The Origin of Lord Narasimha

Ahobilam is known to be the place where

Nrsimhadeva appeared. In 1980 I was born to

devotee parents in the large Hare Krishna

community of New Vrindavan, West Virginia.

From my infancy my parents brought me to the

temple each day. Gradually, as a young child I

grew attached to the large, fierce-looking deity

of Krishna's form as Lord Nrisimhadeva

(Narasimha) and His foremost devotee, the boy-

saint Prahlada. When I was six, Prahlada's age,

the priest allowed me to assist him in the temple

worship of Lord Nrisimhadeva. Although the

Lord looked frightening, I always felt protected

when I stood before Him.

When I was sixteen my family visited India.

I fell in love with the spiritual atmosphere there

and decided to return as soon as possible. By the

time I turned eighteen I had decided to make the

journey on my own. I worked hard to save for

the trip and agonized over my itinerary. India is

so big-where should I go?

One day I visited the Hare Krishna temple

in Miami. As I glanced over a large stack of old

issues of Back to Godhead, a stray breeze blew

open the top one to a full- page photo of Lord

Nrisimhadeva. The picture seemed to beckon me.

The Origin of Lord Narasimha

Dhruva Dasa

Reading the accompanying article, I was amazed

to learn about a young sannyasi, Indradyumna

Swami, who had made an incredible journey to

Ahovalam, a remote South Indian holy place said

to be the very spot where Lord Nrisimhadeva

dispatched the evil Hiranyakashipu. His article

inspired me so much that I set my mind then and

there on making the difficult pilgrimage to Ahovalam.

Warnings

I began my India adventure in Vrindavana,

where I visited a remarkable three-eyed deity of

Nrisimhadeva. From there I proceeded south to

several well-known holy places, including

Srirangam and Tirupati, my last stop before

Ahovalam.

The devotees at the ISKCON Tirupati

temple asked me where I was going next. When

I said Ahovalam, they looked at me as if I were

crazy and urged me not to go. Seeing they could

not dissuade me, they strongly cautioned me to

stay only for one day and get out of there. I

thought they were just joking until I realized that I

was the only one laughing. An experienced

devotee warned me that people there try to rob

and kill you and that the surrounding jungle holds

ferocious, wild animals such as bears, tigers, and

cobras. With these words of encouragement I felt

terrified-but even more excited ! The journey

would truly test my faith in Lord Nrisimhadeva.

After a grueling ten-hour bus ride, I arrived at the

Allagada station, where I'd catch the Ahovalam

bus. As I waited, a large group of people suddenly

surrounded me, the only blonde kid in the whole

station. An English-speaking man asked where I

was going. When I replied, "Ahovalam," he looked

at me very strangely. When he told the crowd

what I had said, everyone stared at me even more.

"Why do you want to go to such a place?" he

asked. "It is a very dangerous place."

"I am going to see Lord Nrisimhadeva," I replied.

"May He protect you," he uttered gravely, and

walked away.

Aboard the bus and getting closer to

Ahovalam, I could feel my limbs start to tremble,

and my heart beat fast. I didn't know what lay

ahead, but I was going to see my Lord at His

home.

The Lord Sends a Guide

After an hour on the bus through the middle

of nowhere, I reached the tiny village of Lower

Ahovalam. There I saw Lord Nrisimhadeva at

the Lakshmi-Narasimha temple, the first of nine

forms of the Lord to be seen in the Ahovalam

area. Then I arranged for some rough

accommodations-the only kind available. A

shower is a bucket of water you pour over

yourself.

I was in the middle of my shower when

someone knocked on the door and called out,

"Hello. Hare Krishna !"

Having been warned about thieves, I

opened the door cautiously. There stood two

Indian men. One of them, tall and saintly looking,

introduced himself as Madhu, from Vijaywada.

Years before, he had lived in an ISKCON ashram

and was now initiated in the Ramanuja line. He

said he'd heard that I wanted to see all nine forms

of Lord Narasimha.

