Shloka 35

Gajendra's Deliverance — Gajendra’s Deliverance and the Protective Power of Remembrance (Japa)

Devanagari script

नमो देवाधिदेवाय स्वभावाय नमो नमः नमो जगत्प्रतिष्ठाय गोविन्दाय नमो नमः

Transliteration

namo devādhidevāya svabhāvāya namo namaḥ namo jagatpratiṣṭhāya govindāya namo namaḥ

Translation

Salutation to the God above gods; salutation to the One whose very nature is (the ground of all). Salutation to the Support/Foundation of the universe; salutation to Govinda—salutation, salutation.

Speakers

• A devotee/narratorial voice offering stuti (within the chapter’s māhātmya narration; speaker-frame varies by manuscript tradition)

Primary Deities

• Viṣṇu
• Śiva

Key Themes

• Stuti
• Supremacy of the divine (devādhideva)
• Cosmic support (jagatpratiṣṭhā)
• Shaiva–Vaishnava unity / shared epithets
• Non-sectarian theism in Purāṇic praise

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Why does ‘Govinda’ appear in a sequence that otherwise praises Śiva?

Purāṇic stutis often employ shared supremacist language across sectarian boundaries. Here, ‘Govinda’ can indicate Viṣṇu explicitly, or function as a supreme-name within a non-dual/henotheistic frame where the highest reality is praised through multiple divine appellations, reinforcing Hari–Hara convergence.

What does ‘jagatpratiṣṭhā’ imply in Purāṇic cosmology?

It identifies the deity as the ontological ground: the world is ‘established’ in Him, sustained by Him, and ultimately returns to Him. The term bridges devotional praise with cosmological doctrine (creation–maintenance–dissolution resting on the supreme).

How should ‘svabhāvāya’ be read—‘to Nature’ or ‘to the One whose nature is supreme’?

In this stuti context it is best read as ‘to the One who is (true) essential being’—the intrinsic reality underlying all. While svabhāva can mean ‘nature’ in Sāṃkhya-like discourse, the devotional syntax (‘namo … svabhāvāya’) treats it as an epithet of the supreme Lord rather than impersonal prakṛti.