Shloka 18

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

Devanagari script

पत्रैर्मरकतप्रख्यैः पुष्पैः काञ्चनसंनिभैः गुल्मैः कीचकवेणूनां समन्तात् परिवेष्टितम्

Transliteration

patrairmarakataprakhyaiḥ puṣpaiḥ kāñcanasaṃnibhaiḥ gulmaiḥ kīcakaveṇūnāṃ samantāt pariveṣṭitam

Translation

അതിന്റെയിലകൾ മരകതംപോലെ തിളങ്ങി, പുഷ്പങ്ങൾ സ്വർണ്ണസദൃശമായി; കീചക വേണുക്കളുടെ കുറ്റിക്കാടുകൾ അതിനെ എല്ലാടവും ചുറ്റിപ്പറ്റിയിരുന്നു.

Speakers

• Narrator voice within the Purāṇic dialogue (exact interlocutors not provided in input)

Key Themes

• Sacred landscape description
• Tirtha/lake ecology imagery
• Auspicious natural symbolism (emerald-gold imagery)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the function of the emerald-and-gold imagery in Purāṇic tirtha descriptions?

Such imagery marks the site as divya (extraordinary) and auspicious, using gem-and-metal similes to signal sacred potency and to distinguish the tirtha’s landscape from ordinary terrain.

What is meant by kīcaka-veṇu here?

It denotes a type of bamboo; Purāṇic geography often identifies a tirtha by its characteristic vegetation, which also serves as a mnemonic marker for pilgrims.

Does this verse itself establish a specific named tirtha?

No. It describes a lake (saras) and its surrounding bamboo thickets, functioning as the setting for the subsequent episode; the proper name of the lake/tirtha is not present in this line.