There, with throats parched due to anxiety, they took refuge of
Lord Narayana, the Lord of all. They offered obeisance’s to Him
and praised Him repeatedly and finally explained why they were
so apprehensive. Lord Narayana bestowed His mercy on them and
granted them the power to be fearless. He said, "O fearful ones,
be consoled. How can you be afraid of anyone while I am here? If
anyone remembers Me when he is in danger, wherever he may be, I
hurry to him with my Sudarsan disc in my hand and save him. O
demigods! I am always the creator, preserver and destroyer of
this universe. In the form of Vishnu, I am the preserver; in the
form of Brahma, the creator; and in the form of Siva, the
destroyer. I am Siva, I am you, and I am Surya. I assume
numerous forms and preserve the universe. So go back to your
respective places. You have nothing to be afraid of. All will be
well “. Therefore Sri Mahavishnu determined to kill Hiranya and
bless them.
 Lord
Vishnu informed the demigods that they and the other living
entities would be saved from the fearful conditions created by
Hiranyakasipu. Since Hiranyakasipu was the oppressor of all the
demigods, the followers of the Vedas, the cows, the Brahmins and
the religious, saintly persons, and since he was envious of the
Supreme Lord, he would naturally be killed very soon.
Hiranyakasipu's last exploit would be to torment his own son
Prahlada, who was a maha-bhagavata, an exalted Vaisnava. Then
his life would end." (Bhag. 7.4.intro)
Prahlada Maharaja, the son of Hiranyakasipu, was a great devotee
and he received initiation while within the womb of his mother:
"This transcendental knowledge is devotional service, and
Prahlada Maharaja, while living in the womb of his mother,
received instructions in devotional service from Narada Muni.
Any person engaged in the service of the Lord through the
instructions of a bona fide spiritual master is immediately
liberated, and being free from the clutches of Maya, he is
relieved of all ignorance and material desires." (Bhag.
7.7.intro)
Determined to understand the Absolute Truth, Prahlatha had full
control over his senses and mind He was kind to all living
creatures and the best friend of everyone. Toward respectable
persons he behaved just like a menial servant, to the poor he
was like a father, and to his equals he was always like a
sympathetic brother. Always very humble, he considered his
teachers and spiritual masters to be as good as the Lord
Himself. Indeed, he was completely free of and pride that might
have arisen from his good education, riches, beauty, and
aristocratic birth.
Hiranyakasipu wanted to raise his son to be a powerful demon,
but Prahlada only wanted to learn about devotional service to
Lord Visnu. After Prahlada attended school for some time,
Hiranyakasipu took him on his lap and affectionately inquired,
"My dear son, please tell me about your favorite subject in
school." Fearlessly, Prahlada said, "Hearing (sravanam) and
chanting (kirtanam) about the holy name, form, qualities,
paraphernalia, and pastimes of the Supreme Lord; remembering (smaranam)
them; serving the lotus feet of the Lord (pada-sevanam);
offering the Lord respectful worship with sixteen types of
paraphernalia (arcanam); offering prayers to the Lord (vandanam);
becoming His servant (dasyam); considering the Lord one’s best
friend (sakhyam); and surrendering to Him (atma-nivedanam, in
other words, serving Him with body, mind and words); these nine
processes are known as pure devotional service, and I consider
anyone who has dedicated his life to service of Lord Visnu
through these nine methods to be the most learned person to be
the most learned person, for he has acquired complete
knowledge."Blinded by anger, Hiranyakasipu threw Prahlada
from his lap onto the ground. "Servants! Take him away and kill
him at once!" he screamed. Just see how Prahlada stayed fixed in
his service despite the impediments, which were much heavier
than the impediments of today:
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