"Yes," I answered, thinking, Word sure gets around

fast here.

He said, "I'm going to go tomorrow

morning. Why don't we go together? I have been

several times and can take you to all nine forms."

I felt convinced this must be Nrisimha's

arrangement, so I readily agreed. I asked Madhu

how much he would charge.

"I am glad just to serve another devotee,"

he humbly replied.

Madhu said that to see all nine forms in

one day, we would have to spend the night in the

jungle.

The Trek Begins

In the morning I rose early and met Madhu.

We visited the nearby Lakshmi-Narasimha

temple to pray for a safe journey. Remembering

a photograph in the old Back to Godhead, I

recognized the same pujari who had taken

Indradyumna Swami on his tour here in 1979.

Our walk to Bhargava-Narasimha, the

second of the nine local forms of Nrisimhadeva,

took us through a thick jungle with paths in all

directions. Madhu said that no matter how many

times you go there you can never remember the

way.

"You have to depend on the Lord," he said.

The next thing you know, we were lost. I felt

nervous. We finally found the way and arrived at

the beautiful temple, where we chanted for a while.

In the past many great sages worshiped the deity

here. Madhu said that the deity is named for

Parashurama (also known as Bhargava), the

warrior incarnation of God. Parashurama had

performed penance near Ahovalam at a place

now known as Ramatirtha.

Next we set off to see the third form,

Catravada Narasimha. Madhu mentioned that if

we were lucky we would be able to see all nine

forms on this holy day. Catravada was a long walk

from town, but I was extremely pleased to see

Him. He was effulgent and had a big smile. We

were allowed to touch our

heads to His lotus feet.

Near Catravada is

Yogananda Narasimha, the

last of the nine forms of Lord

Narasimha in Lower

Ahovalam. He looked

magnificent and powerful. Of

the nine Narasimhas,

Yogananda is said to be the

most merciful.

We ran back to catch

the bus to Upper Ahovalam,

a trip through dangerous and

treacherous terrain. After a

while the bus stopped, and

the driver directed us to get

off. I saw nothing but jungle,

but as the bus drove away, the temple of Karanja

Narasimha came into view. He is named after a

fruit- bearing tree growing next to the temple.

Having now visited the first five Narasimha

forms, we had to walk the rest of the way to the

next: Ugra Narasimha, a deity tucked in a cave

between two mountains. The walk was beautiful.

All around was an untouched jungle, overgrown

and full of wild animals, which, fortunately, we

did not encounter. Soon we reached the temple

of Ugra Narasimha, constructed inside His cave.

The deity looked ferocious. We prayed for a safe

trip to our next stop, the Ugra Stambha, said to

be the actual pillar from which Lord Narasimha

appeared.

Atop the Historic Pillar

After a side trip to the ancient Varaha

Narasimha cave/temple, we followed an adjacent

stream bed to the Ugra Stambha and the seventh

form, Jvala Narasimha. The terrain proved most

difficult. Madhu told me that not many people

make this journey because it

requires crossing a huge and

dangerous waterfall. On the

way up I saw a couple of

wooden boxes next to the

path.

"Those are for the people

who died making the climb,"

Madhu said. I didn't need to

hear that.

Nestled on the side of

a cliff, the Jvala Narasimha

temple is said to be the exact

spot where the Lord killed

the demon Hiranyakashipu.

Next to the temple is a large

stream. At the spot where

Narasimha washed his hands

after killing the demon, the water flows blood-

red and even feels like blood.

After more climbing we reached the top of

the large stone pillar. The view was spectacular.

I couldn't believe I'd actually made it. We'd been

walking all day long, with very little to eat and

just water to drink, but I hadn't thought of anything

except the thrill of being in this spiritual place

My contentment was short-lived; now it

was time to go to the eighth form, which meant

another long walk through the mountains. At last

we reached the temple of Mohaloha Narasimha,

situated on the side of a mountain. According to

Madhu, Lakshmi did penance to marry the Lord

here.

