The fourth among the Daśāvatāra is Śrī Nṛsiṁha-avatāra. Among the innumerable avatāras, twenty-five are pre-eminent as has been stated before in connection with Matsya-avatāra. Of these twenty-five, Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva is the fourteenth. He is the vaibhava-vilāsa (expansion in magnificence) of the tadekātma form of Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

The second catur-vyūha (quadruple expansion) of Śrī Kṛṣṇa is comprised of Vāsudeva, Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha, and each of these has two further vilāsa expansions. Pradyumna’s expansions are Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva and Śrī Janārdana. Besides that, it is also described that in the second catur-vyūha, Vāsudeva, Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha are the prābhava-vilāsa (predominating transcendental pastime expansions) of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. There are a total of twenty further expansions of these four prābhava-vilāsa forms. They can be recognised according to the placement of four different symbols in Their hands: conch (śankha), mace (gadā), lotus (padma) and disc (cakra). Regarding Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva, these symbols appear in the order of cakra, padma, gadā and śankha (disc in the lower right hand, lotus in the upper right hand, mace in the upper left hand and conch in the lower left hand).

In the Seventh Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the pastime of Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva’s appearance is briefly narrated as follows:

Due to the curse of the four Kumāras (Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanātana and Sanat), Jaya and Vijaya, the doorkeepers of Vaikuṇṭha, took birth as Hiraṇyākṣa and Hiraṇyakaśipu, as the two sons of Diti and Kaśyapa Ṛṣi. Of the two sons, Hiraṇyakaśipu was senior and affectionate to his brother. Lord Śrī Hari, in the form of Lord Varāha, took the side of the demigods and killed Hiraṇyākṣa. Desiring to take revenge, Hiraṇyakaśipu began to consider Lord Viṣṇu as his enemy and developed malicious feelings toward Him. He encouraged the demons to disturb ritualistic ceremonies and kill the brāhmaṇas. He also decided to perform severe austerities for one hundred years to get the benediction of achieving unrivalled supremacy of the three worlds. When Lord Brahmā became pleased by his austerities and appeared before him, Hiraṇyakaśipu asked for the benediction of becoming immortal. Lord Brahmā explained his inability to give him the boon of immortality, so Hiraṇyakaśipu asked for the boon of immortality in a different manner by requesting the following conditions: that he not be killed during the day or night, either inside or outside, in the sky or on the ground. He also asked that he not be killed by any weapon or by any living being created by Brahmā. Thus, Hiraṇyakaśipu became extremely powerful by the boon of Brahmā and enslaved all the Lokapālas (presiding deities of the eight directions of the universe). He became the sole monarch of the three worlds and enjoyed worldly pleasures while occupying Mahendra Bhavana, the residence of Indra. The demigods suffered due to his cruel behaviour and took refuge of Śrī Hari. Lord Hari then gave them confidence saying, “When Hiraṇyakaśipu becomes jealous of his devotee-son Prahlāda, he will be destroyed.”

Hiraṇyakaśipu had four sons: Saṁhlāda, Anuhlāda, Hlāda and Prahlāda. Of these, Prahlāda was the best due to his virtuous qualities. While in his mother’s womb he had heard and assimilated the teachings of Nārada Muni. As he was always absorbed in meditation on the Supreme Lord, the peaceful and tranquil-hearted Prahlāda could not perceive anything in this world unrelated to God, who is all-good.

As it was the custom in those days to send children to the guru’s home for education, Hiraṇyakaśipu sent Prahlāda, who was well versed in ethics, to Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka, the two sons of the demon-guru Śukrācārya. Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka lived near the palace. They began to teach politics to Prahlāda along with the other demon children. After hearing the teachings of his gurus, Prahlāda would always give the expected reply, but in his heart he did not like these teachings. “This is my country, that is another’s country. This is our group, that is another’s group.” Politics is based upon the foundation of this division between “mine and thine.” There can be no politics without this “mine and thine” or “friend and foe” mentality. So, this is the demoniac mentality. Here, the noteworthy thing is that although the highly learned Prahlāda understood the futility of the teachings of his teachers, he never behaved in a rude or disrespectful manner, but gave befitting respect to them. If a person respects his parents, teachers, elders, guardians and others senior to himself in age, he is benefited and there remains consistency in the social arrangement. Selfishness and disrespect of elders and seniors will bring disorder everywhere. Prahlāda’s character is unique and his every conduct is worth following.

