॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
Saturday, 31 December 2022 VI.08 - Vishwaroopa teaches the Narayana Kavacha prayer to Indra. This prayer when chanted confers great felicity on the devotee. So I am reproducing the entire prayer with audio from Brahmacharini Devaki Chaitanya. The meanings given below are from Swami Tapasyananda.
OCR scan from Swami Tapasyananda:
Parikshit said: 1-2. It behoves you to tell me what that occult armour of Mantras called Narayana-kavacha is, protected by which Indra was able to conquer as easily as in play, his enemies who were equipped with all vehicles and weapons and wrest from them the suzerainty over the three worlds. You ought to explain how Indra could conquer his well-armed enemies under its protection.
Sri Suka said:
3. After choosing Vishwaroopa, the son of Tvashta as a priest, Indra asked him to impart to him the Narayana-kavacha and Vishwaroopa did so. Now listen attentively to what he said. Vishwaroopa said:
4-6. The Narayana-kavacha should be repeated and meditated upon when one is faced with a dangerous situation. Washing hands and feet, doing Achamana (sipping water ceremonially), and putting on the Pavitra (the grass ring), a person should sit facing the north with a pure mind and controlled speech. With the two Mantras, the eight-syllabled Om Namo Narayanaya and the twelve-syllabled Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya he should perform Anganyasa and Karanyasa before he meditates on Narayana-kavacha. In the Anganyasa, the eight-syllabled Mantra Om Namo Narayanaya should be spread over the body by the touch of the fingers, along with the repetition of each of the syllables, in their order on the eight parts of the body - feet, knee, thigh, abdomen, heart, chest, face and head. The utterance of each syllable should be prefaced and followed by the sound Om. Or the order of the parts touched and the syllables uttered may be reversed also.
7. In Karanyasa the twelve-syllabled Mantra Om Namo Bhagavate Vāsudevaya should be spread by touching the fingers and the phalanges of the thumbs in due order, uttering the syllables of the Mantra from the Pranava to ya in their order with each touch. Each syllable should be prefaced and ended with the utterance of Om.
8. Next, he should do Nyasa of the Mantra Om Vishnave Namah. The syllable Om should be placed on the heart; vi on the head: sh between the brows; na at the tuft.
9. The syllable ve should be placed in the eyes, na in all the joints; and ma meditated upon as a powerful weapon (Astra) representing the Deity of the Mantra, with whom the worshipper should get identified.
10. Then using Visarga with ma and adding phat to the sound, he should utter the formula mah astrāya phat and project it in all directions, snapping the thumb and middle finger together in each of the directions to ward off evil spirits.
11. One should then meditate on the Supreme Being, the one object fit for meditation by all, possessed of all His powers like lordship (Aishwarya) and having the form of c Consciousness, energy and austerity. He should then repeat the following Mantra constituting the Narayana-kavacha:
Narayana-kavacha Mantra (12-34)
12. Om! May Hari-who is seated on Garuda, who is endowed with eight powers, who has eight arms, and who holds in them His eight weapons-conch, discus, shield, sword, mace, arrow, bow and rope-ensure my protection in every way.
13. In the water may He protect me as the Great Fish from Varuna's weapons. In the land let Him protect me as the mystic Dwarf. In the sky may His universe-encompassing Trivikrama form protect me.
14. In danger zones like the battlefront, the forest and the like, may He protect me as the Man-lion, the destroyer of Asura hosts, whose terrific roars pierced the quarters and caused the foetus in (Asura) females to abort.
15. In my travels may the Divine Boar, whose body represents sacrifice and who lifted the earth on His tusks, protect me. On the top of mountains may Rama with the axe protect me. During my sojourn in foreign lands, may Rama, the elder brother of Bharata, along with Lakshmana, protect me.
16. May Narayana protect me from the destructive incantations of enemies as also from my own listlessness. May Nara save me from pride. May Datta, the master of Yoga, save me from falling from the path of Yoga. May Kapila, the master of the Gunas of Prakriti, save me from the bondage of matter.
17. May Sanatkumara save me from the influence of Cupid. May Hayagriva save me from the folly of offering insult to Divinities. May the great Devarshi Narada safeguard me from showing negligence in the worship of the Supreme Being. May Hari as the Divine Tortoise save me from any conduct leading to hell.
18. May the worshipful Dhanvantari protect me from unwholesome food. May Rishabha Deva, noted for his conquest of the senses, save me from the miseries arising from the pairs of opposites. May Yajna protect me from the scandalous criticisms of men. May Balabhadra protect me from the attacks of the populace; and Adisesha, the king of the serpents, from the fear of deadly serpents known as Krodhavasas.
