Our
Scriptures tell us about Lord Shrihari's incarnations on this earth time
and again, in order to protect His devotees by means of destroying evil
forces. There are also references in Puranas to Mother Goddess' appearance
on the earth fulfill the same mission
Once the
great seven sages ( Sapta Rishis ) came to Vaikunta to meet Lord Vishnu.
The door keepers of Vaikunta Jaya and Vijaya prevented them from meeting
Maha Vishnu . The Rishis , taking it as great insult cursed them to be
borne on the earth.
Terrified
by this curse Jaya and Vijaya were at a loss to know how to save
themselves from the deprivation of Vaikunta. They seek forgiveness and
succour from the Lord, as there was no means of circumventing the curse of
great sages. It was inevitable for them to be borne on earth. However ,
the merciful God gave them the option of ten lives on the earth as His
devotees or that of three lives as His enemies . The repentant
door-keepers opted for three births so that they could come back to
Vaikunta at the earliest. Lord Vishnu granted their prayer promising to
redeem them each time.
As decreed
by their destiny Jaya and Vijaya took birth as Hiranyaksha and
Hiranykashyapu. They became bitter enemies of Vishnu. They became so
powerful that they unseated Devendra from his throne and indulged in the
persecution of Lord Vishnu's devotees, saints and sages. Vishnu
incarnating as Varaha and Narasimha killed Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashyapu
respectively. He restored Devendra to his throne and brought happiness and
prosperity to His devotees.
Having got
rid of the two formidable enemies , the devatas heaved a sigh of relief
and resumed their indulgence in heavenly pleasures. On such a day when
they were enjoying the dance recital of Apsaras, Narada happened to visit
Indra. He was welcomed with love and reverence. Indra, very casually
enquired about the goings on around the world. In response to his enquiry
in a tone of warning Narada advised him to be vigilant as bad days were in
store for him. Alerted by this warning , Indra evinced great interest in
knowing the source of his troubles.
Narada
forewarned him about the war preparations of Vikhasini, the daughter of
Hiranyakashyapu. Of course Devendra laughed away the possible threat from
a woman, However, having sounded the warning bell Narada took his
leave.
Vikhasini's
( Daughter of Hiranyakashyapu, queen of Shonithapura ) pleasure and
pastime was persecution of innocent and virtuous people. Not content with
these, she encouraged her army chief to attack Devaloka. When the army of
demons besieged Devaloka, Indra faced them brandishing his Vajrayudha and
riding his Airavata. But the enemy proved to be too strong for him and he
was forced to flee from Devaloka with all his followers. Seeing Indra's
throne vacant the demons occupied it with pomp and pride. But the king of
Yakshas did not allow their victory to last long . He slew their chief and
drove them out of Indraloka.
The news of the death of the stalwarts of
her army left Vikhasini badly humbled and shattered. She realised that
without the grace of God her earthly powers were futile. She made up her
mind to do penance and propitiate Brahma so that she could get a son by
his grace who would be powerful enough to avenge the insult and penury
suffered by her because of Lord Vishnu and Devatas.
Having entrusted her state
responsibilities to her minister, Vikhasini entered a forest and commenced
her severe penance devoted to Brahma. When it proved to be futile she
decided to offer her mortal body to the sacrificial fire. Brahma appeared
before her, immensely pleased with her devotion. He offered to satisfy her
wants. Elated by the grace of Brahma Vikhasini said, "Lord grant me a
son who can slay Vishnu, the slayer of my father." Brahma had to tell
her that Threemoorthies are deathless. But in the form of a boon promised
her that she would beget a son from Lord Shiva and he would be valiant and
invincible. This boon brought Vikhasini boundless pleasure, and quite
contended , she returned to her kingdom.