Narasingh is an avatar of Lord Vishnu in the form of ‘man-lion’, a wild prowling dreaded beast called the ‘Great Protector’. The Rigveda has mention of Narasingh in the Vishnu hymn as a mountain-roaming wild beast. Vedic texts also have references of Narasingh. Legends like Indra-Namuci in the Vedas have mention of Narasingh. A variety of Puranas also have references or depictions of Narasingh Avatara, with seventeen different versions of the main narrative. The Mahabharata has mention of Narasingh and is focused upon in the Nrisimha Tapaniya Upanishad.
Narasingh is depicted with the face of a lion, has fingers with claws which is joined with the body of a human. He bursts out of a pillar thus indicating that his significance is seen in everyone and in everything. Around 9 icons of Lord Narasingh are included in some of the temples in Andhra Pradesh like the one at Ahobilam.
Narasingh’s iconography dates back between the 2nd and 4th century CE. The earliest iconography is found in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Icons of Narasingh are found at important medieval and ancient archeological sites like the Khajuraho temples and in Kashmir at Vaikuntha Chaturmurti. Temples and images of this deity are found in many parts of India’s peninsular region. Single face versions of Narasingh can be seen at the Ellora Caves in Maharashtra and Mathura and Garhwa in Uttar Pradesh. Narasingh’s images are found in the early 5th century in Eran and Tigawa in Madhya Pradesh also. In Karnataka is the Hoysaleswara Temple in which is a stone sculpture of Narasingh kills Hiranyakasipu.