Next we went to the Prahlada school,

which has Sanskrit writing on the walls dating from

the days of Prahlada's studies here. Near this high,

mountainous spot was another cave, with a

beautiful Yoga Narasimha deity in it. But we still

had one more destination: the Bhavana

Narasimha deity, four miles away.

Although Madhu had warned me not to

walk ahead on the path, I did so anyway.

Suddenly a huge cobra slithered in front of me. It

seemed to be ten feet long. I heeded Madhu's

warning and let him lead. The jungle was so

dangerous, even in the daytime. Now it was close

to dark, and we still had miles to go.

As we ascended the mountain trail, nearby

villagers screamed angrily at us. Madhu just kept

walking. When we reached a mountain-top

stopping point, he told me they were saying that

it is forbidden to enter the jungle at night because

of the wild animals. People who go in, they said,

never come out again. They also said that no one

should go to the Bhavana temple at night, because

at that time the demigods come to worship Lord

Narasimha.

Now I was really scared. Then I saw a

dead snake in the middle of the path. A bad omen,

Madhu said, but we just had to depend on the

Lord for protection. Suddenly it was pitch black.

I pulled out my tiny flashlight. I shook with fear

and prayed to Lord Narasimha for protection.

Protected by Fire

In spite of the dark we somehow made it

over the big mountain. As we did, we were

amazed to see that the forest ahead was on fire,

except for the small path we were following.

I thought, It must be Lord Narasimha

lighting up the jungle and keeping wild animals

away. The fire went on all the way to the temple.

At last we reached the ninth and last deity.

Lord Narasimha and His consort looked so

beautiful. We thanked Him for allowing us to attain

His audience.

We were exhausted, and it was too dark

to go back, so we decided to sleep in the front

area of the tiny temple. I tried to go to sleep, but

I felt too excited and amazed to be sleeping in the

Lord's temple.

Suddenly I felt something sniffing and

touching the back of my neck and ear. I jumped

up and saw nothing. Madhu said he would stay

up to see what it was. He turned on the flashlight

and began telling me wonderful stories about the

Lord. Then, with a loud pop, the brand-new

flashlight went out. We tried everything to fix it,

but without success.

Just at that moment the wind started to blow

ferociously. I wondered if we were offending the

demigods by being here. After a while I fell asleep,

only to be awakened by Madhu frantically pulling

me into the temple's inner sanctum. I was so

groggy I didn't ask why. Madhu hastily slammed

the gate shut and secured it as best he could.

Furry Guests

Looking up I was stunned to realize I was

sitting right at the base of Lord Narasimhadeva's

lotus feet. I lay down and felt at peace. Then a

bone-chilling roar broke the stillness.

I froze and whispered to Madhu, "What

was that ?" He assured me there was nothing to

worry about. "Just go to sleep," he said. The next

morning we set off for a long walk to two more

Narasimha temples, named Giridhari and Jyoti.

Jyoti was the most amazing and ferocious deity

of all I'd seen. His name indicates that the forest

would always be burning because of His anger.

From Jyoti we were able to catch a bus

back to Ahovalam. It took seven hours. In the

evening when we arrived we went straight to

Lakshmi-Narasimha temple-the first stop on our

tour-and thanked the Lord for His protection.

Later, while we ate, Madhu explained why he

had moved me to the inner sanctum of the Bhavana

temple the previous night. While I was asleep,

three huge wild black bears had come up, smelled

us, and circled the temple.

The next morning we returned to see

Bhargava Narasimha, the second of the nine

forms. I felt blessed when we were allowed to

clean the whole temple. As we left, a crowd of

villagers surrounded us. Madhu spoke with them,

then translated for me. They were shocked to see

us alive after entering the jungle at night. They

also said that, although they were born there and

had lived their whole lives in the area, we were

the first people they'd known who had managed

to see all nine forms of Lord Narasimha in a single

day.