When Prahlāda’s teachers Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka saw that Prahlāda had attained a good education and was answering all their questions properly, they thought it wise to send him to his father, as he would be glad to see Prahlāda’s educational progress. Hiraṇyakaśipu was happy at the return of Prahlāda from his guru’s home. He took him on his lap and cordially said, “My dear son Prahlāda, tell me whatever you think to be saintly (sādhu).” By this, Hiraṇyakaśipu meant that he wanted Prahlāda to tell him some good words from whatever he remembered from his guru’s teachings that he could express without difficulty, as he was just a child.

Prahlāda understood the intentions of his father, but as the question was put before Prahlāda in the royal assembly, he thought that he ought to speak only the truth, which is actually saintly, otherwise the court members would misunderstand him. So he replied, “O emperor of demons, for the corporeal souls who are always perplexed due to the acceptance of perishable things and contact with non-eternal relations, I think it to be saintly to renounce the home which is like a dark well¹ , the place of downfall, and to go to the forest to take refuge of and worship the lotus feet of Śrī Hari.”

Hearing his son’s view on the worship of Viṣṇu, Hiraṇyakaśipu smiled and thought that others must have spoiled the vulnerable intelligence of the child. He sternly ordered the demons to be careful in dealing with Prahlāda and to take care lest any Vaiṣṇava come in disguise and spoil his intelligence. After hearing about this order from Hiraṇyakaśipu, Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka became worried. They knew that they had never taught Prahlāda about Viṣṇu-worship, so he must have heard such things from some Vaiṣṇava and spoken about it. If they tried to find out the name of that Vaiṣṇava and tactfully inform the king about it, the king would not doubt them. With this intention, Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka addressed Prahlāda in a very pleasing manner and said, “O joy of the demon dynasty, we bless you for the sake of your welfare. You should not tell a lie before your teachers. Speak the truth. We have not taught you about devotion to Viṣṇu. We have taught you with other demon children but their minds are not spoiled like yours. Did you speak for yourself in that manner, or has somebody spoiled your intelligence?” Prahlāda understood the intentions of his teachers. So he first offered praṇāmas to the Supreme Lord who controls the māyā potency that covers the intelligence of the living beings and creates the mentality of “mine and thine.” Then he said, “As iron is naturally attracted towards a magnet, my heart is similarly attracted towards the lotus feet of Cakrapāṇi Śrī Hari (Śrī Hari, the holder of the disc weapon). Śrī Hari has spoiled my intelligence.”

Prahlāda’s reply was not what Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka wished to hear. They thought that Prahlāda would mention someone’s name whom they could catch hold of, so they becameangry and condemned Prahlāda, “O ruiner of the family, defamer of the demon dynasty, you are like a thorn tree in the sandalwood forest which is the asura dynasty. Using you as an axe, Viṣṇu will destroy the sandal forest of the demons. Your intelligence is lost. There are four methods of politics, namely sāma (conciliation), dāna (monetary gratification), bheda (causing dissension) and daṇḍa (punishment), and your conscience will not be awakened without using the last method. Someone bring a cane immediately to flog this boy!” Thus, they tried to frighten Prahlāda by striking a cane on the table; because Prahlāda was the son of the emperor, they lacked the courage to actually beat him. They reproached him hastily but Prahlāda remained silent. Again, they began to teach him the scriptures related to dharma, artha and kāma (piety, wealth and the fulfilment of desires), and tried to educate him in politics. After some time, Prahlāda’s teachers saw that Prahlāda had become expert in the four pillars of politics. He properly replied to every question. This time, they themselves would take him to the king. Thinking in this way, they first took Prahlāda to see his mother. Prahlāda made obeisances to his mother and she bathed him very affectionately and decorated him with various jewels. Then, Prahlāda’s teachers took him to the royal assembly of King Hiraṇyakaśipu, whereupon Prahlāda made prostrated obeisances before his father. Seeing Prahlāda, Hiraṇyakaśipu felt great affection for him. He took him on his lap, embraced him, kissed him, and bathed him with tears of happiness. After this, Hiraṇyakaśipu happily inquired, “O son Prahlāda, you have taken instruction from your gurus for so long. Now, please tell me something excellent from their teachings.” Hiraṇyakaśipu’s intention was that Prahlāda should speak on what was best from the teachings of Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka, considering them as gurus. But Prahlāda was worried; he thought that if he replied according to his father’s wishes, the others present in the court would get the wrong impression about the teachings of a real guru. Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka were not real gurus (sad-gurus) even though they were family gurus. A guru² should be śrotriya³ (well-versed in the śruti or Vedas) and have brahmaniṣṭha (firm devotion to Brahman or God). Prahlāda’s teachers were learned in śruti but lacked firm devotion to Brahman. They were only devoted to their specific mundane subjects or worldly knowledge, so their teaching was not the instruction of proper gurus. Prahlāda decided to speak about the essence of all the lessons he had received from his real guru, Nārada, who possessed the two qualities of śrotriya and brahmaniṣṭha, and replied:

