Narasimha
Narasimha, is a deity in Hinduism, revered as the fourth of the ten principal avatars of the god Vishnu. Depicted with a human torso and a lion's head and claws, Narasimha is venerated as a fierce protector who destroys evil and safeguards his devotees. He is most widely known for protecting his devotee Prahlada and for slaying the tyrannical demon king Hiranyakashipu.
According to Hindu texts, Hiranyakashipu, the elder brother of Hiranyaksha—who was killed earlier by Vishnu's Varaha avatar—received a boon from the creator god Brahma that made him nearly invulnerable. The conditions of the boon prevented his death by man or beast, indoors or outdoors, during day or night, on earth or in the sky, and not by any weapon. Empowered by this, Hiranyakashipu persecuted Vishnu’s devotees, including his own son Prahlada. To circumvent the boon, Vishnu incarnated as Narasimha—neither man nor animal—and killed Hiranyakashipu at twilight, on a palace threshold, placing him on his lap and tearing him apart with his claws.
Narasimha holds a central place in the Vishnu-centric Vaishnava theology, iconography, and devotional traditions, particularly within the Vaikhanasa, Sri Vaishnava and Sadha sects. He is portrayed in a range of forms, from fierce to serene, and in certain Vaishnava interpretations, he is also worshipped as Yoga-Narasimha, the god of yoga, and as the god of destruction, who destroys the entire universe through Pralaya. Early representations have been found at archaeological sites in Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh, such as Mathura, and are dated between the 2nd and 4th centuries CE. Important pilgrimage sites dedicated to Narasimha include Ahobilam in Andhra Pradesh, where Nava Narasimha–nine forms of the deity–are venerated.
He is honored in various temples, scriptures, performance traditions, and festivals, including Holi. The annual festival Narasimha Jayanti, observed on the 14th day of the Hindu month of Vaisakha, commemorates the deity’s appearance to protect Prahlada and defeat Hiranyakashipu.
Etymology
In Sanskrit, the word Narasimha consists of two words "nara" which means man, and "simha" which means lion, referring to the man-lion avatara of Vishnu.His other names are Agnilochana – the one who has fiery eyes, Bhairavadambara – the one who causes terror by roaring, Karala – the one who has a wide mouth and projecting teeth, Hiranyakashipumardana – the one who killed Hiranyakashipu, Nakhastra – the one for whom nails are his weapons, Simhavadana – the one who has a lion face and Simha – the one who is a lion.
Texts
Vedas
Verse 1.154.2 of the Rigveda describes Vishnu as a fearful prowling beast. This verse depicts Vishnu as a powerful and terrifying Mrga, or animal, ruling over the earth with his three steps. Many interpret this as referring to a lion, and thus a precursor to the Narasimha story.The full story of Indra killing Namuci is found in Shatapatha Brahmana of the Yajurveda in chapter 12.7.3. Other references to Narasimha are found in the Vedic texts Vajaseneyi Samhita 10.34, Pancavimsa Brahmana 12.6.8 and Taittiriya Brahmana 1.7.1.6.
The story of Indra killing Namuci
Narasimha has the same story as Indra killing Namuci in the Vedas. Indra is the dharmic King of Heaven of the Devas and Devis who commands lightning, thunder, rain and rivers, while Namuci is a deceptive demon Asura in competition for power. Namuci tells peace to Indra, which Indra accepts. He demands Indra to promise that he will neither try to kill him with his "palm of the hand nor with the fist", neither in day nor in night, neither with "anything that is dry" nor with "anything that is wet". Indra agrees.After the deal is done, Namuci carries away all that nourishes the gods and goddesses: the Soma drink, the essence of food and the strength of Indra. The leader of the gods and goddesses finds himself conflicted and feels bound by his promise. Indra then meets Sarasvati and the Ashvinas. They reply they will deal with Namuci, get it all back, if Indra agrees to share his powers, the essence of food and the Soma drink with them. Indra agrees. The gods and the goddess then come up with a creative plan. They pour out a foam of water with a thunderbolt, and Indra takes a thunderbolt in his hand and Indra kills Namuci in evening.
After Namuci is killed, the gods and goddesses get all the powers back, but discover that Namuci had drunk the Soma already. The good was thus now mixed with his evil of his blood, which they did not want to drink. So, they extract the good out from the evil. Thus, good returns to the gods and goddesses, the evil is destroyed.