Meeting the Swami

It was time to move on. I thanked Madhu

profusely, and we both said we hoped to meet

again. Because of his humble and devotional

attitude, Madhu had been an inspiration for me.

Far from trying to take advantage of me, an

inexperienced young Westerner in a foreign land,

Madhu had taken care of everything, even our

bus fares. As my bus lumbered away, I thanked

Lord Narasimha for giving me Madhu's company.

A few days later I arrived in Jagannatha

Puri. After checking in to a hotel, I was astonished

to learn that Indradyumna Swami happened to

be staying at the very same place. I had never

met him, except through the article in the old BTG.

I went to his room and paid my respects. Tears

filled his eyes as he learned of the journey I had

made in his footsteps.

Simhachalam

Simhachalam which means "Lion Hill" is in

Andhra Pradesh, South India. It is the second

most richest temple in India after the Tirupati

temple. The deity there is of Varaha lakshmi

Nrsimha Swamy . A very rare form of the Lord

which is only revealed for 12 hours on one day

(Aksaya Tritiya, the first day of candana yatra)

and the rest of the year it is covered in a hill of

sandalwood paste in order to keep the Lord cool.

When Prahlada was thrown of the hill by his

father's army, the demons, Krishna or Vishnu

stood below the hill to catch Prahlada. It is

believed that the place where the Lord stood is

where the temple is built. The original shape of

the deity in the tribhanga posture has two hands

with the head of a lion on a human torso.

( II )

Jagannath Puri and Narasimha Worship

Jagannatha Puri in Orissa is a very famous

place of pilgrimage for the devotees. It is home

to The Lord of The Universe, Jagannatha with

His brother, Baladeva and His sister, Subhadra.

It also got lots of Nrsimha Temples ! :-

Even though Puri is a famous Vaisnavite

center, there is no other Vaisnavite shrine worth

the name except the Temple of Jagannath and

minor Vaisnava shrines of other incarnations of

Visnu. The worship of Lord Visnu is very much

popular among the Hindus. He is the Protector

who rescues humanity at the time of distress. The

time when the evil prevails upon the truth, Visnu

takes different incarnations to annihilate the evil

and rescue the saints and truthful. The Vaisnavas

worship the ten incarnations of Visnu. His fourth

incarnation is the great god Narasimha, Who has

the body of a man and the body of the lion. Similar

combined forms are to be noticed in the icons of

Varaha, Daksya Prajapati, Ganesha, and

Gomukhi Keshaba. The image of Narasimhanath

of Paikamal, in Baragarh district, is Marjara

Keshari. The image of Sarabha is illustrated in

the composite of a man, bird and beast. Evolved

as one of the Avatars of Visnu, Lord Nrsimha

grew into prominence and was worshipped

independently, considered

as the full incarnation of the

Lord. In the Sakti Sangama

tantra it is mentioned that

Visnu assumed the

Narasimha Avatar in the

Kritayuga, Angira year,

Madhav month and 14th

day in the Swati Nakshatra.

In the Skanda Purana it is

written that Narasimha

appeared on the lunar 14th

day of Baishakha in Swati

Nakshatra, on Saturday during dusk. We do not

find the name Narasimha in the Vedic period. The

Name is only found in Atharvaveda, where

Narahari is worshipped by Ganadeva. Astadhyayi

of Panini did not mention the name. However,

the epic Mahabharata (Harivamsa), Puranas like

Matsya, Padma, Kurma, Visnu, and Visnu

Dharmottara, associate Narasimha with Visnu.

