The Failure to Kill Sri Prahlada
The guards and personal servant to Hiranyakashipu picked up their tridents and began striking the tender body of the five-year-old boy. Prahlada having full faith in the Lord sat there just chanting the holy names of Krsna. But those sharp weapons could not penetrate the body of the fragile Prahlada. Seeing that their attempts were failing, the father made other plans to kill his son.
Taking fully grown elephants, He placed Prahlad underneath them, hoping the wild animals would crash the boy. Failing that too, he threw Prahlada into a pit of venomous snakes. Throwing him from huge mountain also did not help. He then gave his son poison to drink which was fruitless. Exposing the boy to extreme heat, cold and winds also lead to useless endeavours.
The demon father told his wife Kayadu to prepare a big feast for Sri Prahlada. Once the feast was cooked, Hiranyakashipu called his son to eat. Before serving the meal, the King laced it with poison. His son sat down but before eating the sumptuous feast cooked by his mother, Sri Prahlada offered it to Lord Visnu. Just as Lord Siva appeared at the churning of ocean and drank to poison, Lord Vishnu accepted the offering and removed the poison, all His devotee to relish his mother’s cooking.
Hiranyakashipu was running out of ideas on how to kill his son. Then his sister, Holika appeared and reminded him of the boon that she had been given by Lord Brahma that she cannot be burnt. She came up with a plan.
The servants of Hiranyakashipu were ordered to built a big pyre of woods. Holika then took sweet Prahlada in her hands and took onto the woods. She sat down placing her nephew on her lap. Then the servants lit up the woods from the four sides. As the flames consumed the woods, Holika began to feel the heat. But she was confident that no harm will come to her. But as the fire turned into an inferno Holika’s skin began to burn. Slowly the fire engulfed her body. While the fire extinguished her body and life, her nephew, Sri Prahlada sat there chanting Om Namo Bhavagate Vasudevaya. Remembering the benediction that Narada Muni gave Prahlada’s mother, Kayadhu, Lord Visnu personally protected His devotee, Sri Prahlada. The Boon of Lord Brahma was nullified because Holika used it destroy a devotee.
