Shloka 56
Nṛsiṁhadeva Appears from the Pillar and Slays Hiraṇyakaśipu
श्रीविष्णुपार्षदा ऊचु: अद्यैतद्धरिनररूपमद्भुतं ते दृष्टं न: शरणद सर्वलोकशर्म । सोऽयं ते विधिकर ईश विप्रशप्त- स्तस्येदं निधनमनुग्रहाय विद्म: ॥ ५६ ॥
śrī-viṣṇu-pārṣadā ūcuḥ adyaitad dhari-nara-rūpam adbhutaṁ te dṛṣṭaṁ naḥ śaraṇada sarva-loka-śarma so ’yaṁ te vidhikara īśa vipra-śaptas tasyedaṁ nidhanam anugrahāya vidmaḥ
Les compagnons de Viṣṇu dirent : Ô Donneur d’abri, bonheur de tous les mondes, aujourd’hui nous avons vu Ta forme merveilleuse de Hari-Nara, le Seigneur Nṛsiṁha, pour la fortune de l’univers. Nous comprenons qu’Hiraṇyakaśipu était Jaya, Ton serviteur, qui, maudit par des brāhmaṇas, reçut un corps démoniaque. Sa mort à présent est Ta miséricorde particulière envers lui.
Hiraṇyakaśipu’s coming to this earth and acting as the Lord’s enemy was prearranged. Jaya and Vijaya were cursed by the brāhmaṇas Sanaka, Sanat-kumāra, Sanandana and Sanātana because Jaya and Vijaya checked these four Kumāras. The Lord accepted this cursing of His servants and agreed that they would have to go to the material world and would then return to Vaikuṇṭha after serving the term of the curse. Jaya and Vijaya were very much perturbed, but the Lord advised them to act as enemies, for then they would return after three births; otherwise, ordinarily, they would have to take seven births. With this authority, Jaya and Vijaya acted as the Lord’s enemies, and now that these two were dead, all the Viṣṇudūtas understood that the Lord’s killing of Hiraṇyakaśipu was special mercy bestowed upon them.
FAQs
This verse calls the man-lion form “adbhuta” (wondrous) and presents it as the Lord’s unique manifestation to give shelter and peace to all worlds.
They recognize that even an enemy of God can serve the Lord’s purpose; the Lord’s intervention ends his destructive course and fulfills divine arrangement.
It encourages seeing life’s reversals through the lens of divine providence—seeking shelter in God and trusting that even difficult endings can carry a higher mercy and correction.