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HINDU GOD - NARASIMHA
THE MAN LION
In his fourth incarnation, Lord
Vishnu appears in the form of half-man,
half-lion, to kill the king of the
demons, Hiranyakasipu, the older brother
of Hiranyaksa. Narasimha is usually
depicted with four hands. The upper
hands hold a disc and lotus; the bottom
hands are either seen tearing out
Hiranyakasipu’s innards or in the
boon-giving and protective postures.
Hiranyakasipu was powerful. After
performing extreme austerities, he
received a benediction from Lord Brahma.
He asked to be immortal, but Brahma told
him he could not grant such a wish
because he himself was mortal.
Hiranyakasipu then received the blessing
that he could not be killed by man,
beast, demigod, or any kind of weapon or
hands. He would also not die in the air,
in water, or on the ground, nor be
killed either inside or outside, neither
during the day nor at night.
The Lord assumed the incarnation of a
half-man, half-lion and killed
Hiranyakasipu. He killed him on his lap,
so that he was killed neither on land
nor in water. He was killed in the
doorway of the assembly hall, which was
neither inside nor outside. He was torn
apart by Narasimha’s nails, which was
neither not a weapon nor hands. He was
killed at dusk, which was neither day
nor night.
Prahlada Maharaja was the son of Hiranyakasipu, and
because the boy was a great devotee of Lord Vishnu, his father
tortured him. To save his devotee Prahlada Maharaja, Lord Narasimha
appeared to kill Hiranyakasipu. |
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