Based on these, K.C. Das believes that all these

Puranic references to Narasimha were known

during the Gupta period. There are two broad

types of Narasimha images, i.e., Ugra and

Saumya. But T. Gopinatha Rao has divided the

images of Narasimha into three groups: Sthauna,

Girija and Yanak. The word "Sthauna" refers to

Narasimha coming out of the pillar; "Ugra" and

Girija coming out of caves (yoga). Some call it

Keshava, and Yanak is seated on Garuda or

Shesha, with five hooded canopy held like an

umbrella. When Laxmi is on the left lap, the image

is called Laxmi-Narasimha. The deity sitting in

Utkutikasana with Yogapatta and Laxmi on the

left lap is very common and popular in Orissa,

and Oriyas worship Him as the embodiment of

valour, vitality and virtue. The popularity of the

Lord is evinced from the hymns and Suktas

composed for him, including Stotram, Puranas

and Upanisads. Not only in literatures, but also in

epigraphic records and

sculptural art are found

references of Narasimha

worship. There are 105

Narasimha temples with

land endowments in

Orissa. A list was

prepared by G.C.

Tripathy, out of the

materials collected by

H.V. Stietencorn. Besides

this, there exist many

more temples scattered

through out the State. In addition, a large number

of detached images find a place in other temples,

such as Parswadevatas. The worship of Lord

Narasimha was sanctioned in western Orissa

during the Gupta era. In the research article of

scholar Sasanka Sekhar Panda, "Purusottama

Jagannath is Purusottama Narasimha" published

in Orissa Review, Ratha Yatra Special Issue, June

2006, it has been mentioned that three Narasimha

images are found at Podagarh, Sarguli and Parwa

in Nabarangapur district, which are believed to

be images of the Vakataka period, who

conquered Puskari (Podagarh) of the Nala kings

in the 5th and 6th century A.D. Another image of

Narasimha of Maraguda, now in Khariar Branch

Museum, is believed to be of the period of the

Sarabhapuriyas. In Sirpur Inscription, Queen

Vatasa, mother of King Mahasivagupta Balajurna

of Pandu dynasty, had paid her homage to Lord

Purusottam and sought the blessings of

Narasimha. During the Somavamsi rule,

Narasimha worship got a new impetus

afterwards. Some of the ruling dynasties like

Kadambas of Goa, the Imperial Gangas of Orissa

and the Vijayanagar kings in India have Narasimha

as their tutelary Deity. From the Dasagoba copper

plate of Rajarajadeva, it is revealed that Sri Laxmi

Narasimha was the tutelary Deity of the Ganga.

In the Kaleswar Siva Temple Inscription of

Anangabhimadeva III, the Ganga ruler

Chodagangadeva is compared with Narasimha.

Four of the Ganga kings bore the title of

Narasimha, which proves the popularity of Lord

Narasimha of that time. As found in the Dynasty

Ganga Vamsanucharita, from among the 27 kings

of Eastern Ganga, seven kings before

Chodaganga had the word Narasimha added to

their names. Narasimha temples and Narasimha

sculptures of large varieties of this time (10th to

13th c. AD) found in every nook and corner the

State, prove the patronization of the cult by the

ruling dynasties. The association of Narasimha

with Puri is unique. Puri is a recognized Vaisnavite

centre of India, in the Province of Orissa. Puri

came to prominence, not as a political centre but

as a socio-religious and cultural centre. It has not

been the capital of the kingdom at any point of

history of Orissa. Therefore, the rise and fall of

the dynasties in its long history have no role in the

tale of the sanctity of the city. Puri is the site of

the gods from time immemorial. Puri, the city of

gods, was the land of Narasimha at one time, the

land of Purusottama at other times, and finally the

land of Lord Jagannath today. With scanty

historical sources, it is very difficult to reach a

positive conclusion. Puri was under the domain

of different dynasties ruling over the kingdom in

different periods of history. We don't find any

specific historical references about this place

during the rule of the Chedis, Murundas,

Matharas, Pitruvaktas, Vigrahas, Sailodvabas or

the Bhaumakars. But during this period, Puri had

gained a remarkable popularity as a place of

religious importance and there are literary and

archaeological references of Madhava worship

by the tribals at this place. This led Dr. S.N.

