Category:God and Gajendra
Theme Analysis
Śrīla Prabhupāda explains the profound history of Gajendra, the King of the elephants, as a perfect example of complete surrender to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. When caught in the jaws of a fierce crocodile, Gajendra realized that no demigod, family member, or mystic power could save him. In his ultimate distress, he bypassed all subordinate controllers like Brahmā and Śiva and appealed directly to Lord Nārāyaṇa. Remembering the spiritual knowledge from his past life, Gajendra offered beautiful, philosophically perfect prayers to the Supreme Lord, recognizing Him as the original cause, the all-pervading Supersoul, and the ultimate deliverer. Pleased by his unalloyed devotion and total dependence, Lord Hari immediately appeared and saved His pure devotee. This transcendental deliverance is famously compared to how Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu rescued the people of South India from the jaws of dangerous philosophies, proving that only pure devotional service, taught by a bona fide guru, can rescue the conditioned soul from the jaws of the material world.
- The Ultimate Shelter: In times of insurmountable danger, the living entity must realize that only the Supreme Lord can provide ultimate protection.
- Bypassing the Demigods: Gajendra did not pray to Brahmā, Śiva, or Indra; he exclusively sought the shelter of the Supreme Lord, knowing Him to be the original cause of all causes.
- Philosophical Prayers: Despite being in an animal body, Gajendra remembered his past life and offered profound prayers acknowledging the Lord's personal, impersonal, and localized features.
- The Power of Bhakti: The Supreme Personality of Godhead is unlimited and inconceivable, but He becomes easily available and visible through the process of transcendental bhakti-yoga.
- The Supreme Rescuer: Just as Lord Viṣṇu physically rescued Gajendra from the crocodile, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu spiritually rescues conditioned souls from the crocodile of materialistic life and false philosophies.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Gajendra Had Surrendered to God.
Pages in category "God and Gajendra"
The following 20 pages are in this category, out of 20 total.
H
- He has immense potency, and in various forms, all free from material contamination, He acts wonderfully. He is therefore the Supreme Brahman. I offer my respects to Him
- He is the supreme knower of everything in this world, the Supersoul of the universe. He is the unborn, supremely situated Lord. I offer my respectful obeisances unto Him
I
- I (Gajendra) offer my respectful obeisances unto You (God), who are the shelter of the Vedic knowledge contained in the sastras like the Pancaratras and Vedanta-sutra, which are Your representations, and who are the source of the parampara system
- I offer my respectful obeisances to Vasudeva, who is all-pervading, to the Lord's fierce form as Lord Nrsimhadeva, to the Lord's form as an animal (Varahadeva), to Dattatreya, who preached impersonalism, to Lord Buddha, & to all the other incarnations
- I offer my respectful obeisances unto the Lord, who has no material qualities but who accepts the three qualities goodness, passion and ignorance within this material world. I also offer my respectful obeisances unto the impersonal Brahman effulgence
- I pray to that Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is eternally existing, who is invisible, who is the Lord of all great personalities, such as Brahma, and who is available only by transcendental bhakti-yoga
S
- Since Gajendra, King of the elephants, had surrendered to the SP of Godhead to get free from the present danger and, indirectly, from the present danger of materialistic life, why should the Supreme Personality of Godhead not fulfill his desire
- Some people approach Him (Krsna) in the pursuit of knowledge of the Absolute Truth, and others approach Him when they are distressed, like the devotee Gajendra
- Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s converting the people of South India into Vaisnavas is compared herein (CC Madhya 9.1) to Lord Visnu’s delivering Gajendra the elephant from the attack of a crocodile
T
- Taking a lotus flower in his trunk, he (Gajendra) addressed the Lord, saying, "O original enjoyer, Lord of the universe! O deliverer, as famous as a place of pilgrimage! All are purified simply by hearing Your holy name, which is worthy to be chanted"
- The King of the elephants (Gajendra) was so very eager to see the Supreme Personality of Godhead that when he saw the Lord coming in the sky, with great pain and in a feeble voice he offered respect to the Lord
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead is realized by pure devotees who act in the transcendental existence of bhakti-yoga. He is the bestower of uncontaminated happiness and is the master of the transcendental world. Therefore I offer my respect unto Him