Canto 1 - Boyhood
Bāla-kāṇḍa
Chapter 15: The Demigods Appeal to the Lord for Protection
Text 1.15.26
त्वं गतिः परमा देव सर्वेषां नः परन्तप।
वधाय देवशत्रूणां नृणां लोके मनः कुरु॥
tvaṁ gatiḥ paramā deva sarveṣāṁ naḥ paran-tapa
vadhāya deva-śatrūṇāṁ nṛṇāṁ loke manaḥ kuru
tvam = You alone; gatiḥ = are means of auspiciousness; paramā = the supreme; deva = O Lord; sarveṣām = for all; naḥ = of us; paran-tapa = O tormentor of Your enemies; vadhāya = to kill; deva-śatrūṇām = the enemies of the devas; nṛṇām = of humans; loke = in the world; manaḥ kuru = kindly resolve to incarnate.
O Lord, You alone are the supreme means of auspiciousness for all of us. O tormentor of Your enemies, kindly resolve to incarnate in the world of humans to kill the enemies of the devas.
Why do the demigods take shelter of Lord Viṣṇu when there are deities like Lord Śiva? That is noted here. Lord Viṣṇu is the tormentor of His enemies, that is, He is capable of killing them. Deva-śatrūṇām indicates that there were several enemies of the devas: Rāvaṇa, Indrajit, Lavaṇa, the evil gandharvas and others. The demigods prayed that the Lord kill all of them. Having this in mind, they requested Him to assume a four-fold form.