Rajaguru to justify that Madhavaraja II of

Sailodvaba dynasty had established the shrine of

Madhava at Puri and entrusted its management

to some of his kinsmen, who were supposed to

be tribals. During this period the philosophy of

Vaisnavism was divided into two sections, namely

(1) Vaikhanasa School and (2) Pancaratrika

School. The Vaikhanasa worshipped Visnu in

three phases, namely Purusa (Omnipotent),

Achyuta (imperishable), and Anirudha

(unconstraint), while the later Pancaratrikas

followed Chaturvyuha cult and worshipped

Vasudeva, Sankarsana, Pradyumna, and

Anirudha. The Pancaratrika school might have

gained popularity in Kalinga, Kangoda and other

neighbouring tracts as long as the Sailodvabas

continued their rule in that region. The Sailodvabas

were the followers of Saivism. They must have

constructed a large number of temples of Lord

Siva in their dominion, surrounding all sides of

Chilika Lake. Srikshetra (Puri) was

topographically a religious centre of Kangoda,

where some muni-asramas were established in

the temples of Markandeya (Markandeswar Sahi

near Markanda temple and Markanda Tank),

Angira (Dolamandap Sahi), Pandu or Kandu,

(Gaudabada Sahi near Jameswar temple) and

Bragu. According to a system, introduced in Puri

temples, the image of Sudarsana is carried to visit

those risi-asramas on the auspicious days of

Radhastami, Kumarotsava and Gamha Purnima.

Sudarsana is to honour each sage at his temple

or Asrama. That old system is still practised in

Puri. According to Mahabharata (Banaparva), the

Pandavas were advised by Lomasha-muni to visit

some sacred places after they crossed the river

Vaitarani on their way to Kalinga. Again, Pandit

Nilakantha Das states that the Jinasana brought

back by Kharavela in the 1st century B.C. was

worshipped as Purusottama Jagannath at Puri. But

for want of any convincing evidence, we are not

able to accept it, although Puri was an ancient

Tirtha where Tapasvinis were dwelling in the hill

caves. Some inscriptions of later Sailodvaba kings

of Kongoda narrate the following verse,

expressing that a king of that province could earn

similar religious glory at his own capital as what

the yogis and munis could achieve by performing

hard austerity in mountain caves. Most probably,

those hermits who lived in Kangodamandal were

worshipping either Visnu or Siva in the coastal

tracts, while in the hill areas, i.e., the western part

of Kongoda, there lived Tantri yogis who were

worshiping Devi (Durga) in the form of

Stambheswari. In the Bhagavata Gita, Sri Krisna

says, "I am Visnu among the Adityas" (Adityanam

aham Visnuh)". It is therefore presumed that Puri,

the seat of Madhava-Narasimha-Purusottama,

might not have experienced the apathy of

Bhaumakaras who were not hostile to

Brahmanism, though they were Buddhists. During

the Somavamsi rule, the epoch-making event was

the coming of Sankaracharya to Puri. The visit of

Sankaracharya inspired Narasimha worship to be

popular in this locality. It is believed that Sankar

had the blessings of Laxmi-Narasimha and wrote

Sri Laxminarasimha Pancharatna Stotram,

Sankatanasan Laxmi-Narasimha Stotram, and the

Bhasyas of Narasimha Tapini Upanisad.

Narasimha worship in the Govardhana Math and

the figure of Sankar beneath the sculpture of

Laxmi-Narasimha in the Jagamohana of Sri Laxmi

temple of Shree Jagannath temple of Puri also

associate Narasimha and Sankar. This fact is

supplemented in the Skanda Purana (narration of

Indradyumna) and the Narasimha temple

construction near Gundicha temple. A Telegu

inscription of Chodagangadeva at Narasimha

temple refers to Lord Narasimha worship in the

pre-Ganga period. During the Ganga rule, after

the coming of Sri Ramanuja of Sri Sampradaya,

a devotee of Narasimha and promoter of

Bhaktimarga, Narasimha Worship reached its

climax. Narasimha worship reached every

doorstep of Sakalautkala in general, and Puri in

particular. It led Sena King Laxman to adopt the

title of "Paramanarasimha." Lord Narasimha

became the Khetrapala, or the guardian Deity of

the kshetra. At present, we find a dozen

Narasimha temples in the city, with many more in

the Maths of Sankar, Ramanuja, and

Madhugaudeswara order, as well as in the

Jagagharas. We also find Narasimha as

Parswadevata in Vaisnava, Saiva and Sakti

temples.

