Vamana (Sanskrit: वामन, lit. ‘Dwarf’, IAST: Vāmana)[1] also known as Trivikrama (lit. ’three steps’),[2] Urukrama (lit. ’far-stepping’),[3] Upendra (lit. ’Indra’s younger brother’),[4][5] Dadhivamana (Sanskrit: दधिवामन, lit. ‘milk-dwarf’, IAST: Dadhivāmana),[6] and Balibandhana (lit. ’binder or killer of Bali’),[7] is an avatar of the Hindu deity Vishnu.[8] He is the fifth avatar of Vishnu and the first Dashavatara in the Treta Yuga, after Narasimha.[9]
First mentioned in the Vedas, Vamana is most commonly associated in the Hindu epics and Puranas with the story of taking back the three worlds (collectively referred to as the Trailokya)[10] from the daitya-king Bali by taking three steps to restore the cosmic order. He is the youngest among the adityas, the sons of Aditi and the sage Kashyapa.