तदा देवर्षिगन्धर्वा ब्रह्मेशानपुरोगमाः ।
मुमुचुः कुसुमासारं शंसन्तः कर्म तद्धरेः ॥१॥
Å›rÄ«-Å›uka uvÄca
tadÄ devará¹£i-gandharvÄ
brahmeÅ›Äna-purogamÄḥ
mumucuḥ kusumÄsÄraá¹
Å›aá¹santaḥ karma tad dhareḥ
Å›rÄ«-Å›ukaḥ uvÄca - ÅšrÄ« Åšukadeva GosvÄmÄ« said; tadÄ - at that time (when Gajendra was delivered); deva-ṛṣi-gandharvÄḥ - the demigods, sages and Gandharvas; brahma-Ä«Å›Äna-purogamÄḥ - headed by Lord BrahmÄ and Lord Åšiva; mumucuḥ - showered; kusuma-ÄsÄram - a covering of flowers; Å›aá¹santaḥ - while praising; karma - transcendental activity; tat - that (gajendra-moká¹£aṇa); hareḥ - of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
ÅšrÄ« Åšukadeva GosvÄmÄ« said: When the Lord delivered Gajendra, King of the elephants, all the demigods, sages and Gandharvas, headed by BrahmÄ and Åšiva, praised this activity of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and showered flowers upon both the Lord and Gajendra.
It is evident from this chapter that great sages like Devala Ṛṣi, NÄrada Muni and Agastya Muni will sometimes curse someone. The curse of such a personality, however, is in fact a benediction. Both the crocodile, who had been a Gandharva in his previous life, and Gajendra, who had been a king named Indradyumna, were cursed, but both of them benefited. Indradyumna, in his birth as an elephant, attained salvation and became a personal associate of the Lord in Vaikuṇá¹ha, and the crocodile regained his status as a Gandharva. We find evidence in many places that the curse of a great saint or devotee is not a curse but a benediction.
