This is a poeticized version of the standard translation for these prayers. I do not know who translated them originally, but the translation is included after the poeticized version.
Sri Nrsima Kavaca
1,2) Invocation
And now I shall recite the hymn once spoken by Prahlad,
Sri Nrsima-kavacha, which the learned souls applaud.
Of prayers it is most pious, and its transcendental sound
resolves the greatest problems and protects one all around.
This hymn bestows all opulence of which one may be fond.
It elevates the soul as far as heaven and beyond.
2-8) Meditation on Lord Nrsimhadeva
Envision Lord Nrsima, Lord Supreme of all that’s known,
as He presides majestically upon His golden throne.
His mouth is open widely below three all-seeing eyes.
His dazzling body rivals waxing moons in autumn skies.
Queen Laxmi stands beside Him to the left, in firm embrace.
His form holds every merit that adorns the human race.
Arrays of shining jewelry embellish His four arms.
Though tender to the touch, His limbs protect one from all harm.
Effulgent golden rings bedeck His piercing lion ears.
His chest blooms like a lotus that resplendently appears.
He’s covered by a spotless yellow cloth in gentle fold,
resembling the color of the purest molten gold.
A host of blazing rubies complement His other gems.
The gods, including Indra, know creation comes from Him.
His lotus feet attract the minds of everyone He sees.
He’s well-prepared to greet those souls immersed in piety
with conch shell and with lotus. For the rest, it’s disc and club.
Garuda prays before Him with great reverence and love.
Although He’s all-pervading, Lord Nrsimadev conceals
Himself within a pillar till He’s fittingly revealed.
My Lord Nrsimadev, You now are seated in my heart.
Please hear me chant these mantras till my enemies depart:
8-16) Prayers for Personal Protection
May You protect my words and the results of all I try.
May You with eyes of sun and flame preserve my mortal eyes.
My Lord Nrsimadev, you shelter planets of all kinds.
Be merciful and shelter both my head and restless mind.
My Lord Nrsimadev, help me recall
the prayers of the sages, one and all.
You nose denotes the most ferocious lion.
My Lord Nrsimadev please safeguard mine.
The stunning Goddess Sri adores your face.
Please keep my mouth and teeth within their place.
Prahlad admires Your face, a shining moon.
May my face be forever facing You.
My Lord, You know the wisdom of our race.
Allow me to maintain my sense of taste.
Your awesome actions keep this world afloat.
My Lord Nrsima, please protect my throat.
Your arms befit the one Supreme Controller.
My Lord Nrsima, please protect my shoulders.
May You who blesses gods protect my hands
and keep me safe wherever I may stand.
May You whom yogis seek within themselves
Protect my heart and safeguard where I dwell.
May You, who ripped apart a demon’s chest,
please keep my vital organs at their best.
My Lord, whose navel generates Brahma,
protect my navel with Your fearsome claws.
The universe itself rests on Your hips.
Please do not allow mine to be eclipsed.
Unseen, You know all hymns and mysteries.
Protect my genitalia if you please.
In You the god of love himself resides.
My Lord Nrsima, please protect my thighs.
You are the perfect blend of man and beast.
My Lord Nrsima, please protect my knees.
You reinforce the earth and all she has.
My Lord Nrsima, please protect my calves.
You grant whatever man and god entreat.
My Lord Nrsima, please protect my feet.
Your thousand-headed form cannot be checked.
Protect me, Lord, in every respect.
17-19) Prayers for Protection from All Sides
Of violence, You are divine perfection;
protect me from the easterly direction.
Protect me from the southeastern direction
where otherwise, Sri Agni has discretion.
No other hero matches your aggression;
protect me from the southerly direction.
No fire bests Your radiant projection;
protect me from the southwestern direction.
Your faces have omniscient perception;
protect me from the westerly direction.
Protect me from the northwestern direction.
where Vayu usually provides protection.
Your form defames the finest gem collection;
protect me from the northerly direction.
Auspicious more than Surya, without question,
protect me from northeastern direction.
O death personified to wicked men,
save me from taking birth here once again.
20-29) Phala Shruti
The mouth of Sri Prahlad embellishes these sacred prayers.
If someone simply reads them, sins will vanish in the air,
and one attains whatever he desires in this life:
longevity, prosperity, fine sons and loving wife.
If he desires victory, he conquers everything,
despite the weight of planets, heaven, earth and in between.
The poisoned bites of scorpions or snakes will have no sway.
Influences of ghosts and Yaksas all will go away.
If one tattoos this hymn, or writes and binds it to his wrist,
his every act and deed will be imbued with excellence.
Or if one simply chants this hymn, just once or thrice each day,
he’ll conquer demons, gods or man—whoever’s in his way.
With thousands of recitals—thirty-two, to be precise—
the pure acquire auspiciousness surpassing paradise.
Of hymns, this Nrsima-kavacha is the very best.
It grants what ash-smeared yogis gain by chanting all the rest.
Wear tilak, sip your achman, and recite this hymn each day,
and fear of inauspicious planets quickly goes away.
By thinking of Nrsimadev a person will survive
diseases of the abdomen and others that arise.
30) Conclusion
He loudly roars and, hearing Him, all others roar as well.
His multitude of arms shreds demons, sending them to hell.
Descendants of Kasyap and Diti can’t escape His wrath.
On earth and elsewhere, they lie scattered in the aftermath.
Destroying them, He cries in anger, stunning outer space,
while nourishing the universe with hands of endless grace.
