Narasimha is Vishnu’s half-man, half-lion avatar in Hindu mythology.
The Narasimha story centers on the demon king Hiranyakashipu, who receives protections that make him difficult to kill by ordinary means. Hiranyakashipu demands worship and persecutes his son Prahlada, a devoted follower of Vishnu. To protect Prahlada, Vishnu appears as Narasimha, neither fully human nor fully animal.
Narasimha kills Hiranyakashipu at twilight, on a threshold, using claws rather than a conventional weapon, and while holding him on his lap. These details are presented as satisfying the conditions of the boon. The episode is therefore a classic example of divine intervention that overcomes an apparently invulnerable threat.
Narasimha is usually counted as the fourth of Vishnu’s ten principal Dashavatara in many traditions, following Matsya, Kurma, and Varaha and preceding Vamana. Regional traditions differ in lists and emphasis, but Narasimha’s lion-man form and the Prahlada narrative are widely recognized across Vaishnava Hinduism.