Mysterious are the ways of the Almighty

CHENNAI, AUG. 28. That liberation from rebirths can be attained by devotion to God is well-known and hence spiritual aspirants strive to enhance their devotion. But, it is paradoxical to note that there have been instances where the same end has been realised through fear and hatred of God, though such cases are more an exception than the rule. This truth comes to the fore in the depiction of the incarnation of the Supreme Being in the form of a man-lion, Narasimha. The Lord assumed this unique form to fulfil the conditions of the boon Hiranyakasipu had obtained.

This discussion appears as an interlude to Sage Suka's narration of the Bhagavata Purana to King Pareekshit in Sage Narada's words. He related how the attendants of the Lord, Jaya and Vijaya, had to be born in the world three times due to a curse and the Lord redeemed them during His manifestations. They harboured hatred and fear towards the Lord during these births but they were liberated from bondage because their minds dwelt on the Lord. The cow-herd maidens of Vraja attained Him because of their love; Kamsa through fear; Sisupala through hatred; the cowherd community through kinship; the Pandavas due to friendship; Narada and other sages through devotion to the Lord.

In his Harikatha, Kalyanapuram Sri R. Aravamudan said that God's ways were inscrutable as could be seen in the manner of His saving His child-devotee Prahlada, who was born as son to Hiranyakasipu, who hated God. The child was instrumental in putting an end to the demon's atrocities and the Lord's incarnation as Narasimha. After the Almighty incarnated as Varaha (boar) and liberated Hiranyaksha, his brother Hiranyakasipu started hating God and to avenge his death did actions to spite the Lord. He exterminated those engaged in sacrifices, and study of the scriptures.

He performed intense penance and obtained boons to ensure that he would not be killed by any of the Lord's creations. He became arrogant and drunk with power and pelf, he declared himself as supreme and did not allow even anyone mentioning the name of God in his kingdom. Harassed, the denizens of the three worlds submitted to Lord Vishnu to intervene. He assured them that when hatred developed in the mind of a person towards Him, the scriptures and towards the pious, he was sure to meet his end and promised to intervene when he started troubling his son Prahlada who was devoted to Him.

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