“Dedicating oneself to Viṣṇu and following the nine forms of devotion, with the only object being the propitiation of Viṣṇu, is the highest form of genuine knowledge.” The nine forms of devotion are, respectively: śravaṇaṁ (hearing), kīrtanaṁ (chanting), smaraṇaṁ (remembrance of the name, form, attributes, personal associates and pastimes of the Lord), pāda-sevanaṁ (service of the lotus feet of the Lord. This also indicates service of the devotees of the Lord), arcanaṁ (worship of the Deity), vandanaṁ (offering prayers and obeisances), dāsyaṁ (service of God in the relationship of master and servant), sakhyaṁ (service of God in friendship), and ātma-nivedanaṁ (total self-dedication to God).

Upon hearing Prahlāda again speak about the worship of Viṣṇu, Hiraṇyakaśipu thought that he must have learned this from Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka, the sons of his guru, Śukrācārya. Thus, he became very angry and condemned them in a rude manner, “O lowest of brāhmaṇas! O evil minded ones! What did you do? You disobeyed me; you adopted the favour of my enemy and taught my son Prahlāda about worthless Viṣṇu-bhakti. A sinful person commits sin secretly but his sin manifests in the form of disease; similarly, a deceptive and wicked-minded person, although living in the form of a friend, ultimately discloses his real form through his deeds.” At this, the guru’s sons said, “O King, you have conquered Indra, and all the Lokapālas are afraid of you. We are but poor brāhmaṇas. We would not dare to act against you. We have not taught Prahlāda about devotion to Viṣṇu and neither has anyone else. Prahlāda’s devotion to Viṣṇu is natural and inborn, so please restrain your anger.” In Satya-yuga, everyone spoke truthfully, so Hiraṇyakaśipu believed his guru’s sons. He asked Prahlāda, “O impolite one, O destroyer of the family, how have you become Kṛṣṇa conscious if your gurus did not teach you in this manner?”

Prahlāda replied, “Without the favour of a niṣkiṣcana mahā-bhāgavata (a perfect pure devotee, completely emancipated from worldly concerns), a gṛhavrata (a person engaged in household affairs) cannot become devoted to Śrī Kṛṣṇa either by himself or by the help of other gṛhavratas⁴ .” In other words, Prahlada’s devotion to Śrī Kṛṣṇa was not due to his own efforts or the help of the family guru’s sons. Rather, his devotion to Śrī Kṛṣṇa was due to the favour of niṣkiṣcana maha-bhāgavata Śrī Nārada, the devotee of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Upon hearing this undesirable statement from Prahlāda, Hiraṇyakaśipu became blind with rage and threw Prahlāda from the throne with such force that any five-year-old child would have died at once, but the Lord saved him. Prahlāda remained patient, steady and peaceful. He did not raise a even finger against his father or use any harsh words. Hiraṇyakaśipu ordered the demons to kill Prahlāda. At first, the demons did not wish to kill the king’s son, but when Hiraṇyakaśipu repeatedly persuaded them to kill Prahlāda by quoting different reasons and maxims, they began to attack the vital parts of Prahlāda’s body with spears. As Prahlāda’s mind was fully absorbed in and devoted to the indescribable Supreme Lord of the universe, all the efforts of the demons proved futile. Seeing this, Hiraṇyakaśipu became even more suspicious and tried to kill Prahlāda by various methods such as the celestial powerful elephant of the quarters, by serpents and by evil incantations. He tried to kill Prahlāda by hurling him from a mountain, by burying him in a deep ditch, by poisoning him, by starvation, by exposure to severe cold and atmospheric pressure, by burning him in a fire and by stoning him. But when all efforts proved to be in vain, he began to think that the power of the child was immeasurable. Prahlāda was not afraid of anything! Hiraṇyakaśipu began to think that Prahlāda was immortal, and worried that he himself might die if he opposed him. Thus, Hiraṇyakaśipu sat down with his head hung low.

