Narasimha (Vishnu's 4th avatar)
Narasimha Jayanti
The lion from the pillar — proof that the Lord is wherever a devotee needs him.
Tithi: Vaishakha Shukla Chaturdashi
In the simplest words
The day Vishnu burst from a pillar as half-man half-lion to save little Prahlad — proof that God arrives exactly where a child's faith calls.
The story & purpose
Hiranyakashipu's boon left no loophole — death neither by man nor beast, day nor night, inside nor outside, on earth nor sky, by no weapon. But when he demanded of his son Prahlada, 'Is your Hari in this pillar?', the pillar split — and Narasimha, man-lion, neither one nor the other, tore tyranny apart at twilight, on a threshold, on his lap, with his nails.
The fury that no god could calm melted before the child Prahlada's love. Narasimha is therefore the fiercest form of protection and the gentlest with his own — worshipped at dusk, the hour of his coming.
What is done
Sandhya puja
Worship at twilight with panchamrit abhishek where possible.
Vrat
Fast through the day, broken next morning after parana — as for a chaturdashi vrat.
Prahlada smaran
The bhakta's story read aloud — the day belongs to trust as much as to the lion.
Narayana jaap
Om Namo Narayanaya or Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya, 108 times.
Best timings
The murti is honoured through the day, but the heart of the puja is sandhya — twilight.
Exact muhurat varies by city and tradition — for the precise hour, consult a local panchang for your location.
Worth knowing
Ahobilam in Andhra, with its nine Narasimha shrines, holds the avatar's grandest utsava.
The Narasimha form guards temple doorways across the south — protection at thresholds.
Prahlada's story fills the seventh canto of the Bhagavata Purana (7.1–10) — the text most read on this day.
Mantras of this festival
ॐ नमो नारायणाय
Ashtakshara — the eight-syllable mantra
Begin jaap →ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय
Dvadashakshara — the twelve-syllable mantra
Begin jaap →शान्ताकारं भुजगशयनं पद्मनाभं सुरेशं विश्वाधारं गगनसदृशं मेघवर्णं शुभाङ्गम् । लक्ष्मीकान्तं कमलनयनं योगिभिर्ध्यानगम्यं वन्दे विष्णुं भवभयहरं सर्वलोकैकनाथम् ॥
Shantakaram — Vishnu dhyana
Begin jaap →Note: Some panchangs observe 19 May 2027. Follow your family's panchang.