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Balarama
![Early 18th century depiction of Balarama from a wall hanging in a south Indian temple](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Balarama_Mural.jpg)
The first two epithets associate him with ''hala'' (''langala'', "plough") from his strong associations with farming and farmers, as the deity who used farm equipment as weapons when needed, and the next two refer to his strength.
Originally an agri-cultural deity, Balarama is mostly described as an incarnation of Adi Shesha, the serpent associated with the deity Vishnu while some Vaishnava traditions regard him as the eighth avatar of Vishnu, with Jayadeva’s Gitagovinda (c.1200) "incorporat[ing] Balarama into the pantheon" as the ninth of the 10 principal avatars of Vishnu.
Balarama's significance in Indian culture has ancient roots. His image in artwork is dated to around the start of the common era, and in coins dated to the second-century BCE. In Jainism, he is known as Baladeva, and has been a historically significant farmer-related deity. Provided by Wikipedia