CHAPTER EIGHT
The Narayana-kavaca Shield
This chapter describes how Indra, the King of heaven, was victorious
over the soldiers of the demons, and it also describes the shield of the
Visnu mantra.

To take protection from this shield, one must first touch kusa grass
and wash one’s mouth with dcamana-mantras. One should observe
silence and then place the eight-syllable Visnu mantra on the parts of his
body and place the twelve-syllable mantra on his hands. The eight-
syllable mantra is orn namo nardyandya. This mantra should be dis-
tributed all over the front and back of the body. The twelve-syllable
mantra, which begins with the pranava, omkara, is om namo bhagavate
vasudevaya. One syllable should be placed on each of the fingers and
should be preceded by the pranava, omkara. Thereafter, one must chant
om visnave namah, which is a six-syllable mantra. One must
progressively place the syllables of the mantra on the heart, the head, be-
tween the two eyebrows, on the sikhd and between the eyes, and then one
should chant mah astrdya phat and with this mantra protect himself
from all directions. Nadevo devam arcayet: one who has not risen to the
level of a deva cannot chant this mantra. According to this direction of
the Sdstra, one must think himself qualitatively nondifferent from the
Supreme.

After finishing this dedication, one must offer a prayer to the eight-
armed Lord Visnu, who sits on the shoulders of Garudadeva. One also
has to think of the fish incarnation, Vamana, Karma, Nrsimha, Varaha.
Parasurama, Ramacandra (the elder brother of Laksmana).
Nara-Narayana, Dattatreya (an empowered incarnation), Kapila,
Sanat-kumara, Hayagriva, Naradadeva (the incarnation of a devotee).
Dhanvantari, Rsabhadeva, Yajfia, Balarama, Vyasadeva, Buddhadeva
and KeSava. One should also think of Govinda, the master of Vrndavana.
and one should think of Narayana, the master of the spiritual sky. One
should think of Madhusidana, Tridhama, Madhava, Hrsikesa, Pad-
manabha, Janardana, Damodara and Visvesvara, as well as the Supreme

63