With love, respect and gratitude, as deeply as I can,
I worship Lord Nrsimadev, half lion and half man.
Original translation
I shall now recite the Nrsimha-kavaca, formerly spoken by Prahlada Maharaja. It is most pious, vanquishes all kinds of impediments, and provides one all protection.
2) It bestows upon one all opulences and can give one elevation to the heavenly planets or liberation. One should meditate on Lord Nrsimha, Lord of the universe, seated upon a golden throne.
3) His mouth is wide open, He has three eyes, and He is as radiant as the autumn moon. He is embraced by Laksmidevi on his left side, and His form is the shelter of all opulences, both material and spiritual. 4) The Lord has four arms, and His limbs are very soft. He is decorated with golden earrings. His chest is resplendent like the lotus flower, and His arms are decorated with jewel-studded ornaments.
5) He is dressed in a spotless yellow garment, which exactly resembles molten gold. He is the original cause of existence, beyond the mundane sphere, for the great demigods headed by Indra. He appears bedecked with rubies which are blazingly effulgent.
6) His two feet are very attractive, and He is armed with various weapons such as the conch, disc, etc. Garuda joyfully offers prayers with great reverence.
7) Having seated Lord Nrsimhadeva upon the lotus of one’s heart, one should recite the following mantra: May Lord Nrsimha, who protects all the planetary systems, protect my head.
8) Although the Lord is all-pervading, He hid Himself within a pillar. May He protect my speech and the results of my activities. May Lord Nrsimha, whose eyes are the sun, and fire, protect my eyes.
9) May Lord Nrhari, who is pleased by the prayers offered by the best of sages, protect my memory. May He who has the nose of a lion protect my nose, and may He whose face is very dear to the goddess of fortune protect my mouth.
10) May Lord Nrsimha, who is the knower of all sciences, protect my sense of taste. May He whose face is beautiful as the full moon and who is offered prayers by Prahlada Maharaja protect my face.
11) May Lord Nrsimha protect my throat. He is the sustainer of the earth and the performer of unlimitedly wonderful activities. May He protect my shoulders. His arms are resplendent with transcendental weapons. May He protect my shoulders.
12) May the Lord, who bestows benedictions upon the demigods, protect my hands, and may He protect me from all sides. May He who is achieved by the perfect yogis protect my heart, and may Lord Hari protect my dwelling place.
13) May He who ripped apart the chest and abdomen of the great demon Hiranyaksa protect my waist, and may Lord Nrhari protect my navel. He is offered prayers by Lord Brahma, who has sprung from his own navel.
14) May He on whose hips rest all the universes protect my hips. May the Lord protect my private parts. He is the knower of all mantras and all mysteries, but He Himself is not visible.
15) May He who is the original Cupid protect my thighs. May He who exhibits a human-like form protect my knees. May the remover of the burden of the earth, who appears in a form which is half-man and half-lion, protect my calves.
16) May the bestower of heavenly opulence protect my feet. He is the Supreme Controller in the form of a man and lion combined. May the thousand-headed Supreme enjoyer protect my body from all sides and in all respects.
17) May that most ferocious personality protect me from the east. May He who is superior to the greatest heroes protect me from the southeast, which is presided over by Agni. May the Supreme Visnu protect me from the south, and may that person of blazing luster protect me from the southwest.
18) May the Lord of everything protect me from the west. His faces are everywhere, so please may He protect me from this direction. May Lord Nrsimha protect me from the northwest, which is predominated by Vayu, and may He whose form is in itself the supreme ornament protect me from the north, where Soma resides.
19) May the all-auspicious Lord, who Himself bestows all-auspiciousness, protect from the northeast, the direction of the sun-god, and may He who is death personified protect me from fear of death and rotation in this material world.
20) This Nrsimha-kavaca has been ornamented by issuing from the mouth of Prahlada Maharaja. A devotee who reads this becomes freed from all sins.
21) Whatever one desires in this world he can attain without doubt. One can have wealth, many sons, and a long life.
22) He becomes victorious who desires victory, and indeed becomes a conqueror. He wards off the influence of all planets, earthly, heavenly, and everything in between.
23) This is the supreme remedy for the poisonous effects of serpents and scorpions, and Brahma-raksasa ghosts and Yaksas are driven away.
24) One may write this most auspicious prayer on his arm, or inscribe it on a palm-leaf and attach it to his wrist, and all his activities will become perfect.
25) One who regularly chants this prayer, whether once or thrice (daily), he becomes victorious whether among demigods, demons, or human beings.
26) One who with purified heart recites this prayer 32,000 times attains the most auspicious of all auspicious things, and material enjoyment and liberation are already understood to be available to such a person.
27) This Kavaca-mantra is the king of all mantras. One attains by it what would be attained by anointing oneself with ashes and chanting all other mantras.
28) Having marked one’s body with tilaka, taking acamana with water, and reciting this mantra three times, one will find that the fear of all inauspicious planets is removed.
29) That person who recites this mantra, meditating upon Lord Nrsimhadeva, has all of his diseases vanquished, including those of the abdomen.
30) Lord Nrsimha roars loudly and causes others to roar. With His multitudes of arms He tears the demons asunder and kills them in this way. He is always seeking out and tormenting the demoniac descendants of Diti, both on this earth planet and in the higher planets, and He throws them down and scatters them. He cries with great anger as He destroys the demons in all directions, yet with His unlimited hands He sustains, protects, and nourishes the cosmic manifestation. I offer my respectful obeisances to the Lord, who has assumed the form of a transcendental lion. —
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