Narasimha is the fourth avatar of Vishnu in the Dashavatara: half man, half lion. By Brahma’s boon the daitya king Hiranyakashipu could be killed neither by man nor by beast, neither by day nor by night, neither indoors nor outdoors, neither on the earth nor in the sky, nor by any weapon (Bhagavata 7.3.35-37). When he set out to kill his son Prahlada, a devotee of the Lord, the Lord burst from a pillar as Narasimha and, at the threshold of the assembly hall, laid him on his thighs and tore him apart with his claws (Bhagavata 7.8.15-29).
- In the Dashavatara
- The fourth avatar
- Form
- Neither wholly man nor beast: a lion’s face and mane, a man’s body, the claws his only weapon (Bhagavata 7.8.18-22)
- Yuga (tradition)
- Satya yuga
- Others in the story
- The devotee Prahlada, his father the daitya king Hiranyakashipu, Brahma
- Where the story is told
- Bhagavata Purana 7.3-10; Vishnu Purana 1.16-20
- Jayanti
- Narasimha Jayanti: Vaishakha Shukla Chaturdashi; 18 May in 2027 (Drik Panchang), worship in the evening
- Main temples
- Ahobilam (nine Narasimha temples) and Simhachalam, Andhra Pradesh; Yadagirigutta, Telangana
Brahma’s boon
After his brother Hiranyaksha fell to Lord Varaha, Hiranyakashipu did harsh tapas. Of the pleased Brahma he asked that he should not die at the hands of any being Brahma had made; not indoors or outdoors, not by night or by day, not by any weapon, not on the earth or in the sky, not by man or beast, nor by god, danava or great serpent; and that none should match him in battle (Bhagavata 7.3.35-38). Brahma granted these rare boons (7.4.1).
Out of the pillar
Hiranyakashipu’s son Prahlada was a devotee of Hari. His angry father asked him where his Lord was, was he in this pillar; and seizing his sword he sprang from his throne and struck the pillar with his fist (Bhagavata 7.8.12-15). From the pillar came a sound so terrible that Brahma and the gods thought the end of the world had come (7.8.16).
To prove his devotee’s words true and to show that he is in all beings and things, the Lord came out of that pillar of the assembly hall in a wondrous form that was neither man nor beast (7.8.18-19). After a long fight Narasimha seized him, laid him on his thighs at the threshold of the hall’s door, and with his claws, as if in play, tore the skin that not even Indra’s thunderbolt had cut (7.8.24-29). So every condition of Brahma’s boon was kept.
Tradition takes twilight as the answer to the boon’s ‘neither by day nor by night’; the translation of this chapter of the Bhagavata does not name the hour. The Vishnu Purana (1.16-20) tells at length how Prahlada was tormented, and in its chapter 20 Vishnu as Narasimha slays Hiranyakashipu.
Narasimha Jayanti and temples
Narasimha Jayanti is kept on Vaishakha Shukla Chaturdashi; in 2027 it falls on 18 May, and Drik Panchang gives its worship in the evening. Ahobilam in Andhra Pradesh has nine temples for nine forms of Narasimha; the Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Simhachalam and Yadagirigutta (Yadadri) in Telangana are also well known.
Where the sources differ
- Twilight: tradition and Wikipedia say the slaying happened at twilight; the translation of Bhagavata 7.8.29 names the threshold of the door, the thighs and the claws, not the hour.
Frequently asked questions
Why did the Narasimha avatar happen?
To protect his devotee Prahlada and to slay Hiranyakashipu, whom by Brahma’s boon neither man nor beast could kill. The Bhagavata (7.8.18) says the Lord came out of the pillar to make his devotee’s words true.
When is Narasimha Jayanti in 2027?
18 May 2027 (Tuesday), Vaishakha Shukla Chaturdashi. According to Drik Panchang the worship is done in the evening.
Who gave Hiranyakashipu his boon?
Brahma, pleased with his harsh tapas (Bhagavata 7.3.35-38, 7.4.1).
Where are the main temples of Narasimha?
Ahobilam (nine Narasimha temples) and Simhachalam in Andhra Pradesh, and Yadagirigutta in Telangana.
Sources
- Bhagavata Purana 7.3.35-38, 7.4.1, 7.8.12-30 (G. V. Tagare’s English translation, Motilal Banarsidass, archive.org)
- Vishnu Purana 1.16-20 (H. H. Wilson’s translation, archive.org)
- Drik Panchang: Narasimha Jayanti 2027, date and evening window (our check: docs/checks/drik-festivals-2027.md)
- Wikipedia: “Narasimha” (twilight, Ahobilam, Simhachalam, Yadagirigutta)
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