Narayana (Nara+Aayna) is the one who rests on water. But why is this Narayana, epithet of Lord Vishnu, used as suffix for Lord Surya, the Sun God? Is there any story behind this name?
"Narayana" is a Dravidian loan word into Sanskrit - the Dravidians were sea-faring from way back. Also in modern North India, "narayana" has changed to "narain" - showing that it is of a derivation that was strange to descendant of Vedic Aryans.
The Narayana Kavacha is described in this chapter of the Srimad Bhagavatam. As I discuss in this question, Trisiras (AKA Vishwarupa) was the three-headed son of the divine architect Tvashta (AKA Vishwakarma), and he was killed by Indra. But before all that, Trisiras temporarily served as guru of the gods when Brihaspati had abandoned them out of anger. During this time, Indra asked Trisiras ...
vishnu - What is the power of Narayana Kavacha mantram? - Hinduism ...
Narayana and Vishnu are same. Brahma calls Lord Rama as both Narayana and Vishnu - " You are the Lord Narayana himself the glorious god, who wields the discus. You are the Divine Boar with a single tusk, the conqueror of your past and future enemies." "Seetha is no other than Goddess Lakshmi (the divine consort of Lord Vishnu), while you are Lord Vishnu. You are having a shining dark-blue hue ...
Brahma is called Narayana ("he who lies in the waters"). [4 Brahma demurely sitting on a lotus emerging from Vishnu's navel described in almost all puranas and the itihasas also seems to symbolize Brahma's absorption into Vishnu.
narayan - Was "Narayana" originally a name of Brahma that was ...