Shloka 1
Mṛtyvaṣṭaka of Mārkaṇḍeya: Refuge in Viṣṇu and the Withdrawal of Death
सूत उवाच / स्तोत्रं तत्सं प्रवक्ष्यामि मार्कण्डेयन भाषितम् / दामोदरं प्रपन्नो ऽस्मि किन्नो मृत्युः करिष्यति
sūta uvāca / stotraṃ tatsaṃ pravakṣyāmi mārkaṇḍeyana bhāṣitam / dāmodaraṃ prapanno 'smi kinno mṛtyuḥ kariṣyati
સૂત બોલ્યા—હવે માર્કંડેયે કહેલું તે સ્તોત્ર હું યથાવત્ પ્રગટ કરું છું. હું દામોદરના શરણે ગયો છું—તો મૃત્યુ મારું શું કરી શકે?
Sūta
Concept: Refuge in Bhagavān (Dāmodara) grants fearlessness toward death; surrender supersedes mortal threat.
Vedantic Theme: Īśvara-śaraṇāgati and the Lord’s rakṣakatva (protectorship) as a means to transcend mṛtyu-bhaya; implicit distinction between perishable body and protected self under divine grace.
Application: Use as a daily or crisis-time protective recitation; cultivate surrender and remembrance of Dāmodara when confronted with anxiety, illness, or bereavement.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: vira
Related Themes: Garuda Purana: stotra/abhaya passages praising Viṣṇu-nāma as protection (general thematic parallel within Uttara-khaṇḍa/ācāra sections)
FAQs
This verse frames surrender (prapatti) to Dāmodara as a spiritual protection that dissolves fear of Death, introducing a hymn meant to cultivate steadfast devotion at the time of mortality.
Indirectly, it asserts that devotion and surrender to Vishnu re-orient the soul’s destiny: instead of being overwhelmed by fear of Yama-like forces, the devotee relies on divine refuge as the governing principle of the journey beyond death.
Regularly recite or remember a Vishnu-stotra with the attitude “I take refuge,” especially during illness, anxiety, or bereavement, and let that surrender guide ethical living and steadiness in the face of impermanence.