Seeing Hiraṇyakaśipu dejected, Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka tried to console him by saying, “O King, you have conquered the three worlds single-handedly and all the Lokapālas are afraid of you. Therefore, you need not worry. Besides, one should not pay attention to the virtues and defects of a mere child.”

They suggested to him, “Until guru Śukrācārya returns, Prahlāda should be kept on an island so that he might not run away out of fear. Growing up with the ācārya, serving the ācārya and learning from the ācārya will purify his intelligence.” Hiraṇyakaśipu accepted the proposal of both the guru’s sons and told them to instruct the boy in the piety and charity suitable for a king. They carefully took Prahlāda and the other demon children to an island. There, they began to teach him about dharma, artha and kāma—material religiosity, economic development and sense gratification. One day, the teachers went to their homes to do some work. When the children came to know about their teacher’s departure, they thought it a good chance to play. Prahlāda’s school friends called him out to play, but the highly learned Prahlāda told them that he wished to say something to them, so they all changed their play-dress and gathered around Prahlāda. Though all the children were of the same age as Prahlāda, they had great respect and affection for him. Prahlāda told the children about the duties of human beings: “The human birth is very rare and valuable because in such a birth one can realise the Supreme Lord. After realising Him, no material desires will remain. But this golden chance is not permanent because life is momentary. So, wise persons will follow bhāgavata-dharma from their childhood and worship the Lord by hearing and chanting His glories. The thought that ‘I will perform devotional practices later on’ is not good. If the mind becomes attached to money, wife, son and relatives, then devotion will be difficult. If you do not devote yourself to the Lord’s worship now, many difficulties and problems will interfere with prayer later on.” Prahlāda discussed all these things in detail, enabling the children to understand. In order to gain their confidence, he related to them everything about how he had received the message of Kṛṣṇa-bhajana from Nārada while in his mother’s womb. The demon children heard Prahlāda’s teachings, and thinking them to be superior ideas, accepted them, thereby rejecting the teachings of their materialistic gurus.

Due to Prahlāda’s influence, the minds of the demon children became fixed on the Supreme Lord. The anxious brāhmaṇas Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka immediately went to the demon king to explain the situation. Hearing this implacable message, Hiraṇyakaśipu became extremely angry. With harsh words, he condemned the young Prahlāda who was standing politely with folded hands: “O impolite, dull-headed one! You are disobeying my rule. I shall send you to the abode of Yama right now. Even the Lokapālas are afraid of my anger. Why are you not afraid of me? Who has given you this strength?”

Prahlāda replied, “Strength only comes from the one Supreme Lord, Śrī Hari. Everyone gets their strength from Him. No one is our enemy except the uncontrolled mind. You should give up these demoniac thoughts of ‘friend and foe.’ In ancient times, foolish persons like you had the false pride that they had conquered the earth, but they could not even conquer the six passions residing in their own bodies. Those who have conquered the mind see no one as their enemy. Only the ignorant believe others to be their enemy.” By these words of Prahlāda, Hiraṇyakaśipu became more and more enraged and shouted, “O unintelligent fool! You condemn me and boast about conquering the six inherent cardinal passions of man. Certainly you want to die! You rascal, there is no Lord in the world other than me. If there is, then where is He?”

“Father, He is everywhere,” said Prahlāda.

“Then why do I not see Him in this pillar?” retorted Hiraṇyakaśipu.

“I see Him even in this pillar,” replied Prahlāda.

The very powerful Hiraṇyakaśipu condemned Prahlāda with extreme anger and harsh words. “May your Lord save you!” Saying these words, he picked up his sword, rose from his throne and violently struck the pillar with his fist. As the pillar was struck, it emitted a terrible sound as if the whole universe was being shattered. Brahmā and the other demigods were afraid of this unique, terrifying sound and Hiraṇyakaśipu himself began to search out its source. Then, in order to prove correct the words of both his devotee Prahlāda and Lord Brahmā, the Supreme Lord appeared in a wonderful half-human and half-lion form called Nṛsiṁha. Even though the Lord appeared before his very eyes, Hiraṇyakaśipu still could not understand Him as the Lord; he saw Him as a strange creature. Without pure devotional eyes, one cannot see the Lord.

