Avtar or Avatar or Avatara is a Punjabi word ਅਵਤਾਰ which means "an incarnation of" or "an exhibition in human form". It is derived from Sanskrit where it stands for "descent" (viz., from heaven to earth), from the verbal root tṝ "to cross over") usually implies a deliberate descent from higher spiritual realms to lower realms of existence for special purposes, often translated into English as incarnation.