Present day Narasimha Temples in and

around Puri

Narasimha Temple (Jagannath Temple

Precinct): It is a pancharatha rekha deula at a

height is about 55ft. The presiding Deity is the

Vidarana Narasimha in ugra pose. The image is

of 1 ft. high, which is not matching size to the

height of the temple (in accordance with the

Silpasastras).

Yagna Narasimha Temple: It is near

Gundicha temple. Its height is about 60 ft. The

presiding Deity is Laxmi-Narasimha. An elevated

place has been levelled for the erection of the main

temple and its two front apartments. The area

around the temple complex has been protected

by high masonry walls with provision of a series

of steps for entry into the premises on the eastern

side.

The main temple built in pancharatha rekha

order is fronted by a pyramidal jagamohan and a

rectangular natamandap. All the structures within

the premises are thickly plastered in lime mortar,

painted in matching colours. The bada of the main

temple as well as the jagamohan indicate five-

fold horizontal divisions and five vertical paga

projections. The gandi of the main shrine is bereft

of figure sculptures and decorative designs except,

however, the projecting lions of the central

rahapaga of all directions. The mastaka consists

of the usual beki, amalakasila, khapuri, kalasa,

and nilachakra.

The central niche of the outer walls contain

figures of Varaha-Visnu, Trivikrama, of later

workmanship, and a Visnu image of early

Medieval period as parsvadevatas. The sanctum

preserves a remarkable image of Laxmi-

Narasimha on a high masonry pedestal. The

artistic finish and iconographic peculiarity of the

image take us back to the time of the Ganga

period. The Deity was very likely installed at Puri

by Chodagangadeva, who is said to have

introduced the system of Narasimha worship in

Orissa.

A similar Laxmi-Narasimha image is still

noticed in the premises of Gangamandira of

Cuttack town. The image in question is seated in

Yogasana with both legs crossed and tied near

the knee. Laxmi is found seated on His left lap.

Of His four hands, the two lower ones are

stretched over the knees and the two upper ones

display conch and disc, the most favourite

weapons of Visnu.

The jambs of the doorways leading to the

sanctum are embellished with floral motifs,

creepers, nagabandhas and scroll works. Figures

of Jaya and Vijaya, the two legendary door-

keepers of a Visnu temple are seen at the base of

the jambs. The architrave over the door entrance

is relieved with the figures of nine planets. A figure

of Gajalaxmi is carved at the centre of the door

lintel. The outer walls of the jagamohan are set

with several sculptures of much later

workmanship. A large panel on the left wall of

the jagamohana represents three mounted

elephants on the march. The window grills of the

jagamohana depict ladies playing on various

musical instruments, salabhanjikas, alasakanyas,

and gajasimha motifs, also of much later

workmanship.

Chakra Narasimha Temple: It is at

Chakratirtha road. It is a Pidha Deula, at a height

of about 55 ft. In the sanctum of the temple there

are three Narasimha images. Among these three

Deities, the middle one is bigger than the other

two and is seated inside the Chakra. It is known

as the Chakra Narasimha. Of the others, the one

on the left is Purusottom-Narasimha, and on the

right is Ananta-Narasimha.

Pandu Narasimha Temple: It is in Pandu

Asrama near Jameswar Temple, Gaudabada Sahi.

The presiding Deity is the eight-armed Vidarana

Narasimha, in Ugra pose.

Laxmi-Narasimha Temple: It is at Mangalaghat

road near Bali school. It is a Pancharatha rekha

deula. Its height is about 25 ft. It has jagamohan.