The terrible form of Lord Nṛsiṁha is described in the Bhāgavatam as follows: Both His eyes were full of anger and shining like molten gold, and His angry face was full of matted hairs and mane. He had terrible teeth, a sharp tongue like a razor’s edge, stretched eyebrows and raised ears, with a mouth and nose like the caves of a mountain. He had terrible divided jaws, His body was touching the sky, His neck was thick and short, His thighs and chest were broad and His stomach was thin. His body was covered with white hair and He had hundreds of arms and nails. Even though Hiraṇyakaśipu understood this unique Nṛsiṁha Deity to be the cause of his death, he became ready to fight and struck the body of the Lord with his mace. Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva play-acted the battle for some time and then, neither in the daytime nor at night but at dusk, neither inside the house nor outside but on the threshold, neither in the sky nor on the ground but on His lap, and without any weapon but His nails, He tore open Hiraṇyakaśipu’s chest and wore his intestines as a garland. The Lord also killed thousands of other demons with just His nails. After this, Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva exhibited the triumphant behaviour of a conqueror. He left Hiraṇyakaśipu and sat on the throne in the middle of the royal assembly in His angry form. Witnessing this terrible form of the Lord, no one could gather the courage to approach and serve Him, even though they were all ecstatic due to the demise of the cruel king. Brahmā, Rudra, Indra, the Ṛṣis, Vidyādharas, Nāgas, Manus, Prajāpatis, Gandharvas, Cāraṇas, Yakṣas, Kimpuruṣas, Vaitālikas, Kinnaras, Viṣṇu-pārṣadas and others, all prayed to Lord Nṛsiṁha from a distance.

Although Brahmā prayed to Lakṣmī to go to Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva to allay His anger, She could not go before this terrible never-before-seen Deity. Then Brahmā asked Prahlāda to go and pacify the anger of Nṛsiṁhadeva. The reason for this was that this terrible and angry form of the Lord had appeared only due to the torture of bhakta Prahlāda. Prahlāda made obeisances to Śrī Lakṣmī, Brahmā and the other demigods. Then he went to Nṛsiṁhadeva and fell down at His lotus feet. Nṛsiṁhadeva, being in the mood of parental affection, put his lotus hand on Prahlāda’s forehead so that all of Prahlāda’s defects, which were due to having been born in a demon dynasty, were removed. Transcendental knowledge was revealed in his heart and, overwhelmed with ecstatic devotion, he began to offer prayers to Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva.

Satiated by the prayers of Prahlāda, Nṛsiṁhadeva wished to grant a boon to him, but Prahlāda had no desire of taking any boon. The reason is that the person who serves the Lord with the desire for worldly pleasures or for the Lord’s blessings to get worldly benefit is not an actual servitor but a trader. Then Nṛsiṁhadeva said that if He did not give Prahlāda a boon, His designation as Varadarṣabha, the Supreme Conferrer of boons, would be defamed. So Prahlāda replied, “O Lord, if You wish to grant me a boon, please grant me the boon that there may not be any desire in my heart to ask a boon from You.”

Nṛsiṁhadeva replied, “This cannot be accepted as your prayer for a boon because you have deceived Me.”

Prahlāda then submitted this prayer to Nṛsiṁhadeva: “My father struck Your holy body with his mace and he behaved maliciously with me because I worship You. Kindly purify him.”

Nṛsiṁhadeva said to Prahlāda, “Your father has seen Me and received My touch. Did this not purify him? O Prahlāda, do you think the dynasty in which you have taken birth is still impure? Along with you, twenty-one of your ancestral generations have become purified.”

triḥ-saptabhiḥ pitā pūtaḥ pitṛbhiḥ saha te ’nagha
yat sādho ’sya kule jāto bhavān vai kula-pāvanaḥ
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.10.18)

“O sinless one, O sādhu, Your father has become pure along with twenty-one forefathers. The reason for this is that having taken birth in their dynasty, you have become the purifier of that dynasty.”

Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva has two dispositions. He is terrible with non-devotees, but with devotees, He is very affectionate and caring.

The following verse from the Āgamas is quoted as evidence by Śrīdhara Svāmī in his commentary on Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.9.1:

ugro ’py anugra evāyaṁ sva-bhaktānāṁ nṛ-keśarī
keśarīva sva-potānām anyeṣāṁ ugra-vikramaḥ
(Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya 8.6)

“Although very ferocious, the lioness is very kind to her cubs. Similarly, although very ferocious to non-devotees like Hiraṇyakaśipu, Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva is very affectionate and kind to devotees like Prahlāda Mahārāja.” (Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura)

This expresses thoroughly the glories of Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva’s unique mercy. Devotion to Nṛsiṁhadeva enhances bhakti and destroys uncongenial adverse motivations.