19. May the worshipful Dvaipāyana save me from 1gnorance. May the Buddha save me from atheism and indolence. May Kalki, come as a powerful incarnation for the protection of Dharma, save me from the evils of the age of Kali.
20. May Kesava protect me with his mace at daybreak (prātah). may Govinda with the flute protect me during the second watch of the day (āsangava). May Narayana assuming all his powers protect me during the forenoon (prāhnah). May Vishnu with the discus in hand protect me during the noon (mādhyadina).
21. May Madhuisudana armed with his powerful bow protect me in the afternoon (aparāhnah). May Madhava, who has become the Trinity, protect me in the evening (sāyam). May Hrishikesa protect me in the first watch of the night (pradosha). May Padmanābha protect me both in the second watch of the night and at midnight.
22. May the Lord with the Srivatsa mark on his chest protect me during the watch following midnight. In the pre-dawn watch may Janārdana wielding the sword protect me. May Dāmodara protect me during the Sandhyas (Junction periods of day and night) and may Visweswara, the embodiment of Time, protect me at dawn.
23. May the sharp-edged discus Sudarsana, fiercely destructive like the fire of cosmic dissolution, and speeding anywhere on being released by the Lord, burn up the enemy forces as dry grass by fire.
24. O mace, Thou the favourite weapon of the Lord emitting fire and having the impact of the thunderbolt! May you pound, pound all evil forces like the Kūshmāndas, Yakshas, Rakshasas, Vināyakas, Bhütas and Pretas! Smash, smash all enemies to smithereens!
25. O the famous conch Panchajanya! Blown by the Lord, frighten, frighten and drive away by your terrific sound all evil influences like Rakshasas, Pramathas, Pretas, Matris, Pisāchas, and Brahmarāksasas.
26. O sharp-edged sword, (Nandaka) used by the Lord! Cut to pieces, cut to pieces the ranks of my enemies! O shield with the mark of a hundred moons! Cover the eyes of sinful enemies! Blind them who have evil eyes!
27-28. Whatever beings and influences there are, causing us fears and standing in the way of our progress be they planets, comets, men, serpents, wild animals, Bhütas or one's own sins-may they all disperse and be destroyed, O Lord, by Thy name, form and weapons!
29. May the worshipful Garuda, the all-powerful, the embodiment of Veda and the object of adoration by Säma chants, protect us! May Vishwaksena, protect us in all difficult situ- ations by the power of his name!
30. May Hari's name, form, vehicles, weapons and chief attendants give protection to us, our intellect, senses, mind and Pranas!
31. If the truth is that the worshipful Lord alone is all existence, gross and subtle, may all troubles and difficulties of ours be dissolved by the power of that Truth!
32. Though the Lord is without any differentiation for those who are experiencing the unity of all existence, still by His Yogamaya (which is His free will) He assumes various powers, forms, weapons and adornments.
33. It is the truth that He is the substance in everything. May He, the all-powerful and the all-knowing One, protect us always and everywhere presenting Himself in forms appropriate to the situation.
34. May the Lord as Nrisimha (Man-lion) protect us, above, below and around, on four sides and in the four corners, within and without, by driving away all causes of fear by his roars and by extinguishing the powers of all others by his unmatched puissance.
35. O, Indra! I have now imparted to you that psychic armour called Narayana-kavacha. Protected by it, you can easily conquer all the leaders of the Asuras.
36. Wearing this, if you look at or touch with your foot anyone, that man will at once be rid of all fear.
37. He who protects Himself with this armour has nothing to fear from kings, thieves, planets, or wild animals like tigers.
38. Once a Brahmana of Kausika's lineage invoked this Mantra in a desert without any water to do purificatory rites, and by the application of the Yogic technique, left the body then and there.
39. Over that region where this Brahmana left his body, Chitraratha, a leader of the Gandharvas, once passed in his aerial car surrounded by many Gandharva women.
40. As he passed over the spot, the vehicle was upturned, and all the occupants came down topsy-turvy to the ground. On the advice of the saint known as the Balakhilyas, Chitraratha collected the bones of the dead Yogi, consigned them to the Saraswati where the river flows eastwards, took his bath in it,
and went home.
Sri Suka said: 41. Whoever hears this or meditates upon this with full faith, he receives the homage of all living beings. He is freed from all kinds of fear.
42. Having obtained the knowledge of this meditation from Vishwaroopa, Indra obtained victory over the Asuras and became the master of the resources of all three worlds.
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॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
