“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

“Listen, perhaps I am more vulnerable in this area than others. I tend to have a soft spot for the law. I don’t know when it started. Perhaps during childhood, when I would watch those old crime shows on television. The ones in black and white. I never took sides. I always wanted to see how the trial went. I pretended to be on either side, supporting the plaintiff or the defendant. What argument would I give? What questions would I ask the witnesses?

“This is all to say that I am absolutely appalled at the state of the judiciary these days. All across the world, they are openly corrupt. Forget about bias. They flew past that guardrail a long time ago. These people wear black robes, but they are more partisan than your slimy politician. They put innocent people in jail. They make ridiculous rulings. They do not even reference the law in any of their opinions. Just what is going on? I would take pride in my impartiality. It is part of what makes a gentlemen. You should be sober and consider every viewpoint. You should deliberate.

“I shutter to think what will happen to these people. If the innocent trust you to be fair and truthful, you have an obligation to live up to a higher standard. If you fail to live up to that standard, there will be consequences. I can assure you that. These people don’t seem to think so. They think they are above the law.”

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada explains that dharma is the law of God. In this respect, it can never be created. Neither can it be altered, eliminated, or fully suppressed. It is said that in this dark age of Kali, marked by the rampant quarrel and hypocrisy, dharma is on its last leg. The first three have been broken. A hint of honesty remains, and even then only when it is convenient. Nevertheless, dharma as a principle, as a way of life, as an essential characteristic never changes. That is why religion in the true definition is sanatana-dharma.

A person may temporarily rise to power. They may become the most prominent person. Everybody knows their name. In whichever room they enter, they get attention. In whichever direction they turn, there are people to listen, to obey, and to carry out orders. This was the case with the infamous leader of the Daityas. His name was Hiranyakashipu, referencing the highest ideals of the atheist class. To seek out the most comfortable situation, in the softest cushion, with plenty of gold to show off – these are the conditions for satisfactorily meeting the goal of life, purushartha.

Of course, this kind of purushartha is false. It is mithya. It is based on an incorrect understanding of the universe and the place of the living beings within it. This objective is the result of defeat against the illusory energy known as maya. We have to look no further than the same Hiranyakashipu, in his final moments, to see that the softest cushion combined with the greatest wealth does not grant immunity from the negative consequences to adharma.

अवश्यं लभते जन्तुः फलं पापस्य कर्मणः
घोरं पर्यागते काले द्रुमाः पुष्पमिवार्तवम्

avaśyaṃ labhate jantuḥ phalaṃ pāpasya karmaṇaḥ
ghoraṃ paryāgate kāle drumāḥ puṣpamivārtavam

“Just as a tree starts to blossom during the proper season, so the doer of sinful deeds inevitably reaps the horrible fruit of their actions at the appropriate time.” (Lord Rama speaking to Khara, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 29.8)

We can think of Hiranyakashipu as the judge, the jury, and the executioner. His accusation was enough to pronounce a person guilty. This was the case with the five-year-old boy named Prahlada. This boy happened to also be a Daitya. Prahlada happened to also be Hiranyakashipu’s son. The accusation was blasphemy. Prahlada was accused of supporting the greatest enemy. More than basic allegiance, in affiliation in spirit, Prahlada was poisoning the well. He was describing his allegiance to others. It was like he was trying to convince the other children of the community that Vishnu was everything and that every person should work towards satisfying Vishnu. Prahlada believed that this was actually the self-interest, svartha, of the eternal living being.

न ते विदु: स्वार्थगतिं हि विष्णुं
दुराशया ये बहिरर्थमानिन:
अन्धा यथान्धैरुपनीयमाना-
स्तेऽपीशतन्‍त्र्यामुरुदाम्नि बद्धा:

na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇuṁ
durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ
andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās
te ’pīśa-tantryām uru-dāmni baddhāḥ

“Persons who are strongly entrapped by the consciousness of enjoying material life, and who have therefore accepted as their leader or guru a similar blind man attached to external sense objects, cannot understand that the goal of life is to return home, back to Godhead, and engage in the service of Lord Vishnu. As blind men guided by another blind man miss the right path and fall into a ditch, materially attached men led by another materially attached man are bound by the ropes of fruitive labor, which are made of very strong cords, and they continue again and again in materialistic life, suffering the threefold miseries.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.5.31)

If the kingdom of the Daityas was like a courtroom, then Hiranyakashipu was like a crooked judge. He was upset, repeatedly. We can picture him slamming his gavel down, one time after another, as Prahlada manages to give himself parole. Each sentence is equivalent to death. That is the intention. The universe has other plans, apparently. Prahlada survives each attempt. The judge gets angrier and angrier. Finally, as a symbol of his frustration, Hiranyakashipu strikes a nearby pillar. If the person Prahlada was worshiping actually existed, then the pillar should be fair game. Let’s just see what comes out of something inanimate. When did something ever get produced from nothing?

In a single series of Sanskrit words, Narasimha Purana describes the conclusion. Vishnu was real. Dharma is real. Prahlada was right. Hiranyakashipu was wrong. The crooked judge finally met his match. Vishnu decided it was time for punishment, for the offending king, for the abusive father, for the terror to the saintly class. Vishnu needed only nails. He appeared in the awe-inspiring, frightening, and simultaneously auspicious vision of Narasimha.

In Closing:

Because he can,
Gavel to slam.

Repeatedly at that,
With punishment exact.

Though defendant on parole,
In this story the hero’s role.

Narasimha finally the truth to show,
That crooked judge destiny to know.

Categories: questions

Tags: dailyprompt, hare krishna, judges, justice, poem, poems, poetry