On the auspicious day dedicated to Lord Narasimha, devotees lovingly prepare offerings of sugar and various foods, presenting them to the beloved of Lakshmi with heartfelt prayers for the destruction of all their sins. As they make these offerings, they recite the naivedya mantra: “O Narasimha, Achyuta, Lord of the gods, on your sacred birthday, I will observe a fast, renouncing all enjoyments.” With this vow, they seek the Lord’s pleasure and implore him to remove the sins accrued from birth. As night falls, the devotees keep vigil, filling the air with songs and the sounds of musical instruments. Throughout the night, they recite the Puranas, especially the stories of Shri Narasimha, immersing themselves in his divine deeds. At dawn, after bathing, they worship Narasimha according to the prescribed method, maintaining a tranquil mind and performing a Vaiṣṇava śrāddha in his presence. Afterward, they offer gifts as will be specified, presenting them to worthy recipients and to the twice-born, aspiring to conquer both worlds. A golden deity, weighing a thousand units, is given to satisfy Narasimha, along with cows, land, gold, and similar offerings to the twice-born. Beds with bedding and seven kinds of grain are also given, and other gifts are bestowed according to one’s means and ability. Miserliness is discouraged; all are urged to give generously, seeking the promised results. After feeding the brāhmaṇas and giving them proper gifts, even those without wealth are encouraged to participate, offering what they can. All varṇas have the right to observe this vow, but Narasimha’s devotees, especially the most devoted, are urged to perform it with dedication. A prayer-mantra is then recited: “O Lord of gods, deliver those kings born in my lineage and those yet to be born from the ocean of worldly suffering.” The devotee continues, “For me, immersed in the ocean of sin, afflicted by diseases that move like water, and tormented by living beings, having fallen into great distress—O Lord of the universe, reclining on Śeṣa, give your hand as support; by this vow, grant enjoyment and liberation.” Having prayed thus and properly dismissed the deity, the devotee presents all offerings to the teacher. After satisfying the brāhmaṇas with gifts and dismissing them, one meditates on Narasimha and then eats together with relatives. Even the destitute, if they regularly observe the fourteenth day fast, are freed from sins accumulated over seven births—this is certain. Those who hear this vow with devotion, which destroys sin, are freed from the sin of killing a brāhmaṇa merely by hearing it. Whoever recites this pure, supreme, and secret teaching always attains all desires and the fruit of this vow. Whoever performs the rite at the proper time, at midday, with whatever means possible, together with Līlāvatī and the sage, by the grace of Shri Narasimha, worships with supreme devotion and attains eternal liberation. Those who go to the sacred place and worship Shri Narasimha always obtain their desired result by his grace. Shri Narasimha, of great form, difficult to approach even by Death, is honored as the Lord of Bhairavas and destroyer of Hari’s distress, worshipped in the form and appearance of a child. Salutations are offered to the all-pervading, blissful one, who reveals his true form, is the self of all beings, the Lord of the universe, and the essence of sound. Homage is paid to him who dwells in the orb of the sun, the ocean of compassion, who takes the form of the twenty-four principles, and appears as Time, Rudra, and Fire. Salutations to Narasimha, the one form of the universe, the Man-Lion, the god who conquered Vīrabhadra and bore it on his forehead. There are twelve blazing discs of the sun, precisely measured, and there, especially, is the holy river Sindhu, beautiful and most sacred. Near her stands a city, renowned as Maulistāna, always said to be built by the gods. There dwells the great-souled Hārīta, and Līlāvatī also remains there—of this there is no doubt. Near the Sindhu river, an echo arises, but when the age of Kali arrives, foreigners and evildoers will live there. Many will indeed reside there; just as, at the birth of Narasimha, a wondrous sound arose, so too does an echo resound when one calls out “Nṛsiṃha! Nṛsiṃha!” loudly. Whether a slayer of a Brahmin, a thief of gold, a drinker of liquor, or one who approaches his teacher’s wife—those who bathe in the Sindhu river, by the grace of Shri Narasimha, are freed from sin. Those who dwell there for ten nights are known as doers of virtuous deeds—this is not false. In the Kali age, those who live there, whose classes descend from twice-born ancestors, are to be regarded as outcastes, excluded from the Veda, even though they appear as foreigners; they eat meat and always drink wine. Therefore, they are of unrighteous nature, most sinful—just as Brahmins without the twilight rites are outside the Veda, so are they. In that city, O queen of the gods, in the west, there is only one supreme and vast holy place called Nṛsiṃha. Hearing of it, one is instantly freed from sin—this is certain. Thus concludes the one hundred and seventy-fourth chapter, named “The Origin of Nṛsiṃha,” in the glorious Padma Mahāpurāṇa, Uttarakhaṇḍa, within the section of fifty-five thousand verses. After this, Śrī Bhagavān speaks: “Thus the excellent story of the beginning has been told. Now, O Indirā, listen to the greatness of other chapters as well. In the southern direction, there was a city called Purandara, well known among those who uphold the tradition. There, a man named Devaśarman was renowned.