Hiranyakasipu - Aggrieved but Philosophical

Chapter 2

Maharaja Yuddhistira enquired about the enmity between the boy-saint Prahlada and his father, Hiranyakasipu. Narada Muni thus narrated the dramatic history.

After Varahadeva killed Hiranyaksa, Hiranyakasipu seethed with anger and accused the Lord of partiality. He was hell-bent on gaining revenge. Assisted by his demoniac associates, Hiranyakasipu wreaked havoc in the universe, burning villages, attacking sages, killing cows and performing an array of other atrocities.

Though engaged in such abominable violence, Hiranyakasipu simultaneously performed the religious rites for his brother’s funeral and comforted his grieving relatives with profound philosophy and enlightening wisdom. He narrated how Yamaraja once appeared as a young boy to spiritually counsel some queens who had lost their husband, King Suyajna. In his discourse, Yamaraja narrated the story of the kulinga birds to teach them that if they exhaust their time in useless lamentation for their deceased husband, they will also be overcome by death in the process.