The Narasimha avatar-part 2-- yazhi /
yali / sharabha
The story continues, there is more to
learn for us
Do read the first part—the story of the
Narasimha avatar, on the link below
https://bhoj11.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-narasimha-avatar-and-ancient.html
Places of worship usually have a guardian
beast at the entrance to keep evil away
In south India we usually see the statue
of yazhi / yali / sharabha, a mythical hybrid, combined form of the most
powerful aspects of beasts (lion,elephant,horse), bird, and reptile
The story of sharbha teaches us a very
important lesson in life
After Vishnu took the fierce Narasimha
form to kill Hiranyakashipu, his rage did not stop, his wrath was so intense
that it threatened to destroy the entire universe.
The Mahadev, Shankar, (refer note below on Shankar) transformed into Sharabha —
a massive being with the strength of multiple creatures combined, This form
combined the most powerful aspects of beasts, birds, and reptile, he stood in
front of Narasimha to show him that there is always a higher
power to restore balance.
Narashima has the tatva (essence) of one
animal lion (see note below on the essence of an animal), Sharabha had the
combined essence of a lion,elephant,horse, bird, and reptile
Thus came the understanding, the
awakening that even divine power has limits, no matter how powerful you are,
there is always a greater force that keeps the world in balance and Narasimha’s
fury dissolved not through defeat, but through this understanding
yazhi / yali / sharabha stands at the
temple entrance not just to guard the temple against evil but to tell us this
important lesson abandon your pride and enter the temple there is always someone
greater than you
No matter how powerful your are, one day
some one more powerful than you will come and stand before you to shatter your
illusion and break your pride.
No matter how knowledgeable you are one
day some one more knowledgeable will come and stand before you to shatter your
illusion and break your pride.
No matter how beautiful you are one day
some one more beautiful will come and stand before you to shatter your illusion
and break your pride
(refer note below on ignorance)
Note on Shankar: (whom people call Shiv, actually Shiv
and his consort Shakti are the formless form of the absolute creator from whom
the trinity of Brahama, Vishnu and Mahesh came, they are the three guans, fundamental characteristics of
nature or people sattava (goodness/harmony),Rajas (passion/activity) and Tamas (ignorance/inertia)
From one came two from two came three
Note on tatva
(essence) of an animal: The spiritual tatva (essence) of animals and birds is
deeply intertwined with nature, divinity, and the soul's journey. They are not
merely physical beings but hold specific energy, vibration, and sacred roles,
representing aspects of the divine, messengers of higher realms, and
embodiments of pure consciousness
Every animal and bird brings a particular
rhythm or vibration to the planet, necessary for maintaining universal balance.
Harnessing the spiritual essence of
animals involves moving beyond treating them as mere pets or wildlife and
instead viewing them as partners, teachers, and energetic guides
I would like to mention about the amur (Siberian)
tiger. As long
as the tiger walks the forest, the forest lives, today there are very less
tigers around and hence forest have fallen into a proportional decline.
Legend has it that when an Amur tiger
reaches the end of its life, it does not die in the forest like other animals, instead
it travels to the top of a secret, sacred mountain to die, To those worthy
enough to befriend the spirit of the amur tiger one can harness the spiritual
essence and can access this twilight realm of the sacred mountain and unlock
its ultimate power
Note on ignorance: "The only true wisdom is in knowing
you know nothing" is a statement of intellectual humility by Socrates, It
signifies that recognizing the limits of one's knowledge is the first step
toward true understanding.
Ignorance is when a person things that he
knows all and there is nothing more for him to learn
The Mahadev in his form as Natraj stands
over a dwarf demon named Apasmara representing ignorance, ego, and the
distractions that not only hinder spiritual growth but pause it
Apasmara refers to a psychosomatic
disorder in Ayurveda resembling epilepsy, characterized by memory loss (here it
signifies the memory of who you are, your very own divine nature), mental
confusion, and seizures, often linked to impaired consciousness.
The Mahadev subdued him by putting his
right feet over him, but he does not destroy him forever he only stands above
ignorance. Because if ignorance ceases to exist knowledge will also cease to
exist
In a universe of dualities, Apasmara
represents the one who has lost his memory of his divine nature, the opposite
end is knowing the divine hence liberation if he is destroyed the cycle stops,
duality ends and no one can will
understand their divine nature and be liberated, hence he is kept suppressed
Have added more content to the article—Sunderkand—link
below
https://bhoj11.blogspot.com/2022/08/sunderkand.html
