Glorification of Gita Chapter XVI
King Khadgabahu's elephant
(Chapter 190, Padma Purana, Part-IX)The lord said:
Hereafter I shall narrate the greatness of the sixteenth chapter. Hear it, O fawn-eyed one, O you showering joy and eagerness. In the Gurjara country there was a city by name Saurastrika. There lived a king Khadgabahu by name. He was, as it were, another moon. The ocean is made fragrant by the string of the fragrance of his flowers and Vishnu with Laksmi sleeps comfortably in it. The particles of the camphor of his fame shine in the sky, under the pretext of stars, after they were scattered there by the sighs of his enemies. Kings among his enemies who had bathed in the holy place of the edge of his sword, (though) fascinated by the words of divine women, even now turn back from heaven. He had an elephant named Arimardana. He was unrestrained due to rut. He had swarms of bees (hovering round and) humming in the water of the flowing ichor. It shone like mount Anjana with the springs rising, turbid due to being the water in the form of the stream of ichor crossing his large temples. In the interior of the forest the chowries bright like the moonlight shone on his limbs like the rays of the moon falling on them. He looked splendid with his temples shining with the cover of the particles of red lead. He was like a portion of the sky pervaded with the evening clouds. (1-9)
Once, at night, he freed himself from the chains and fetters and forcibly broke the iron pillar (to which he was tied) and went out. Angrily ignoring all the hosts of drivers flashing the goads by his side, he broke his abode, though he was being struck in various ways with bamboo sticks to which goads were fixed, and though the drivers frightened him much. Then on hearing this wonder came there the king with those adept in the art of (the marks of) elephants and with princes. Having come (there) the king saw the mighty elephant stupefying the pride of brave heroes and taking away rows of lofty mansions. The citizens, turning away from any other curiosity and through fear guarding their children, looked at the very fierce elephant by keeping themselves at a distance. The paths were made fragrant by the drops of his rut and blocked by people intent on fleeing. Then a brahmana, after having bathed and muttering certain verses from the sixteenth chapter of the Gita, came along the path, though he was prohibited in many ways by the citizens and the drivers of elephants. Not caring for those who were scared of the elephant, he walked on. The elephant covered the people with hissings and crushed them. The brahman touched his ichor and went happily. Even when the citizens were watching, there arose a great wonder in the mind of the king which cannot be grasped by words. Then getting down from his horse, saluting the brahmana the king asked him: (10-22)
The king said:
O brahmana, today you have done a great, uncommon thing. How did you pass by the elephant resembling Death? Which god do you worship? Which hymn do you mutter, O lord? Which divine power do you possess? Tell it, O brahmana. (23-24)
The brahmana said:
O king, everyday I mutter a few verses from the sixteenth chapter of the Gita. All these divine powers are due to that.
Then leaving the elephant, the interesting object of curiosity, the king, taking the brahmana with him, came home. Having pleased the best brahmana at an auspicious time with golden coins numbering a lakh, he received from him the Gita-hymn. The curious king also studied with reverence, a few verses from the sixteenth chapter of the Gita. Once, with his soldiers, he went out of the city. Clearly not caring for the pleasures of the kingdom, he let loose the intoxicated elephant from his driver. The king offered his life like grass before the elephant. The king, the leader of the daring ones, took him, of large temples and unrestrained due to the line of the rut, and due to his confidence in his ministers came there. The king got away from the elephant as the moon would come out of Rahu's mouth or a righteous person from the mouth of Death or a good one from that of a wicked one. Having come to the city, the king consecrated his son (on the throne), and due to the muttering of the sixteenth chapter, obtained the best position. (25-34)
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SUMMARY
The glories of the sixteenth chapter of the Bhagavad-gita were narrated by Lord Shiva to Parvati as follows.
Once a king named Khadga-bahu kept a passionate male elephant. One day this elephant broke loose and in a fit of anger started to destroy the elephant shed. Then the elephant ran here and there, wildly chasing the citizens, who fled as fast as possible. When the king got the news, he at once went out to where the elephant was running amok, because the king knew the art of controlling elephants. Many people were running away from the elephant, but the king saw that one brahmana was returning peacefully from taking his bath in a lake. This brahmana was softly reciting the first three verses of the sixteenth chapter of the Bhagavad-gita which start with the word “abhayam” (“fearlessness”).
When the people saw the brahmana walking toward the elephant, they warned him, Brahmana-and-the-elephant but he paid them no heed and walked straight toward it. When the elephant saw the brahmana approach, it at once lost its anger and lay down peacefully, and the brahmana started rubbing it gently. After stroking the elephant for a few moments, the brahmana went peacefully on his way. When the king and the citizens saw this amazing incident, they stood there dumbfounded. The king then went after the brahmana, fell at his feet, and inquired what austerities and worship the brahmana had performed to attain his amazing power. The brahmana replied, “I daily recite some stanzas from the sixteenth chapter of the Bhagavad-gita.”
The king then offered him a hundred gold coins in charity and requested him to visit the palace and give some instructions in chanting those verses from the sixteenth chapter. After that the king, thus instructed, had been chanting those verses for some time, he ordered the release of the passionate elephant. Fearing that the elephant would run wild again, the citizens were upset with the king. But when the king approached the elephant, it lay down at once, and the king stroked it. Afterward, the king returned to his palace, installed his son on the throne, and left for the forest, where he worshiped Lord Krishna by chanting verses from the sixteenth chapter of the Bhagavad-gita. Quickly he attained the lotus feet of Lord Krishna.
One may be quite sinful, but if one chants this chapter from the Bhagavad-gita, he quickly attains the lotus feet of Lord Krishna.
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Online Sources:
1a) Padma Purana, Uttarkhandam : West Bengal Public Library Network
1b) Padma Purana, Uttarkhandam : Digital Library of India
1c) Padma Purana, Uttarkhandam : Derived from 1a,b
Hard Copy Source: (scanned "PDF"s from Online Source#1a,b)
"The Padma-Purana (English)" by Veda Vyasa, 1954 & 1956. Translated by Sri N.A. Deshpande, Indian Translation Series of the UNESCO Collection of Representative Works, jointly sponsored by UNESCO & Government of India. Part VIII & IX, First Edition. 2906-2970p. Published by Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Pvt.Ltd., Bungalow Road, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi-1110007. Printed by Jainendra Prakash Jain at Jainendra Press, A-45 Naraina Industrial Area, Phase 1, New Delhi-110028.
Online References:
- http://www.bhagavad-gita.us
- http://www.gita-society.com/scriptures/GitaMahatmya.IGS.pdf
- http://www.iskconbangalore.org/gitamahatmya-introduction
- https://archive.org/details/puran_padam
संस्कृत श्लोक - Sanskrit Padmapuran-16
বাংলা অনুবাদ - Bengali Padmapuran-16
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বাংলা অনুবাদ - Bengali Padmapuran-16
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Typed, OCR-ed, edited and uploaded by rk
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