IV. See under Kāla I.

. A valiant असुर

Birth --- Mark Title as "empty".

Once the Asura हिरण्याक्ष was amusing himself by wading through the ocean and beating at the waves with his club. वरुण , the god of water, was alarmed at this and ran to महाविष्णु and told him every thing. Hearing this महाविष्णु got up to kill हिरण्याक्ष . हिरण्याक्ष who had assumed the form of a Boar carried the earth on his tusks and ran to पाताल . As the goddess earth had come into contact with the tusks of हिरण्याक्ष she became pregnant and gave birth to an asura infant of immense might and power. That infant was नरकासुर .

Taking the infant born from impurity the sad goddess Earth went to महाविष्णु and requested him to save the child somehow. महाविष्णु pitied him and gave him नारायणास्त्र ( नारायण 's weapon) and said: " नरक ! So long as this weapon is with you, nobody but me could kill you." Saying this he disappeared. (Bhāgavata, Skandha 10) .

नरकासुर made प्राग्ज्योतिष his capital and ruled over the असुरस् as their emperor for a long time, all the while terrifying the देवस् . Once this असुर raped कशेरू the daughter of त्वष्टा . He brought sixteen thousand and one hundred maidens from the women of the earth and the world of gods. He made them captives at औदक on the top of the mountain मणिपर्वत . He appointed four mighty and fearful असुरस् : हयग्रीव , निसुन्द , पञ्चनद and मुर as gate-keepers of प्राग्ज्योतिष . As they stood blocking the way up to देवयान , nobody dared to enter प्राग्ज्योतिष . The ten sons of नरकासुर guarded the harem. At the boundary of the country मुरासुर had tied six thousand ropes with a sword at the end of each. So enemies dared not come near the boundary. When सुग्रीव gave instructions to the monkeys who were sent in search of सीता , about the route they were to follow, he had mentioned about the city of प्राग्ज्योतिष . Mention is made in वाल्मीकि रामायण , किष्किन्धा काण्ड , सर्ग 42 that सुग्रीव had given them special instructions to search for सीता in प्राग्ज्योतिष . [mh-1-1-1 ] Mahābhārata • Ādi parva [mh-1-1-1 ] Mahābhārata • Ādi parva (Viṣṇu Parva is not listed above, defaulting to starting point)

Previous birth of नरक

Long ago a king who was the father of Sixteen thousand daughters , ruled over a country. While the father and daughters were sitting in the palace महाविष्णु came there as a hermit. The sixteen thousand damsels gathered round the hermit. Their father got angry and cursed them. The daughters shed tears and entreated their father for liberation from the curse. He gave them remission and said that in the next birth they would become wives of महाविष्णु .

Another version of this story says that the damsels had requested ब्रह्मा for liberation from the curse according to the advice of the hermit नारद , and that ब्रह्मा had given them liberation from the curse. In some versions it is stated that नारद himself gave them liberation from the curse.

It was this King, who was the father of the sixteen thousand damsels, who took birth again as नरकासुर . Those sixteen thousand damsels who had been born as princesses in different places were taken captives by नरकासुर and were kept in औदक . (Bhāgavata, Skandha 10) .

Death

नरकासुर who had been causing devastation and terror in the three worlds entered the world of the gods once. The gods were not able to withstand the fury of नरक , who carried away the ear-rings of अदिति , the mother of इन्द्र , and the large white royal umbrella of इन्द्र to प्राग्ज्योतिष . इन्द्र went to द्वारका and told श्री कृष्ण of the molestations he had received at the hands of नरकासुर . श्री कृष्ण rode on his गरुड with his wife सत्यभामा to प्राग्ज्योतिष . They flew over the city round and understood the lay-out of the city, and the precautions taken by नरकासुर . The battle began after this reconnaissance. श्री कृष्ण , सत्यभामा and गरुड fought with the असुरस् . The might असुरस् such as मुर , ताम्र , अन्तरीक्ष , श्रवण , वसु , विभावसु , नभस्वान् , अरुण and others were killed. At last नरकासुर himself entered the battlefield. A fierce battle ensued in which नरक was killed. The divine weapon नारायणास्त्र of नरक was given to his son भगदत्त . After the battle श्री कृष्ण and सत्यभामा went to the world of the gods and returned the ear-rings to अदिति and the umbrella to इन्द्र . (Bhāgavata, Skandha 10)

Mention is made about another नरकासुर who was born to प्रजापति कश्यप by his wife दनु , in महाभारत , आदि पर्व , Chapter 65, Stanza 28. Once इन्द्र defeated this नरकासुर . It is seen in महाभारत , सभा पर्व , Chapter 9 that this असुर after his death, stayed in the palace of वरुण worshipping him.

भगदत्त the son of नरकासुर ruled over the part of पाताल called नरक , and being the ruler of नरक , भगदत्त seems to have been known by the name of नरक also.