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
ਸੂਤ ਨੇ ਆਖਿਆ—ਹੁਣ ਮੈਂ ਮਾਰਕੰਡੇਯ ਜੀ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਉਚਾਰਿਆ ਉਹ ਸਤੋਤਰ ਯਥਾਵਤ ਸੁਣਾਉਂਦਾ ਹਾਂ। ਮੈਂ ਦਾਮੋਦਰ ਦੀ ਸ਼ਰਨ ਲੈ ਲਈ ਹੈ—ਫਿਰ ਮੌਤ ਮੇਰਾ ਕੀ ਕਰ ਸਕਦੀ ਹੈ?
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.