1. Prahlada is known for his staunch devotion to the preserver deity, Vishnu.
22 Facts About Prahlada
1. 2.
Prahlada appears in the narrative of Narasimha, the lion avatara of Vishnu, who rescues Prahlada by disimboweling and killing his evil father, the asura king Hiranyakashipu.
3.
Prahlada is described as a saintly boy, known for his innocence and bhakti towards Vishnu.
4.
Prahlada is considered a mahajana, or great devotee, by followers of Vaishnava traditions.
5.
Prahlada was born to Kayadhu and Hiranyakashipu, an evil asura king who had been granted a boon from Brahma that he could not be killed off by anything born from a living womb, neither by a man nor an animal, neither during the day nor at night, neither indoors nor outdoors, neither on land nor in the air nor in water, and with no man-made weapon.
6.
However, after repeated attempts of filicide by Hiranyakashipu against Prahlada, Prahlada was finally saved by Narasimha, the fourth avatara of Vishnu, who descended to demonstrate the quality of divine rage and redemption and killed Hiranyakashipu.
7.
Prahlada sowed similar seeds in his son, Virochana, and grandson, Mahabali.
8.
Prahlada stayed in the ashrama of the divine sage in gratitude.
9.
Prahlada's father was antagonised by his spiritual inclination and tried to warn Prahlada against offending him since he had greatly desired to turn his son against Vishnu in particular.
10.
The asura then had the Prahlada trampled by the astadiggajas, the eight elephants who bear the weight of the earth, but their tusks were broken to bits upon contact with him and they went away.
11.
Prahlada placed Prahlada in a room with venomous, dark snakes, and they made a bed for him with their bodies.
12.
Prahlada eventually becomes the king of the asuras and attains a place in the abode of Vishnu and Lakshmi after his death.
13.
Whoever listens to the history of Prahlada is immediately cleansed from their sins: the iniquities that they commits, by night or by day, shall be expiated by once hearing, or once reading, the history of Prahlada.
14.
Prahlada was even more powerful than his father, Hiranyakashipu, who was killed by Vishnu as Narasimha, ever was.
15.
Prahlada once commanded the asuras to accompany him to the holy tirtha of Naimisa, where he hoped to see a vision of Vishnu.
16.
Prahlada observed two ascetics with matted hair, bearing the bows of Sharanga and Ajagava.
17.
Prahlada's mace broke, and Prahlada found himself growing helpless and sought Vishnu's assistance.
18.
The curse soon came into fruition, with Prahlada ignoring the Vedas and the Brahmanas and soon deviating from the path of dharma.
19.
Prahlada had strongly advised Andhaka against the invasion of Kailasha, but Andhaka refused.
20.
Prahlada's son was Virochana, who was the father of Bali.
21.
Prahlada's great-grandson was the thousand-armed Banasura, who was defeated in battle by Krishna and later, Banasura was killed by Kartikeya in the Mahabharata.
22.
The story of Prahlada has been the theme of various films.