The deafening roar of a raging lion filled the vicinity of the riverbank. A heavily pregnant doe felt as if her heart had plummeted into her stomach. Her breathing became heavier every second. Overcome with panic she spontaneously leapt across the Gandaki River to escape. As she flew midair, her premature fawn fell out, landing in the caressing water. But as the exhausted and depressed doe’s black hooves met the river’s other bank, she released her final breath.
“It was you?” Devala asked, his fingers flying to his chin. “I thought a crocodile had caught hold of me. What were you thinking?”
Gajendra charismatically ushered his herd to the nearby river. Like any honorable leader, the elephant king patiently waited for each one of his subjects to quench their thirst.
At last, Gajendra waded in and began drinking. As he gleefully frolicked in the river, he suddenly felt something sharp in his feet.
Indradyumna had experienced enough of his worldly and materialistic life as a king. The Pandya ruler wanted to spend the remainder of his life immersing himself in the worship of Sriman Narayana.
Neither the burning heat of summers nor the torrential downpours of rain disturbed the steadfastness of the couple’s penance.
Sutapa, the son of Brahma, and his wife Prishni were assigned as progenitors. Their duty was to populate the world.
