Shloka 33
Trikūṭa Mountain, Ṛtumat Garden, and the Beginning of Gajendra’s Crisis
य: कश्चनेशो बलिनोऽन्तकोरगात् प्रचण्डवेगादभिधावतो भृशम् । भीतं प्रपन्नं परिपाति यद्भया- न्मृत्यु: प्रधावत्यरणं तमीमहि ॥ ३३ ॥
yaḥ kaścaneśo balino ’ntakoragāt pracaṇḍa-vegād abhidhāvato bhṛśam bhītaṁ prapannaṁ paripāti yad-bhayān mṛtyuḥ pradhāvaty araṇaṁ tam īmahi
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is supremely powerful. The serpent of time—death—rushes with fearful force to swallow all, yet one who, in dread, takes shelter of the Lord is protected, for even death flees in fear of Him. Therefore I surrender to Him, the mighty supreme authority and true refuge of all.
One who is intelligent understands that there is a great and supreme authority above everything. That great authority appears in different incarnations to save the innocent from disturbances. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā, paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām: the Lord appears in His various incarnations for two purposes — to annihilate the duṣkṛtī, the sinful, and to protect His devotees. The King of the elephants decided to surrender unto Him. This is intelligent. One must know that great Supreme Personality of Godhead and surrender unto Him. The Lord comes personally to instruct us how to be happy, and only fools and rascals do not see by intelligence this supreme authority, the Supreme Person. In the śruti-mantra it is said:
FAQs
This verse teaches that when a soul becomes afraid and fully surrenders to the Supreme Lord, the Lord personally protects; even death, personified as a powerful pursuer, is said to flee due to fear of Him.
In extreme distress, Gajendra focuses on the essential truth: the one Supreme Controller who can save the surrendered. His prayer is not sectarian identification but wholehearted dependence on the Lord’s saving power.
When overwhelmed by fear—illness, loss, or uncertainty—practice sincere surrender through prayer, remembrance, and taking refuge in dharma; the Bhagavatam’s message is that divine protection begins when dependence shifts from ego to the Lord.