The gods, overwhelmed by awe and reverence, wondered aloud: “How can we truly praise You, O God of gods, Lord of beasts? Even when we offer countless hymns and approach You with manifold emotions, You remain ever the Supreme Lord, beyond all our words.” It is said that whoever, with devotion, recites or contemplates this hymn to Nṛsiṃha, understanding its meaning, does not experience unrest nor is reborn again. And if one causes all the twice-born to hear it, such a person is honored in Viṣṇu’s world, while the gods, along with Indra and Brahmā, worship Lord Śiva. Having approached the Lord, the gods offered their praises in full, informing the One who had assumed the form of a beast. Then Brahmā and the others swiftly began to glorify the Supreme Lord. Seeking protection for themselves, all the gods took refuge in the ultimate cause—Mahādeva, the Great God, abiding on Mount Mandara, sporting with Umā. He was served by hosts of Gaṇas and Gandharvas, by Siddhas and groups of Apsarases. Together with the gods, the greatly frightened Brahmā, his voice trembling, prostrated himself flat upon the ground and began to praise the Supreme Lord: “Salutations to You, the ender of time! Salutations to You, Rudra, the wrathful! Homage to Śiva, to Rudra, to Śaṅkara, to You who are ever-auspicious. Fierce One, controller of all beings, You are our Śiva—homage to Śiva, to Śarva, to Śaṅkara, remover of suffering. Homage to the giver of delight, to the all-pervading, to Viṣṇu, to Brahmā; homage to the ender, to You, the husband of Umā. Homage to the golden-armed, to the lord of gold; homage to Śarva, to the One of all forms, to the Person—repeated homage. “To You, beyond existence and non-existence, cause of the great, eternal One of universal form, ever-born—homage! Born in many ways in the world, great in power, repeated homage to You—Rudra, Nīlarudra, Kadrudra, Pracetas. Salutation to the One who is Time, who takes the form of Time, who seizes the limbs of Time; to the most generous God, to the blue-throated One, I bow to You. “Homage to You, the most exalted, the constant destroyer of the gods’ enemies; to the Savior, Supreme Savior, the Deliverer—again and again, I bow. To the god with tawny hair, to Śambhu, the Supreme Self, benefactor of gods and beings—I bow to You. To Śambhu, to the wrath of Pārvatī, to the one who assumes the form of Rudra, to the matted-haired One, I bow; to the dark-throated One, I bow. “To the golden One, to the Great Lord, to the illustrious blue-throated One, I bow again and again; to the One whose body is smeared with ashes, to the Lord of skulls and staff. Salutations to the short One, to the tall One, to the dwarf—I bow again and again; to the fierce trident-bearer, to the terrible One, I bow repeatedly. To the formidable One, to the One with a terrible form, to the One delighting in terrible deeds; having become the slayer at the forefront, I bow, and also to the slayer from afar. “To You who bear the bow, the spear, the mace, and the plough, I bow; to the discus-bearer, the armored One, ever the destroyer of the deeds of demons. To the immediate One, to the One of immediate form, to the One just born, I bow; to the leftward One, to the left-formed One, to the left-eyed One, I bow. To the One of human form, to the One who is the sole Supreme Person, I bow. “To the Giver of the aims of human life, to the Lord, to the Supreme Creator, to the Ruler, I bow to You; to the Lord, I bow again and again. To Brahmā, to the One of Brahmā’s form, I bow; to You, who are directly Śiva; having assumed the form of Viṣṇu and Narasiṃha, the Maker of the universe. Having slain Hiraṇyakaśipu with Your own sharp nails, together with many demon lords, for the sake of the world’s welfare, O Lord. “Assuming the lion’s womb, You trouble the entire world; whatever is to be done here, O Lord of gods, do that—be present here. You are fierce among all the wicked, You are our controller, You are auspicious for us; with the form of Kālakūṭa and others, protect us who have taken refuge. “O Lord of the universe, for You, the pure is but a sport; by the opening and closing of Your eyes, all creation and dissolution occur. If You open Your eyes, O Brahman, there is no destruction; if not, O Śiva, we are tormented, O God, by the immeasurable radiance of Hari. For the welfare of all worlds, You wish to destroy this essence.” Thus addressed, the Lord smiled and spoke to the gods, granting them safety: “I will slay him.” Then Indra, with the other gods, bowed down and departed as they had come. Blessed Brahmā, too, went away, as did the other foremost gods. Then Mahādeva arose and took on the form of Śarabha. He went to where the proud, beast-devouring Narasiṃha stood. There, Śarabha—honored by the gods—took the life of Narasiṃha. Then, as Narasiṃha transformed from a lion into a man, he departed in due order, praised by the gods as he left. Whoever recites or hears this excellent hymn to Śarva attains the world of Rudra and rejoices there with him. Now, the question arose: How did the god, the Great Lord, the cause of the universe’s destruction, assume the terrifying and deformed form called Śarabha? What courage did he display in that deed? Thus requested by the gods, the compassionate one resolved in his mind. To destroy the energy known as Narasiṃha, the Supreme Lord Rudra remembered Vīrabhadra, of great might, for that purpose. He himself, assuming the Bhairava form—the cause of the great dissolution—emerged at once, laughing before the assembled hosts. With the chief gaṇas, roaring with loud laughter, leaping here and there, he was surrounded by countless, extremely fierce forms of Narasiṃha.