Narasimha Jayanti- The Story Behind the Festival

Narasimha Jayanti 2021 is on May 25. It is celebrated by Hindus on the Vaishakha Shukla Chaturdashi. Narsimha Jayanti festival commemorates Lord Narasimha’s advent on earth. Narasimha was the fourth incarnation of Vishnu. Vishnu took this half man and half lion form to kill the demon king, Hiranyakashipu, and restore Dharma on earth.

Narasimha Jayanti comes in the Hindu month of Vaishakha i. e. April –May. On the fourteenth day of Shukla Paksha, Narasimha appeared from a pillar and killed Hiranyakashipu.

According to mythology, Hiranyakashipu and Hiranyaksha were two demons who were siblings. Hiranyaksha was killed by Lord Vishnu to protect mankind and earth. His brother Hiranyakashipu was angered by the death of his brother and sought revenge. He prayed to Lord Brahma and asked for the boon of immortality. Brahma refused. But Hiranyakashipu managed to get a boon that made him invincible. According to the boon, he could not be killed in the sky, on land, or in water, nor inside or outside a house. Also, he could not be killed by man, god, animal or demon, during daytime or nighttime, or by any man-made or divine weapons.

After getting this boon, he became very powerful and began to harass mortals as well as immortals. Soon he became ruler of all the 3 worlds. He took Indra’s place in heaven, and all the gods fled in fear.

Hiranyakashipu had a son named Prahlada, who was a staunch devotee of Lord Narayana or Vishnu, which annoyed his father. His father tried to stop him from worshipping Vishnu, as he hated Lord Vishnu for killing his brother. When he failed to convince Prahlada, he became very angry and tried to kill his own son. Elephants were sent to trample him, and on another occasion, he was thrown off a precipice. He was denied food, and an attempt was also made to poison him. He was also made to sit on his aunt Holika’s lap and set on fire. Though Holika had a boon that protected her from fire, she was burnt to death while Prahlada survived. 

Hiranyakashipu became very angry when all his attempts to kill his son came to naught. Once, Prahlada told his father that God is present everywhere. The angry father broke a pillar in the palace to prove that God was not in it, but Narasimha emerged from it and killed the demon. As Narasimha - half lion and half man – he killed him with his sharp claws. It was dusk – neither day nor night – and he was killed on the doorstep or threshold, so he was neither inside nor outside the house. He was also killed by Narasimha’s claws or nails, which were neither man-made nor divine weapons. 

On Narasimha Jayanti, Lord Narasimha is worshipped with great enthusiasm. People wake up before dawn and bathe during the Brahma Muhurat. After donning clean clothes, they pray to Narasimha. Along with Narasimha, Goddess Lakshmi is also worshipped with devotion. Offerings to the deities include fruits, flowers, ‘kumkum’, rice, sweets, kesar, coconut, etc. 

Some devotees observe vrat or fast. The idol is placed in the eastern part of the house, facing the western direction. It has to be covered with yellow clothes. Worshippers take Sankalp in the afternoon and perform Narasimha Pooja before sunset. Fruits, flowers, karpooram, roli, chandan, and incense are offered. Some people listen to recitations of Naramasimha’s story, and others chant the Narasimha Mantra. Clothes, gold, sesame seeds, etc., are donated on this day. After doing Visarjan Pooja the next day, the fast is broken.

It is believed that celebrating this festival can make our wishes come true, and put an end to all our problems. It is also celebrated to overcome all kinds of negative forces in life and remind oneself to abstain from ill deeds and injustice. Worshipping Narasimha on this day facilitates the removal of problems that affect one’s health, career, family, finances, and love life. 

 

Lord Vishnu took many incarnations to destroy evil and restore Dharma. Narasimha is believed to be one of his most fierce avatars. 

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