daityAsthipa~njara-vidAraNalabdharandhra-
raktAmbu-nirjara-sariddhanajAtapa~NkA |
bAlendukoTikuTilAH shukacha~nchubhAso
rakShantu siMhavapuSho nakharA harervaH ||
The secretive upAsanA of shrI gaNDabheruNDa nR^isiMha has remain concealed among qualified practitioners for ages. The basic form of the Lord constitutes of eight faces:
1. gANDabheruNDa pakShirAja:
Lord is said to have defeated sharabheshvara and his wives with this face. Worship of this face with the associated mantra protects one from abhichAra prayoga of every kind and destroys aris.
2. nR^isiMha mR^igarAja:
Lord is described to have subdued vIrabhadra, aghora and other astra mUrtis of sharabheshvara with this face. Worship of this face with the associated mantra destroys diseases and grants good health.
3. mahAvyAghra:
Lord is supposed to have subdued nandin, gaNesha and other parivAra devas of sharabheshvara with this face. Worship of this face with the associated mantra protects one from all dangers: from nature, other humans or celestial forces.
4. hayagrIva:
Worship of this face with the associated mantra grants one proficiency in all shAstras and ultimately the liberating knowledge.
5. AdivarAha:
Worship of this face with the associated mantra destroys poverty and blesses one with kaLatra, putra and unimaginable riches.
6. aghora vAnarendra:
Worship of this face with the associated mantra frees one from graha bAdhA of every kind and grants proficiency in ShaTkarma prayoga.
7. mahAgaruDa:
Worship of this face with the associated mantra frees one of nAga doSha, nAga bhaya, viSha bhaya, pitR^I doSha etc.
8. bhallUka:
Worship of this face with the associated mantra grants one ShoDasha siddhis.
The hidden ninth face of the Lord, sometimes referred to as baDabAnala mukha, refers to Adi nArAyaNa and is visible to a true prapanna bhAgavata alone. This face grants one kaivalya. The three mantras associated with this face are the kaivalya nR^isiMha mantra, aShTAkSharI and mantrarAja.
An advanced upAsaka who has earned the grace of AchArya is blessed with the secret of the upAsanA of dvAdasha mukha gaNDabheruNDa nR^isiMha whose form constitutes of the following nR^isiMha mUrtis:
1. gaNDabheruNDa nR^isiMha
2. vyAghra nR^isiMha
3. hayAnana nR^isiMha
4. vAnarendra nR^isiMha
5. Adi varAha nR^isiMha
6. gAruDa nR^isiMha
7. bhallUka nR^isiMha
8. vR^ishabhArUDha nR^isiMha
9. haMsArUDha nR^isiMha
10. kUrmArUDha nR^isiMha
11. sharabhArUDha nr^isiMha
12. mahAvishNumukha garuDArUDha nR^isiMha
The Lord in this form is worshipped with thirteen mAlA mantras and the 118 lettered mUla mantra. The uttarA~Ngas for this mantra are eight including mahAsudarshana.
An upAsaka with greater qualification and control on the senses is blessed by the AchArya with the details of the worship of Urdhvamukha gaNDabheruNDA nR^isiMha, who, along with the previous 12 forms, includes the following:
1. mAyA nR^isiMha
2. raudra nR^isiMha
3. vidAraNa nR^isiMh
4. vAruNa nR^isiMha
5. jvAlA nR^isiMha
6. vIra nR^isiMha
7. aghora vIra baDabAnala nR^isiMha
8. mahogra vIra vijayapratApa nR^isiMha
9. sudarshana nR^isiMha (propitiated by jayanta)
10. lakShmI nr^isiMha (propitiated by mahAdeva)
The dhyAna for each of these faces, the mAhAtmya and details of the associated shaktis (For e.g. shakti for haMsArUDha nR^isiMha is vAgvAdinI; padmAvatI is the consort of kUrmArUDha nR^isiMha who is nidhipradAyaka) should be understood from Sadguru. Other forms of the Lord which include the dvAtriMshanmukha and panchAshanmukha gaNDabheruNDa nR^isiMhas are also worshipped by upAsakas for attaining various siddhis. The gaNDabheruNDa nR^ihari nAma stotra popular among upAsakas is simply a list of the fifty faces/forms of the Lord. The shAstras declare aShTAkSharI and mantrarAja as the basic qualification for the initiation into the worship of the wondrous form of bhagavAn known as gaNDabheruNDa nR^isiMha.
sarvottamottameshAya purANapuruShAya cha |
puruShottamarUpAya sAShTA~NgaM praNato.asmyaham ||