Narasimha-Kevin Missal

Book: Narasimha (The Mahaavatar Trilogy-1)

Author: Kevin Missal

Publisher: Harper Collins India

As kids, we have all heard the story of the fourth avatar of Lord Vishnu-Narasimha. He was the formidable avatar-Half Man-Half lion-incarnated to save his ardent devotee-Prahlad when his father, the demon King-Hiranyakashyap tries to kill him. A pretty simple story of victory of good over evil, right?

Narasimha (The Mahaavatar Trilogy 1) is a retelling of the story from Kevin’s perspective. He has taken several stories around this central plot and bound it into a narrative. The characters are mostly human with some mythical plots built in. The book opens with the prologue showing an attack on Kashyapuri, the capital from where Hiranyakashyap rules. Devendra or Indra attacks the capital as the king was not there. Facing the confrontation, Kayadhu- Hiranyakashyap’s wife-decides to face the battle and gets killed by Narasimha, who was trying to do his duty and protect Indra. The book shifts to events fourteen years after this. We are introduced to Narasimha who is living as a physician in a human settlement. We see Prahlad & Anuhrad, Sons of Kayadhu & Hiranyakashyap- face a battle against Jayant. After the war, we see Hiranyakashyap seek a meeting with his son’s where he details them on the future that each of them was going to have to work on. He sends Anuhrad to help his cousin Andhaka in procuring the Pashupatastra, he himself leaves for Yakshlok to help Vigyasa defeat Lord Agni leaving Prahlad as the Interim King. We are also introduced to the different tribes-Simhas, Devas, Asuras and so on, their origins and their story. On reaching Yakshlok, Hiranyakashyap learns that his brother was in the search of the ultimate weapon-Brahmashastra- and to get that, one has to pass the three trials in the Temple of Brahma.

The story moves on to answer these questions. Will Andhaka get his hands on the Pashupatastra with the help of Anuhrad? Will Prahlad turn into a worthy Asura ruler or will he bend towards faith? Will Hiranyakashyap pass the trials and get his hands on the Brahmashastra? Why did Narasimha leave the war?

Part 1 of the trilogy sets the plot of the entire series beautifully. We are introduced to all the characters well. Each character has a distinct storyline with the proper details needed to establish the cause for their actions. The turning points in the story are very good and the cliffhangers are well placed. The mythology of the Narasimha has been amazingly turned into a fictionalized account of a part human-part god tale.

All things considered; I would have preferred the three trials that Hiranyakashyap undertakes in the Temple of Brahma come in the second book so a certain mystery can be maintained. Nevertheless, the book ends on a very good point with all the plot lines merging towards a single location.

I would rate Narasimha 4/5.