Shloka 23
Gajendra's Deliverance — Gajendra’s Deliverance and the Protective Power of Remembrance (Japa)
गृहीतस्तेन रौद्रेण ग्राहेणाव्यक्तमूर्तिना पश्यन्तीनां करेणूनां क्रोशन्तीनां च दारुणम्
gṛhītastena raudreṇa grāheṇāvyaktamūrtinā paśyantīnāṃ kareṇūnāṃ krośantīnāṃ ca dāruṇam
{"scene_description": "A serene tirtha setting where a sage or narrator enumerates three named figures—Hiraṇyākṣa, Suvarṇākṣa, Virūpākṣa—whose remembrance grants merit; pilgrims listen near a sacred waterbody.", "primary_figures": ["pilgrims", "sage/narrator", "symbolic presence of Hiraṇyākṣa", "symbolic presence of Suvarṇākṣa", "symbolic presence of Virūpākṣa"], "setting": "Sacred lake/pond at Saro-tirtha with ghats, trees, and small shrine markers.", "color_palette": ["ochre", "river-blue", "leaf-green", "sandalwood-beige", "gold accents"], "tanjore_prompt": "Tanjore style, gold leaf detailing, serene tirtha by a sacred tank, a seated rishi pointing as three name-panels appear (Hiraṇyākṣa, Suvarṇākṣa, Virūpākṣa), pilgrims with folded hands, ornate borders, warm reds and gold.", "pahari_prompt": "Pahari miniature, soft pastel landscape with a clear sacred lake and distant hills, a rishi narrating to pilgrims, three subtle haloed name-figures in the sky, delicate linework, calm devotional mood.", "kerala_mural_prompt": "Kerala mural, bold outlines and flat natural pigments, temple-tank scene with a rishi and devotees, three emblematic guardian-like figures labeled by gesture, rich greens and reds, traditional mural composition.", "pattachitra_prompt": "Pattachitra scroll panel, folk narrative layout with the tirtha at center, rishi at left speaking, three framed vignettes for Hiraṇyākṣa/Suvarṇākṣa/Virūpākṣa, decorative floral borders, natural dyes and strong black line."}
{ "primaryRasa": "bhayanaka", "secondaryRasa": "karuna", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
The context is aquatic attack and seizure; thus grāha is the ‘seizer’ in water—typically a crocodile/alligator or water-monster—distinct from graha ‘planet’.
It reflects the realism of an underwater predator—its body obscured by water, plants, or depth—and also adds a numinous tone, making the threat feel uncanny and fated within a sacred-site narrative.
The kareṇūs’ cries intensify the scene’s ‘dāruṇatā’ (horror) and prepare for a didactic or salvific turn typical of māhātmya episodes—where distress at a tīrtha becomes the occasion for revealing the site’s power or a deity’s grace.