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Namaste Narasimhaya
Nrsimha Pranama — also known as the ISKCON Narasimha Arti (Narasimha Aarti / Arati)
Sanskrit Verses
Verse 1
namas te narasiḿhāya prahlādāhlāda-dāyine hiraṇyakaśipor vakṣaḥ- śilā-ṭańka-nakhālaye
Verse 2
ito nṛsiḿhaḥ parato nṛsiḿho yato yato yāmi tato nṛsiḿhaḥ bahir nṛsiḿho hṛdaye nṛsiḿho nṛsiḿham ādiḿ śaraṇaḿ prapadye
Verse 3
tava kara-kamala-vare nakham adbhuta-śṛńgaḿ dalita-hiraṇyakaśipu-tanu-bhṛńgam keśava dhṛta-narahari-rūpa jaya jagadīśa hare
Translation
1) I offer my obeisances to Lord Narasimha, who gives joy to Prahlada Maharaja and whose nails are like chisels on the stone like chest of the demon Hiranyakasipu.
2) Lord Nrsimha is here and also there. Wherever I go Lord Nrsimha is there. He is in the heart and is outside as well. I surrender to Lord Nrsimha, the origin of all things and the supreme refuge.
3) O Kesava! O Lord of the universe! O Lord Hari, who have assumed the form of half-man, half-lionl All glories to You! Just as one can easily crush a wasp between one's fingernails, so in the same way the body of the wasp like demon Hiranyakasipu has been ripped apart by the wonderful pointed nails on Your beautiful lotus hands.
Remarks
The third verse of this prayer is the fourth verse of Pralaya Payodhi Jale (Dasavatara stotram) by Srila Jayadeva Goswami.
Mayapura devotees sing the Om Hrim Pram Ksraum (Nrsimha kavaca maha-mantra) before singing the above verses.
Outside of ISKCON, some devotees will include a verse between 1 and 2 composed by Sridhara Maharaja:
"vāg-īśā yasya vadane lakṣmīr yasya ca vakṣasi
yasyāste hṛdaye saḿvit taḿ nṛsiḿham ahaḿ bhaje"
In His mouth the goddess Suddha-Sarasvati is always present, on His chest Laksmi-devi always resides, and within His heart special affection for His devotees is always manifest – I worship that Nrsimhadeva.
Spiritual Significance
Namaste Narasimhaya is the daily protective prayer offered in every ISKCON temple at the conclusion of the evening arati. The half-man, half-lion form of Lord Nrsimhadeva embodies the Supreme Lord's promise to protect His devotees against any obstacle — internal or external. The mood of this prayer is not fear but loving confidence: "Wherever I look, my Lord is already there."
Scriptural Source & Tradition
The first verse appears in the Nrsimha Purana; the second is from the Padma Purana; and the third is the fourth stanza of Sri Jayadeva Goswami's Dasavatara-stotram (from the Gita-govinda). Together they cover meditation on Nrsimha's form, His omnipresence and His ferocious pastime of liberating Prahlada Maharaja by vanquishing the demon Hiranyakasipu.
Commentary from the Acharyas
Srila Prabhupada often emphasised that although Lord Nrsimhadeva's form is fierce, He is "very ferocious to the demons but very, very kind to the devotees." In a Bhagavatam class in Mayapur (1976) he said, "If you simply take shelter of Nrsimhadeva, all your troubles will be finished. He is not different from Krishna; He is Krishna in His protecting feature."
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura instructed his disciples to chant the second verse (ito nrsimha parato nrsimha) whenever they faced disturbance during sadhana, because it reaffirms the Lord's all-pervading shelter.
When to Sing / Chant
- After every Sandhya / Gaura arati, before honouring prasadam
- Before journeys, exams, surgeries or any situation requiring courage
- On Nrsimha Chaturdashi (the appearance day of Lord Nrsimhadeva)
- When the mind feels disturbed by fear, anxiety or hostile influences
- At the start and end of children's classes for spiritual protection
Benefits for the Devotee
- Spiritual and material protection from obstacles to bhakti
- Relief from chronic fear, anxiety, nightmares and inauspicious dreams
- Strengthens faith in the Lord's promise: "na me bhaktah pranasyati" (BG 9.31)
- Inspires Prahlada-like courage to practise Krishna consciousness in any environment
- Considered a powerful shield for new and travelling devotees
Gratitude to His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada
We offer our humble obeisances at the lotus feet of our founder-acharya, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada, without whose causeless mercy the priceless prayers, bhajans and sacred literature of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition would have remained inaccessible to most of the world. By his herculean preaching efforts, his unparalleled translations and his founding of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), the holy names, pastimes and instructions of Sri Sri Radha-Krishna and Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu are today chanted in every town and village.
nama om vishnu-padaya krishna-preshthaya bhu-tale
srimate bhaktivedanta-svamin iti namine
namas te sarasvate deve gaura-vani-pracharine
nirvishesha-shunyavadi-pashchatya-desha-tarine
All glories to Srila Prabhupada. All glories to the Vaishnava acharyas in the disciplic succession.
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