CHAPTER NINE
Prahlada Pacifies Lord
Nrsimbhadeva with Prayers
As related in this chapter, Prahlada Maharaja, following the order of
Lord Brahma, pacified the Lord when the Lord was extremely angry
after having killed Hiranyakasipu.

After Hiranyakasipu was killed, the Lord continued to be very angry,
and the demigods, headed by Lord Brahma, could not pacify Him. Even
mother Laksmi, the goddess of fortune, the constant companion of
Narayana, could not dare come before Lord Nrsithhadeva. Then Lord
Brahma asked Prahlada Maharaja to go forward and pacify the Lord’s
anger. Prahlada Maharaja, being confident of the affection of his master,
Lord Nrsitnhadeva, was not afraid at all. He very gravely appeared
before the Lord’s lotus feet and offered Him respectful obeisances. Lord
Nrsitnhadeva, being very much affectionate toward Prahlada Maharaja,
put His hand on Prahlada’s head, and because of being personally
touched by the Lord, Prahlada Maharaja immediately achieved brahma-
jfana, spiritual knowledge. Thus he offered his prayers to the Lord in
full spiritual knowledge and full devotional ecstasy. The instructions
given by Prahlada Maharaja in the form of his prayers are as follows.

Prahlada said, “I am not proud of being able to offer prayers to the
Supreme Personality of Godhead. I simply take shelter of the mercy of
the Lord, for without devotion one cannot appease Him. One cannot
please the Supreme Personality of Godhead simply by dint of high paren-
tage or great opulence, learning, austerity, penance or mystic power. In-
deed, these are never pleasing to the Supreme Lord, for nothing can
please Him but pure devotional service. Even if a nondevotee is a
braéhmana qualified with the twelve brahminical symptoms, he cannot be
very dear to the Lord, whereas if a person born in a family of dog-eaters
is a devotee, the Lord can accept his prayers. The Lord does not need
anyone’s prayers, but if a devotee offers his prayers to the Lord, the de-
votee benefits greatly. Ignorant persons born in low families, therefore,

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