The meaning of the word Hiraṇyakaśipu is—hiraṇya: gold or money, kaśipu: bed, i.e. desire for money and women. The desire for name and fame also goes together with them. These are obstructions to devotion. Nṛsiṁhadeva destroys the anti-devotional feelings of the Hiraṇyakaśipu-like mentality of the living beings and nourishes the devotional attitude like that of Prahlāda.

So, the favour of Bhakti-vighna-vināśana Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva (Nṛsiṁhadeva, the destroyer of hindrances to bhakti) is very necessary for neophyte devotees who have the weakness of non-eternal propensities.

The next two verses were composed by Śrīdhara Svāmī in his commentary on Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.1.1 and 10.87.1 respectively:

prahlāda-hṛdayāhlādaṁ bhaktāvidyā-vidāraṇam
śarad-indu-ruciṁ vande pārīndra-vadanaṁ harim

“Let me offer my obeisances unto the Supreme lion-faced Lord Śrī Hari who is residing within the heart of Prahlāda Mahārāja as condensed bliss, and who always removes nescience. His effulgence is like autumnal moonshine.”

vāg-īśā yasya vadane lakṣmīr yasya ca vakṣasi
yasyāste hṛdaye saṁvit taṁ nṛsiṁham ahaṁ bhaje

“On whose lips Sarasvatī (the goddess of learning) dances, on whose chest Lakṣmīdevī resides in the form of a golden line and whose heart is the abode of grand refulgence of the opulence of Absolute Knowledge—I offer my obeisances unto that very object of worship, Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva.”

ito nṛsiṁhaḥ parato nṛsiṁho yato yato yāmi tato nṛsiṁhaḥ
bahir nṛsiṁho hṛdaye nṛsiṁho nṛsiṁham ādiṁ śaraṇaṁ prapadye
(Nṛsiṁha Purāṇa, quoted in Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya 16.53)

namas te nara-siṁhāya prahlādāhlāda-dāyine
hiraṇyakaśipor vakṣaḥ-śilā-ṭaṅka-nakhālaye
(Nṛsiṁha Purāṇa, quoted in Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya 16.52)

“I offer my respectful obeisances unto Lord Nṛsiṁha who is the giver of bliss to Prahlāda, and who possesses nails to tear the stone-like chest of Hiraṇyakaśipu.”

tava kara-kamala-vare nakham adbhuta-śṛṅgaṁ
dalita-hiraṇyakaśipu-tanu-bhṛṅgam
keśava dhṛta-narahari-rūpa jaya jagadīśa hare
(Śrī Jayadeva’s Daśāvatāra-stotra, 4th Verse)

“O Keśava! O Lord Hari, You have assumed the form of half-man and half-lion! The lotus flower is very soft, but Your most beautiful lotus-like nails are astonishing. The body of the mountain peak-like demon, Hiraṇyakaśipu, has been ripped apart by them because they are also so hard. O Lord of the universe! All glories unto You!”

Regarding this subject, it is written in the Harivaṁśa Purāṇa as follows: In Satya-yuga, Hiraṇyakaśipu, the ancestor of the demons, was engaged in severe penances and demanded the boon from Brahmā that he would not be killed by any demigods, demons, Gandharvas, serpents, Rākṣasas or men. He asked that sages would not be able to curse him, that weapons, mountains, trees, wet or dry things would not be able to destroy him, that he would not die in heaven or on any other planet, either in the daytime or at night. Brahmā granted him these boons saying, “So be it!” By achieving these boons, Hiraṇyakaśipu became very excited. He became the ruler of heaven and began to torture and abuse the demigods in various ways. Unable to bear this torture, the demigods went to take shelter of Lord Viṣṇu, who, giving them assurance of protection said, “I am very soon going to destroy that demon who is proud of his boon, along with all his followers.” Bidding farewell to the demigods, Lord Viṣṇu began to consider how He would kill Hiraṇyakaśipu and went off to the Himalayas. At last, He decided that He would assume the form of Nṛsiṁha who would terrify all the demons (Daityas, Dānavas and Rākṣasas). He then assumed the form of half-man and half-lion. His luster began to rob the sun of its radiance. In this form, Lord Viṣṇu gradually approached the place where the demon king, Hiraṇyakaśipu, was sitting in an excellent assembly accompanied by the demigods, Gandharvas and Apsarās (celestial nymphs) who were playing music with perfect rhythm.

