, Louis Diène, Mort et Naissance Le Monde Sereer, Les Nouvelles Edition Africaines (1983), pp 9-10, of the ancient Serer saints and ancestral spirits, called Pangool, is a well-held principle in Serer religion. These Pangool (singular: Fangool) act as intermediaries between the living world and the divine. When the Serers speak of incarnation, it is these Pangool they refer to, who are themselves holy by virtue of their intercession with the divine. Thaiw, Issa Laye, « La religiosité des Seereer, avant et pendant leur islamisation », in Éthiopiques, no. 54, volume 7, 2e semestre 1991 [1] Henry Gravrand, La civilisation sereer, Cosaan: les origines, vol.1, Nouvelles Editions africaines (1983), p 33,
Meitei
In Meitei mythology and Meitei folklore, the epic cycles of incarnations in Moirang is a cyclic epic of seven (nine in some versions) of two divine lovers in the kingdom of Moirang in the realm of Ancient Kangleipak (early Manipur).
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