The Liberation of Gajendra

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The story so far

After Prahlad's rescue, Shukdev tells the story of an elephant who called on the Lord in his hour of danger.

On Mount Trikut there was a beautiful lake. Gajendra, king of the elephants, lived there with his family. One hot day he was playing in the lake with the female elephants and calves. Suddenly a powerful crocodile hidden in the water seized his foot.

Gajendra pulled with all his strength. His companions pulled too, but no one could free him. It is said this struggle went on for a very long time. In the water the crocodile grew stronger and Gajendra grew weaker. Slowly even his family gave up and drew back.

When no help was left, Gajendra remembered his previous life. He had been King Indradyumna, a devotee of the Lord. He lifted a lotus in his trunk and offered a heartfelt : I take refuge in the One who is the root of all, from whom this world receives its consciousness.

Hearing his call, Lord Vishnu rushed there on Garuda. Raising the lotus, Gajendra said: Narayan, teacher of the world, I bow to You. With His Sudarshan chakra the Lord cut the crocodile's jaws and freed Gajendra. The crocodile was really a Gandharva named Huhu, turned into a crocodile by a curse; he too was freed.

At the Lord's touch, Gajendra too was released from his animal body and became one of the Lord's companions. Tradition holds that whoever remembers Gajendra's prayer with faith in difficult times gains trust in the Lord's shelter.

ॐ नमो भगवते तस्मै यत एतच्चिदात्मकम्। पुरुषायादिबीजाय परेशायाभिधीमहि॥

I bow to that Lord through whom this world becomes conscious. I meditate on Him, the first Person, the seed of all, the Supreme Lord.

— Gajendra's prayer, Shrimad Bhagwat 8.3.2

A lesson for today

Even when our own strength and our own people fail, one shelter remains. Calling out without ego is true prayer.

Next chapter · 5 min readThe Churning of the Ocean and Mohini

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