śrī gajendra mokṣa

Shri Shuka said: Thus, having resolved with his intellect, and having fixed his mind in his heart, he chanted the supreme mantra which he had learned in his previous birth.

Gajendra said: Salutations to that Lord, from whom this (universe), whose essence is consciousness, originates. We meditate upon the Purusha, the primal seed, the Supreme Lord.

I surrender to the Self-existent One, in whom this (universe) abides, from whom it originates, by whom it is sustained, who Himself is this (universe), and who is beyond this (manifest creation) as well as beyond the supreme (unmanifested cause).

He who, by His own Māyā, has placed this (universe) within Himself—sometimes manifest, sometimes hidden; He, the unperturbed witness, observes both. May that Self-existent One, higher than the highest, protect me.

When, by time, all the worlds, their guardians, and even the very causes of all completely perished, then there was dense, profound darkness. He who shines forth resplendently beyond that (darkness) is the all-pervading Lord.

Whose true nature neither gods nor sages comprehend, what mere creature then can know or describe Him? Just as an actor, performing in various roles, His ways are inscrutable. May that Lord protect me.

He is my refuge, whom the unattached and truly pious sages, desiring to behold His supremely auspicious lotus feet, undertake a flawless, transcendental vow in the forest, having become one with all beings and acting as benefactors to all.

He who has no birth or deeds, nor name or form, nor qualities or faults. Yet, for the creation and dissolution of the worlds, He, by His own Māyā (illusory power), manifests them in due course.

My obeisances to Him, the Supreme Lord, Brahman, the possessor of infinite power; to the Formless One, who assumes many forms; and to the performer of wondrous deeds.

Salutations to the Self-effulgent, the Witness, the Supreme Self. Salutations to Him who is far beyond words, and beyond even mind and consciousness.

Obeisance to the Lord of Kaivalya (absolute liberation), the very consciousness of Nirvana's bliss, who is realized by the wise through purity (sattva) and freedom from the bonds of action (naiṣkarmya).

Salutations to the peaceful, to the terrifying, to the one who appears unknowing, and to the one possessing qualities. Salutations to the undifferentiated, to the impartial, and to the dense mass of knowledge.

Salutations to You, the Knower of the Field, the Overseer of all, the Witness! Salutations to the Supreme Person, who is the root of the Self, and the primal material nature!

Salutations to You, the perceiver of the qualities of all senses and the cause of all understanding; You who are indicated by the shadow of the unreal, yet are the ever-shining Reality.

Salutations again and again to You, the cause of all; to the causeless One, to the wondrous cause. To the great ocean of all scriptures and sacred traditions, salutations to You, the ultimate liberation and the supreme refuge.

I offer my obeisance to Him, the Self-luminous One, whose conscious essence is veiled by the kindling-woods of the Gunas (qualities of nature); from the agitation of which (Gunas) His cosmic mind is manifested; and who, by the very state of being actionless, transcends the injunctions of all scriptures.

Obeisances to Him who liberates surrendered beings like me from the fetters of material existence, to the eternally free, to the supremely compassionate, to the imperishable One.

Salutations to You, the Supreme Lord, the Greatest, who, by Your own partial manifestation, are evident as the inner Witness in the minds of all embodied beings.

Obeisances to the Lord, the Supreme Controller, the embodiment of pure knowledge, who is difficult for those attached to their body, children, relatives, home, wealth, and kinsmen to attain, who is free from the entanglement of material qualities, and who is meditated upon in their own hearts by liberated souls.

Those who desire righteousness, prosperity, pleasure, and liberation worship Him and attain their desired goal. What then of (other) boons? He even grants an imperishable body. May He, of infinite compassion, grant me liberation.

His exclusive devotees, who have truly surrendered to the Lord, desire no personal gain. Singing His most wonderful and supremely auspicious pastimes, they are immersed in an ocean of bliss.

I praise Him who is the imperishable Brahman, the Supreme, the Lord of all lords, the unmanifest, attainable through spiritual contemplation, beyond the senses, subtle, as if extremely distant, infinite, primeval, and perfectly complete.

From whom Brahma and other gods, the Vedas, the worlds, and all moving and non-moving entities are created, distinguished by name and form, by a mere insignificant fraction of His power.

Just as the flames of a fire and the rays of the sun repeatedly emanate and retract their own light, similarly, from Him proceeds and recedes this flow of the material qualities, along with intelligence, mind, the senses, and the creation of bodies.

He is certainly not a god, demon, human, or animal; not a female, nor an eunuch, nor a male, nor a living being. He is not a quality, nor an action, neither existent nor non-existent. May He, the unlimited One who remains after all negations, be victorious!

I do not desire to live here (in this world) or there (in the next world) in this condition, covered internally and externally by this elephant birth. I desire liberation from that covering of the Self-world, which is not destroyed by time.

I bow to Him, the creator of the universe, the universe itself, yet distinct from the universe, the knower of the universe, the Self of the universe, unborn, Brahman, the Supreme Abode.

I bow to that Lord of Yoga whom the yogis, whose karmas have been purified by yoga, clearly behold in their hearts illuminated by yoga.

Salutations, salutations to You, whose speed is irresistible, who possesses the three powers and is the essence of all mental qualities! To the protector of those who surrender, whose power is endless, whose path is unattainable by those with uncontrolled senses!

This (self) does not know its own Self, struck down by the ego (aham-dhi) born of Your power. To that Lord (Bhagavan), whose glory is insurmountable, I go for refuge.

Śrī Śuka said: When Gajendra thus described the one who is devoid of specific attributes, Brahmā and others, who identify with various distinct forms, did not approach, due to their identification with specific forms (or because He is the Soul of all). Then Hari, who embodies all deities, appeared there.

Perceiving him (Gajendra) distressed in that manner, the Abode of the universe, hearing the hymn even as the demigods were praising along, being carried by Garuḍa, who is the embodiment of the Vedas, the wielder of the discus swiftly went to where Gajendra was.

He, distressed and seized by immense strength within the lake, saw Hari on Garuḍa in the sky, His discus already taken up. Raising his lotus-like trunk, he spoke with great difficulty: 'O Nārāyaṇa, O preceptor of all, O Lord, salutations to You!'

Upon seeing him (Gajendra) in distress, the Unborn Lord (Vishnu) swiftly descended. Out of compassion, He immediately pulled Gajendra along with the crocodile from the lake. Hari, the foe (of the crocodile), tore open the crocodile's mouth and released Gajendra, while the celestial beings watched.

Thus ends the third chapter, named 'Shri Gajendra Mokshana' (The Liberation of Gajendra), in the Eighth Canto of the great Purana, the glorious Srimad Bhagavatam.