Puranic Encyclopaedia: A Comprehensive Dictionary with Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature c4.90

c4.90

15) *Story of Gajendramokṣa (The redemption of an elephant)*. In the Bhārata a story occurs, as to how Agastya cursed King Indradyumna, and turned him to an elephant. While Indradyumna, the King of Pāṇḍya was absorbed in deep meditation on Viṣṇu, Agastya reached the palace. Being immersed in meditation the King failed to notice the arrival of the great hermit, who getting angry with the King, cursed him to become an elephant, for one thousand years. Instantly the King was deformed into a big tusker and quitting the palace it went to a big forest and lived there happily with the she-elephants there. At that time a hermit named Devala was doing penance in that forest. One day Hūhu, a gandharva (a class of semi-gods) enjoying the company of some celestial maids came to the place where Devala had put up his hermitage. The hermit saw the Gandharva and the maids playing and bathing in the pond in front of his hermitage in complete nudity. Getting angry Devala cursed Hūhu and he was deformed into a crocodile. This pond which was in the Trikūṭa Mountain was thus under the suzerainty of the crocodile. The tusker (Indradyumna) entered the pond to drink water. The crocodile caught hold of the leg of the elephant. Each tried to pull the other with equal force. This fight is said to have lasted for an thousand years. When both were tired, godly feelings began to dawn in their minds. Then, riding on an eagle Mahāviṣṇu appeared before them, cut them asunder with his Cakrāyudha (the wheel-weapon) and both were given deliverance. (Bhāgavata, 8th Skandha, Chapter 2).