Word

Dvarapalaka

Sanskrit

द्वारपालक

IAST

dvārapālaka

In General

The door keeper; the protector of deities

Armed gients are traditionally placed on either side of the temple door as a protector of the deities. These statues are beautifully carved but are not considered worthy of receiving pooja and nobody pray to them. But there is custom of taking their permission while entering the temple

Purana

Jaya and Vijaya are the dvarapalaka of Vaikunta, the abode of Vishnu. Once Kumaras (the four boy sages: Sanaka, Sanatana, Sanandana, Sanatkumara) went to the abode of Vishnu, they were denied entry by the gate keepers Jaya and Vijaya as the boys looked too young to enter the great place. For this misbehavior, Kumaras cursed the gate keepers Jaya and and Vijaya to be born in earth three times as Asuras

Accordingly they were bone as Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu first then as Ravana and Kumbhakarna and lastly as Shishupala pala and Dantavakra. Each occasion Lord Vishnu in his respective avatara as Narasimha, Sri Rama, and Sri Krishna killed them