Kapitel 1: 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.
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