According to Deborah Soifer, this story is the same as the story of Narasimha, it has the same plot, the same "neither-nor" constraints, and the same creative powers of the good kills and destroys the evil. Further, the Sanskrit words and phrasing such as "neither palm nor fist" and "neither day nor night" in the later Hindu texts is the same as in the Vedic texts. This suggests a link and continuity between the Vedic story of Indra killing Namuci and the story of Narasimha killing Hiranyakashipu in the Puranas. According to Walter Ruben, both stories along with several other stories in ancient and medieval texts reflect the Indian Subcontinental tradition of killing and destroying despots and tyrants who abuse power.
Puranas
Vishnu as Narasimha is mentioned in a variety of Puranas, in 17 Puranas, Vishnu as Narasimha mentioned. The Valmiki Ramayana, Harivamsa, Vishnu Purana, Bhagavata Purana, Agni Purana, Brahmanda Purana, Vayu Purana, Brahma Purana , Vishnudharmottara Purana, Kurma Purana, Matsya Purana, Padma Purana, Shiva Purana, Linga Purana and Skanda Purana all mention Vishnu as Narasimha. In all these Puranas, Narasimha is described as the God of Destruction, who does destruction at the time of Pralaya and described as Kala. Narasimha is also described as having three eyes just like Shiva and does destruction with fire coming from his third eye.Sangam literature
The Paripatal is a classical Tamil poetic work and traditionally the fifth of the Eight Anthologies in Sangam literature. Kamil Zvelebil states that the hymns dedicated to Vishnu and Murugan has branded the Paripatal as a Sanskrit plagiat within the so-called Sangam texts.Narasimha in Paripadal
O Lord with faultless red eyes! With
burning hatred in his mind and drying up the sandal paste on his chest, Hiranyakashipu, the evil king, fought with his son Prahlada for singing your praises, causing on him great shock. Prahlada was not worried about Hiranyakashipu who deserved disrespect. You placed Prahlada’s away because of your love for him. You attacked and caught Hiranyakashipu with your great strength, catching his mountain-like chest as drums of deities roared like thunder. You disemboweled and killed Hiranyakashipu alive with your claws and wore Hiranyakashipu's organs as a garland and threw Hiranyakashipu's organs away, along with broken pieces of a pillar which you blasted and came out, as Narasimha.
Paripadal, poem 4, Verses 10 - 21
Other texts
Narasimha is also found in and is the focus of Narasimha Tapaniya Upanishad.Legends
Prahlada legend
The Bhagavata Purana says that Vishnu, in his previous avatara as Varaha, killed the evil demon Hiranyaksha. The elder brother of Hiranyaksha, demon king Hiranyakashipu, hated Vishnu and wanted revenge. Hiranyakashipu undertakes prolonged and severe austerities in an effort to achieve immortality and universal sovereignty. Moved by the intensity of these austerities, Brahma grants Hiranyakashipu a series of protective boons providing assurance that he cannot be killed:- by any creature, human or animal;
- inside or outside;
- during day or night;
- on the ground or in the sky;
- by weapons or by any created being.
Hiranyakashipu pointed to a nearby pillar and asked if 'his Vishnu' is in it and said to his son Prahlada, "O most unfortunate Prahlada, you have always described a supreme being other than me, a supreme being who is above everything, who is the controller of everyone, and who is all-pervading. But where is He? If He is everywhere, then why is He not present before me in this pillar?" Prahlada then answered, "He was, He is, He will be."
Hiranyakashipu, unable to contain his anger, struck the pillar with his mace. Following a tumultuous sound, Vishnu, in the form of Narasimha, emerged from it and attacked Hiranyakashipu in defense of Prahlada. The form of Narsimha was chosen to avoid the boon granted to Hiranyakashipu by Brahma. According to the boon, Hiranyakashipu could not be killed by a human, deity, or animal. Narasimha, being part-human and part-lion, was none of these. He confronted Hiranyakashipu at twilight, on the threshold of a courtyard, and placed him on his lap. Using his sharp fingernails as weapons, he disemboweled and killed Hiranyakashipu.
Seeing that Narasimha was in rage, Brahma, Shiva and all of the other gods and goddesses sent Prahlada to pacify him. Prahlada prayed to Narasimha, and Ugra Narasimha became the peaceful Soumya Narasimha.
The Kurma Purana describes the preceding battle between the Vishnu and demonic forces in which he destroys the powerful weapons of asuras and asuris and kills the asuras and asuris. According to Soifer, it describes how Prahlada's brothers and sisters, headed by Anuhrada and thousands of other demons, were all led to the valley of death by the man-lion and killed. The same episode occurs in the Matsya Purana, several chapters after Narasimha disemboweled and killed Hiranyakashipu.