Shloka 26

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

Devanagari script

व्यथितः स निरुत्साहो गृहीतो घोरकर्मणा परमापदमापन्नो मनसाचिन्तयद्धरिम्

Transliteration

vyathitaḥ sa nirutsāho gṛhīto ghorakarmaṇā paramāpadamāpanno manasācintayaddharim

Translation

Afflicted and devoid of resolve, seized by that dreadful agent, having fallen into the utmost calamity, he contemplated Hari in his mind.

Speakers

• Narrative voice (speaker not specified in prompt).

Primary Deities

• Viṣṇu (Hari)

Key Themes

• Śaraṇāgati (seeking refuge)
• Hari-smaraṇa (mental remembrance)
• Deliverance motif
• Devotion surpassing physical power

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What theological point is made by ‘manasā cintayad dharim’ (he remembered Hari mentally)?

It foregrounds inner turning (mānasa-smaraṇa) as efficacious even when speech, ritual, or bodily action is obstructed—an important Purāṇic devotional principle: remembrance itself becomes a salvific act.

Who is ‘ghorakarmaṇā’—the crocodile or a personified force?

Grammatically it can qualify the seizer (the crocodile) as ‘terrible in action.’ In Purāṇic style it can also hint at the impersonal force of fate/karma manifesting through the creature, intensifying the sense of inescapability.

How does this fit typical Purāṇic rescue narratives?

It matches a common pattern: (1) sudden peril in water, (2) futile struggle, (3) surrender/remembering the deity, leading to (4) divine intervention. In a tīrtha context, the locale’s sanctity often frames or amplifies the salvific outcome.