Narasimha Temples (four temples inside

Jagannath temple: (A) Baisi Pahacha; (B) Suka;

(C) Simachala; and (D) Uttar Dwara.

Singada Narasimha Temple (near Lokanath

Temple): The presiding Deity is four-armed

Laxmi-Narasimha, sitting on Utkatasan. A small

image of Goddess Laxmi is sitting on the yoga-

pata at the left thigh of the deity. She is offering

betel in her right hand, looking to the Lord. She

has a lotus in her left-hand. Narasimha in his

uplifted back hands hold sankha and chakra, and

his front two hands rest on his knee. The Deity is

crowned by Kiritamukuta and he has three

glittering eyes.

Mahaprasad of the Lord is considered so sacred

that even a staunch orthodox Brahman accepts it

from the hands of a person belonging to the

lowliest of the caste order. While the foods offered

to all other Hindu deities are called Prasad, the

same offered to the Lord Jagannath is known as

Mahaprasad since it undergoes six type of

purifications before it reaches the common

devotee. The peculiar hearth (Chulla) in the

kitchen of the Lord contains six openings

symbolizing a Satkona Jantra. Nine earthen pots

are placed at a time over such hearth representing

a Navachakra Jantra, believed to have been

prescribed according to the great Tantrik texts,

Sarada Tilaka. Such elaborate procedure is

nowhere followed for consecration of food

offerings to the deities in Hindu temple. Even

portions of the earthen containers of Mahaprasad

are taken to remotest corners of India by Hindu

pilgrims with the belief that very presence of the

same in the house dispels all evil spirits.

Idol worship is an integral part of Hindu

Religion. Agamas are described as the treatises

of ceremonial rules dealing with such matters as

the construction of temples, installation of idols

therein and conducts of their worship. They

contain the description of the figure of idols of

different faiths, i.e. Shaiva, Sakta and Vaishnava.

The worshippers of Shiva mainly follow

Kanikagama, Karanagama, Maktagama and

Supravedagama where as Vaishnavas follow

Vaikhanasa and the Pancharatra Agama. The

scholar have traced worship of idols in Temples

by Hindus even in the 4th or 5th Century B.C.

Three main cults of Hinduism, i.e. Saiva,

Sakta and Vaishnav developed separately into

distinct cults. There was keen rivalry between the

worshipper of Vishnu and Shiva to such an extent

that the Mahabharat and some of the Puranas

endeavourer to inculcate a spirit of synthesis by

impressing that there is no difference between the

two deities.

All the great Hindu shrines of India, are

dedicated to one presiding deity or with His

consort, as the celebrated Temple of Tirupati to

Vishnu, Madurai to Goddess Meenakshi,

Rameswaram to Shiva, Guruvayur to Vishnu, Kasi

Viswanath to Siva, Kamakhya to Goddess Durga

(Kamakhya) etc. but peculiarly and paradoxically

to the injunctions of Agamas, the Temple of

Jagannath contains four presiding deities,

worshipped in four different Mantras though seated

on the same platform.

The origin of the philosophy of the cult of

Jagannath has so far baffled the scholars.

Complicated process of religious and social

interaction has made the cult more mystic. The

Jagannath scholars have traced the traits of

Tribalism, Jainism, Buddhism, Tantricism and

Brahmanical Hinduism in the image of Lord

Nrusingha, by equating Him with the tribal deity

Neela Madhav, Jeena, Buddha, Dakshina Kalika,

Krishna and Maha Vishnu.

From the iconographic features, German

scholar A. Eschmann has come to the conclusion

that the Jagannath is Nrusingha as follows :-

"A close scrutiny of the Jagannath image

betrays that head is an attempt to represent lion

head and its round eyes are the typical feature of

Nrusingha's fury."

But Jagannath remained above and beyond

the conventional conceptions of Hindu deities

symbolizing all-in-one. In the words of famous

historian William Hunter, the worship of Jagannath

aims at Catholicism which embraces every form

of Indian belief and every Indian conception of

the deity.