By Amogha das
A few years ago I presented a photo table at a Sunday feast at one of our temples. One devotee came up to the table and held a photo of Lord Nrsimhadev in his hands. I encouraged him to take Lord Nrsimhadev home, but he said, "If I was qualified to worship Him!" and quickly walked away. He seemed to be afraid of Lord Nrsimhadev. More recently my daughter and her husband removed the photo of Lord Nrsimhadev from their altar because they heard that some couples had been devastated by worshiping an Ugra Nrsimha Deity in their home. Ugra Nrsimha is the terrifying form of the Lord standing ready to attack the demons and totally destroy them, in order to save His devotee Prahlad. To worship Him in His Deity form one must be strictly celibate, and there are many strict rules and methods of worship. One point is that having a photo of a Deity on an altar is not the same as having a Deity, but more importantly, Lord Nrsimhadev in Mayapur is extremely merciful.