“Shri Hari, who is the Lord of the demigods, who is worshiped by the people of the world, for benefiting the moving and nonmoving beings of the world took that dreadful form through His own energy and tore apart Hiranyakashipu, who caused suffering to so many, with His nails.” (Narasimha Purana, 44.43)

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हरिः सुरेशो नरलोकपूजितो हिताय लोकस्य चराचरस्य
कृत्वा विरूपं च पुरात्ममायया हिरण्यकं दुःखकरं नखैश् छिनत्

hariḥ sureśo naralokapūjito hitāya lokasya carācarasya
kṛtvā virūpaṃ ca purātmamāyayā hiraṇyakaṃ duḥkhakaraṃ nakhaiś chinat

“I think you could get people to agree that one of the primary justifications for turning to the heavens, for tilting the head upwards, in looking to the skies and beyond, is to alleviate tension. Fear, apprehension, anxiety, spirits crippled by the thought of endless uncertainty – whatever you want to call it, there is supposed to be someone above it all. Different traditions refer to Him with different names. There might be different depictions. In some places, it is not even a He or a She; it is more like an energy.

“If you take the Vedic tradition and one of its central written works, the concluding portion features an assurance. The Sanskrit words ‘ma shuchah’ are direct in their approach, their delivery, and their target. The person on the receiving end should not fear. The reason is that they will fully surrender, to the person known as Bhagavan, who is visible in that instance as Shri Krishna. His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada refers to Krishna as ‘the Supreme Personality of Godhead.’”

सर्व-धर्मान् परित्यज्य
माम् एकं शरणं व्रज
अहं त्वां सर्व-पापेभ्यो
मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः

sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ

“Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 18.66)

“You see, whatever it is we are worried over, if we carry forward in alignment with the interests of God, there is nothing to fear. There is smoke produced by fire. By doing something, we are simultaneously omitting something else. Of this there is no doubt. We might not carry out our work perfectly. Man has four principal defects, after all. One of them is committing mistakes.

“Never mind, as Krishna will clean up the mess, so to speak. He will run cover for us. In other traditions, the promise is similar, but more geared towards the afterlife. Surrender today and you will be saved in the future. This should alleviate any apprehensions about the continuation of an existence. Bhagavad-gita already reveals the secret of an eternal existence in the beginning of the conversation between Krishna and Arjuna.”

देहिनो ऽस्मिन् यथा देहे
कौमारं यौवनं जरा
तथा देहान्तर-प्राप्तिर्
धीरस् तत्र न मुह्यति

dehino ‘smin yathā dehe
kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā
tathā dehāntara-prāptir
dhīras tatra na muhyati

“As the embodied soul continually passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 2.13)

“My question pertains to the avatara known as Narasimha. He was the one protecting the innocent five-year old boy named Prahlada. Narasimha was the source of the strength in the survival of Prahlada, in facing terrible and unprovoked attacks from his father, who was the leader of the Daityas. Through knowledge of God as Vishnu, through connecting in an innocent but pure manner, Prahlada was not afraid.

“That part makes sense. What I don’t understand is why the manifestation of Narasimha Himself would cause so much fear. Isn’t God supposed to remove distresses? Why the frightening visual, then? Why make the Daityas run for their lives? Shouldn’t God be all about peace, love, and tranquility?”

From a popular television sitcom of the 1980s, there is a famous line spoken by a character playing the father of a teenage son. Amidst growing frustration over the son’s lack of interest in responsibility and due diligence to studies and the future life as an adult, the father resorts to a threat. He says that he brought that child into this world, and so he can also take the same child out. It is a humorous line that depicts the challenging nature of raising children.

A father might have one son who is obedient, kind, and restrained in their movements. This child has a healthy fear of the law, which in the household is the combination of mother and father. The child has fear at school, in keeping within the rules set by the administrators. The child has a healthy fear of the wrath of the community, if ever some egregious violation should occur. In this regard, the father is more concerned with alleviating fear. They know that their child is innocent and on the right track in life. The father tries to guide, while giving assurance at the same time.

The same father has another child who is opposite in behavior. This child is always approaching the line of right and wrong. Sometimes, they intentionally step over that line, just to see the response from the authorities. Detention at school. An emergency conference with the parents after the teacher hears harsh words from the child. The parents imposing a punishment after the child arrives home late after a day of playing outside. In this case, the father is more interested in instilling fear. When the child is not afraid enough of the realities of life, the father has to show a more aggressive face.

Someone like Hiranyakashipu was not afraid enough of the laws of nature and the people administering justice. How else to explain the repeated lethal attempts against his own son? Prahlada’s only crime was worshiping Vishnu. It was not formal worship, either. The child remembered. The child prayed. The child spoke about the science of self-realization and how there is one God supporting the entire universe. No person would have any strength if not for Vishnu. No person should ever foolishly consider themselves to be self-made. This is because nature always has to give sanction before any result can manifest, desired or otherwise.

प्रकृतेः क्रियमाणानि
गुणैः कर्माणि सर्वशः
अहङ्कार-विमूढात्मा
कर्ताहम् इति मन्यते

prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni
guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ
ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā
kartāham iti manyate

“The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities, which are in actuality carried out by nature.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 3.27)

Hiranyakashipu obviously wasn’t afraid of Vishnu. If he were to acknowledge the existence of such an individual, praise would not be forthcoming. Rather, Hiranyakashipu considered Vishnu to be subordinate. There was nothing to bring Hiranyakashipu down from his perch. There was previous assurance from Lord Brahma, who is the creator. Based on the boons the Daitya leader received, he perceived that there was no threat. This meant that he could act as he so desired, based on whatever impulse was experienced at the moment.

The awe-inspiring vision of Narasimha was perfect for the situation. As if all the fear that was ignored for so long decided to assert itself in a giant collective, at a single moment, Narasimha ran right through the adversaries. They should never have thought abusing a devotee so egregiously would go unpunished. Even that fearful vision was auspicious for everyone involved, as the adversaries got to think of Vishnu while departing this world. According to Shrimad Bhagavatam, this is the highest goal to attain.

एतावान् साङ्ख्य-योगाभ्यां
स्व-धर्म-परिनिष्ठया
जन्म-लाभः परः पुंसाम्
अन्ते नारायण-स्मृतिः

etāvān sāṅkhya-yogābhyāṁ
sva-dharma-pariniṣṭhayā
janma-lābhaḥ paraḥ puṁsām
ante nārāyaṇa-smṛtiḥ

“The highest perfection of human life, achieved either by complete knowledge of matter and spirit, by practice of mystic powers, or by perfect discharge of occupational duty, is to remember the Personality of Godhead at the end of life.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.1.6)

In Closing:

To fearful vision to attest,
But all participants blessed.

Because that amazing person saw,
Not even best artist could draw.

The source in everyone strength,
Presence expanding infinite length.

Prahlada never the reminder needing,
Narasimha towards Daityas proceeding.

Categories: questions

Tags: dailyprompt, hare krishna, narasimha, poem, poems, poetry