Lord Nrsimhadeva
Deities – Lord Nrsimhadeva with Hiranyakasipu on His lap and Prahlada at His feet
Southeast of there is Nrsimha Puri, also known as Devapalli. When will I see the beauty of this place? At this abode of Nrsimha I will roll about on the ground in ecstatic love, begging for unalloyed love of Kṛṣṇa.
In my heart reside duplicity, insincerity, the desire for fame. and the six enemies (kama, krodha, mada, moha, matsarya and bhaya-that is, lust, anger, intoxication, illusion, envy, and fear.) beginning with lust. Therefore I will pray at the feet of Lord Nrsimha to purify my heart and give me the desire to serve Kṛṣṇa.
Weeping. I will beg at the lotus feet of Nrsimha that I may worship Radha and Kṛṣṇa in Navadvipa, free from all obstacles. When will that Lord Hari, who strikes fear in fear personified, be pleased and bestow His mercy on me?
Although this form of the Lord is terrible for the evil. He is exceedingly auspicious for the devotees headed by Prahlada. When will He become pleased to mercifully speak to me, a worthless fool, and remove my fears?
“Dear child, stay here happily in Gaura-dhama. Worship Radha and Kṛṣṇa, and develop attraction for the holy name. By the mercy of My devotees, all obstacles are transcended. With a purified heart just worship Radha and Krsna, the abodes of sweet nectar.”
After speaking in this way, when will that Lord joyfully place His feet upon my head? At that moment, by Lord Nrsimha’s mercy. I will exhibit symptoms of ecstatic love for Radha and Kṛṣṇa, and I will roll on the ground by the door of Lord Nrsimha’s temple.
(Sri Navadvipa Bhava-taranga)
Nityānanda spoke: “This is Devapalli, and here is the temple of Nrsimhadeva, well known since Satya-yuga. After bestowing His mercy on Prahlada by killing Hiranyakasipu, the Lord came here to rest.
“Brahma and the other demigods made their houses here and formed a village. This village was established on tilās, hillocks, here on the bank of the Mandākinī River, and all the residents became absorbed in the worship of Nrsimhadeva. According to the scriptures, this village in Navadvīpa, named Śrī Nrsimha-kṣetra, is most purifying.
“See here Surya-ṭilā and Brahmā-ṭilā and to the east was Nrsimha-tilā. The place is now transformed. See there Gaṇeśa-tilā, and over there is Indra-țilā. Though Viśvakarmā built hundreds of jeweled houses here, in time, all were destroyed, and the Mandakini dried up. Now only the hillocks mark the places. See these countless broken stones, the remnants of the temples. Again in the future, one devotee king will receive a drop of Nrsimha’s mercy, and he will make a large temple, reinstall Nrsimha, and take up service to Nrsimha again. This is on the border of the Navadvipa parikrama within the sixteen krosas.”
(Sri Navadvipa-Dhama-Mahatmya, Chapter 7)
“Oh, Bhamini! (After visiting Suvarna-vihara) the Lord went to Devapalli. There he drowned the demigods headed by Surya with the bliss of chanting the holy name of Sri Krishna.”
(Navadvipa-dhama-mahatmya Pramana-khanda 4.38)
In the fourteenth incarnation, the Lord appeared as Nṛsiṁha and bifurcated the strong body of the atheist Hiraṇyakaśipu with His nails, just as a carpenter pierces cane.
(SB 1.3.18)