Being present in that assembly, the Lord looked at Hiraṇyakaśipu again and again. At that time, Hiraṇyakaśipu’s son Prahlāda saw that Divine Form for a moment with spiritual vision, and addressed the demon king as follows: “O King, you are the chief of the demons. On seeing this Divine Form, it appears as though this is an inexpressible, divine influencing personality. Our demoniac dynasty will be destroyed by it. All immovable and moveable objects seem to exist in the body of this great person. He is some special personality.”

Hearing Prahlāda’s statement, the demon king ordered his demon followers, “Kill this Lion immediately!” The demons attacked the Lion with all their might but they were soon destroyed along with their retinue. Nṛsiṁhadeva then opened His mouth. His terrible roaring appeared like the sound of annihilation, and He easily destroyed the entire demon assembly. Then Hiraṇyakaśipu himself began to shower dreadful weapons on Him. Both began a terrible fight.

The demons attacked Lord Viṣṇu, but they themselves were killed by Him. Ablaze with anger, Hiraṇyakaśipu appeared to burn everything with his bloodshot eyes. The earth began to shiver, the oceans became perturbed and all the forests and mountains became restless. There was darkness everywhere; nothing was visible. Terrible disturbances took place and fearful winds began to blow. The symptoms of universal annihilation began to appear. Being lusterless and dark, the sun began to emit terrible smoke. Even the seven suns assumed forms of darkness and rose in the sky. Meteors fell in quick succession from the heavens.

Greatly enraged, Hiraṇyakaśipu bit his lips with his teeth and ran to fight, taking his mace in hand. Upon seeing this, all the demigods became frightened. They went to Nṛsiṁhadeva and said, “O Lord, destroy this wicked Hiraṇyakaśipu with his followers. There is no one in this world who can kill him. Therefore, O Lord, kindly kill him for the benefit of the world and establish peace in all the three worlds.”

Hearing the prayer of the demigods, Nṛsiṁhadeva began to make grave sounds. He leapt up and tore out the heart of the demon with his sharp nails and knocked him down on the battleground. When the horrible enemy—the demon king, fell down dead on the ground, all the people of the earth, moon, sun, planets, stars, rivers and mountains—one and all, were pleased. The demigods unitedly began to recite hymns to propitiate Nṛsiṁhadeva. Celestial nymphs began to dance and sing. After the dancing and singing had ended, the Supreme Lord Nārāyaṇa, who wears the symbol of Garuḍa on His flag, gave up His form of Nṛsiṁha and assumed His own form. He then stepped onto an eight-wheeled excellently illuminated chariot, and set out for His place on the northern shore of the Ocean of Milk. In this way, Nṛsiṁhadeva destroyed the demon, Hiraṇyakaśipu.

The Glories of Observing Śrī Nṛsiṁha-caturdaśī-vrata

vaiśākhasya caturdaśyāṁ śuklāyāṁ śrī nṛkeśārī
jātas tad asyāṁ tatpujot-savaṁ kurvīta savratam
(Padma Purāṇa)

“Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva appeared on the fourteenth lunar day (Caturdaśī-tithi) of the bright fortnight of the month of Vaiśākha. So, on this day, it is proper to worship and celebrate the appearance of Nṛsiṁhadeva by following the rules of fasting and others.”

prahlāda-kleśa nāśāya yā hi puṇyā caturdaśī
pūjayet tatra yatnenahareḥ prahlādam agrataḥ
(from the Āgamas)

“It is proper to first worship Prahlāda before worshipping Nṛsiṁha because the holy fourteenth lunar day of the bright fortnight has appeared in order to remove the distress of Prahlāda.”

