Abstract

W. B. Yeats’ poetry is rich in mythical symbols and imagery. He gleans the religion and philosophy of different cultures and traditions to give his poetic oeuvre an aura of profundity. His seminal poetic work, The Second Coming, can be read in the light of the ancient Indian myth of Narasimha avatar, the hum-animal hybrid incarnation of Lord Vishnu. The idea of the second coming of Christ sounds very much like the concept of reincarnation, which lies at the heart of Hinduism. The ferocity of the anti-Christ as envisioned by Yeats stands close to Narasimha’s brutality in quelling the head of a horrendous demon. Yeats’ vision emanates from the shared consciousness, which among other things could invariably have a place for the ancient Indian myth and traditions. The Second Coming of Christ, thus, could be seen in an altogether new perspective through the concept of re-incarnation myth.

Key words: Nar-simha, myth, religion, Yeats, Second Coming, re-incarnation.