It is written in the Bṛhan-nārasiṁha Purāṇa as follows: Prahlāda Mahāraja desired to know from Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva how he had developed devotion to His lotus feet. Nṛsiṁhadeva replied, “In ancient times, there lived a brāhmaṇa named Vasu Śarmā in the city of Avanti, who was well-versed in the Vedas. His good wife Suśīlā was famous throughout the three worlds for her virtuous conduct and ideal devotion to her husband. Vasu Śarmā fathered five sons in Suśīlā’s womb. His first four sons were learned persons of good conduct and devoted to their father. But you, the youngest son, became attracted to a prostitute and lost your character. You were then known as Vasudeva. Your virtuous conduct was destroyed in the company of that prostitute. Due to a quarrel with the prostitute, on the Nṛsiṁha-caturdaśī-tithi both of you stayed awake throughout the night and unknowingly observed a fast. Therefore, both of you obtained the fruits of observing Nṛsiṁha-caturdaśī-vrata. The prostitute enjoyed as an Apsarā in various ways in heaven and then became My favourite. As the son of Hiraṇyakaśipu, you also took birth as My dear devotee. By observing this fast, Brahmā has obtained the power of creation and Maheśvara has obtained the power of destruction of the three worlds. Other people also achieve all kinds of power and perform observance of this vow to fulfil all their desired objectives.”

In his Laghu-bhāgavatāmṛta, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has written about the pre-eminence of the Lord’s appearance as Śrī Nṛsiṁhadeva, quoting the following reference from Śrī Padma Purāṇa:

nṛsiṁha-rāma-kṛṣṇeṣu śaḍ-guṇyaṁ paripūritam
parāvasthās tu te tasya dīpād utpanna-dīpa-vat
(Padma Purāṇa)

“Nṛsiṁha, Rāma and Kṛṣṇa possess the pre-eminent presence of the totality of sixty attributes. Just as one lamp lights other lamps and then all lamps follow the same nature, similarly, although Rāma and Nṛsiṁha are manifested forms from the Prime Supreme Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, all three hold the supreme position with sixty attributes.”

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¹ - A well without water is known as a dark well. No man goes to such a waterless well, for if someone falls into that well, his rescue is very unlikely. Similarly, the house in which sādhus are not received cordially and in which, being deprived of the association of sādhus, the residents are engaged in sense enjoyment, is like a dark well. There is no possibility of rescue for the residents of such a house. Therefore, such a place of downfall of the corporeal soul (like falling into a dark well) is to be abandoned.

vanaṁ tu sāttviko vāso grāmo rājasa ucyate
tāmasaṁ dyūta-sadanaṁ man-niketaṁ tu nirguṇam
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.25.25)

“Living in the forest signifies sāttvika-vāsa—a pious residence with apathy toward worldly interests, rājasa-vāsa indicates a princely residence with earthly pleasures and luxury, tāmasa-vāsa indicates a residence of gambling—living in vices, and nirguṇa-vāsa indicates the highest transcendental realm of God.”

² - The qualities of a guru:

tad-vijṣānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet
samit-pāṇiḥ śrotriyaṁ brahma-niṣṭham
(Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 1.2.12)

“To learn transcendental subject matter, one must humbly approach, with firewood in hand, a spiritual master who is learned in the Vedas and firmly devoted to the Absolute Truth.”

tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijṣāsuḥ śreya uttamam
śābde pare ca niṣṇātaṁ brahmaṇy upaśamāśrayam
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.3.21)

“Therefore, anyone who seriously desires real happiness must seek a bona fide spiritual master and take shelter of him by initiation. The qualification of the bona fide guru is that he has realised the conclusions of the scriptures by deliberation and is able to convince others of these conclusions. Such great personalities who have taken shelter of the Supreme Lord, leaving aside all material considerations, should be understood to be bona fide spiritual masters.”

³ - Śrotriya has two interpretations: (1) well-versed in the Vedas, and (2) ontological divine knowledge received through the preceptorial channel.

⁴ - Gṛhavrata: One who moves around the house or property, i.e., one who engages his sense organs and energy for the sake of material property and consequently becomes attached to it.

However, saints also remain in a house, so it is said that the house also signifies the wife and material life. One who moves around the wife or family, or engages the senses and energy for them, is considered a gṛhavrata.

The real self is the ātmā (soul), so the gross and subtle bodies are also like houses. One who devotes his energy for the gross and subtle bodies is also a gṛhavrata.

Since all gṛhavratas are embodied souls, by the unrestricted use of the sense organs they will all enter into nescience and into the inferno of material life. Six billion such enslaved corporeal souls of the world cannot rescue even a single person from the shackles of worldly bondage. A perfect emancipated realised soul can rescue the whole world or universe—but such realised souls are very rare. If one wants quality, one must sacrifice quantity. It is impossible to get both at the same time.