At the foothills of the Trikuta Mountains, on the banks of the sacred Śrīkṛṣṇāgaṇḍakī (Nārāyaṇī) River, there once existed a beautiful forest. This divine woodland was served and frequented by gods, gandharvas, yakṣas, kinnaras, siddhas, cāraṇas, and countless ṛṣis and mahāṛṣis. The forest echoed with the melodious sounds of peacocks, cuckoos, and many other birds. Numerous animals—deer, boar, antelope, rhinoceros, wild cows, porcupines, lions, tigers, monkeys, and many others—made this enchanting forest their home. As stated in the Vāmana Purāṇa:
“Gandharvaiḥ Kinnarair yadhaiḥ Siddha–Cāraṇa–Guhyakaiḥ.”
The Trikuta mountains were rich with mines of gold, silver, and copper. Even today, red, white, and black soils can be seen as remnants of those mineral deposits:
“Raupyāyasa–Hiraṇmayaiḥ.”
At the foot of Trikuta, the Gaṇḍakī River expanded like a lake.
In this forest, an elephant named Gajendra was the king of all animals. All creatures, great and small, lived in fear of him. One day, Gajendra, intoxicated with the vigor of youth, arrived at the Gaṇḍakī River with his herd to play in the water. Splashing water with his trunk, he enjoyed with the elephant cows and calves. Suddenly, a powerful crocodile seized Gajendra’s leg with a fierce grip:
“Grāho balīyān caraṇe ruṣā gṛhīt.”
A terrible battle began between the king of the forest (the elephant) and the king of the waters (the crocodile). Other elephants and calves tried to save their king by pulling him with their trunks, but even after a long struggle, they could not free him. The fight went on for years, and Gajendra’s strength slowly faded. Eventually, the other elephants gave up and left him.
Weak and helpless, Gajendra realized that neither his own strength nor the help of others could save him. At that moment, memories of his devotion from a previous life awakened within him. With firm faith that Lord Nārāyaṇa, the protector of the surrendered, alone could save him, he began to offer a divine prayer:
Om namo bhagavate tasmai yata etac cidātmakam
puruṣāyādi–bījāya pareśāyābhidhīmahi.
In this hymn, he did not mention any particular deity by name. Hearing this divine prayer, Brahmā and other gods hoped he might be calling upon them. But as the crocodile dragged him deeper into the water and only his trunk remained above the surface, Lord Nārāyaṇa—compassionate toward His devotees—instantly mounted Garuḍa and appeared.
Seeing Him, Gajendra plucked a lotus with great effort from the water and offered it with his exhausted trunk, saying:
So ’ntaḥ sarasy urubalena gṛhīta ārtaḥ
dṛṣṭvā garutmati hariṃ khaga–pātita–cakram
utkṣipya sa ambuja–karaḥ giram āha kṛcchrān
nārāyaṇa akhila–guro bhagavan namaste.
Lord Hari, the friend of the distressed, immediately cut off the crocodile’s head with His Sudarśana Chakra and rescued Gajendra. This story is narrated in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, Varāha Purāṇa, and other scriptures.
In their previous births, Gajendra had been King Indradyumna of the Pāṇḍya dynasty. Because of a curse by Sage Agastya, he was reborn as an elephant. The crocodile was previously a gandharva named Hūhū, who had become a crocodile due to a curse by Sage Devala. Both sages had blessed them that though they would be born as an elephant and crocodile, they would ultimately attain liberation through the grace of Lord Hari. Thus, both attained mokṣa.
Witnessing this divine act, all gods, sages, yakṣas, kinnaras, and gandharvas showered flowers from the sky in joy. After granting liberation to both, Lord Nārāyaṇa Himself remained in this sacred place in a single divine form. Because the Lord personally granted Gajendra liberation here, this place became known as Śrī Gajendra Mokṣa Divya Dhāma.
Seeing that the Lord Himself resided here, Lord Brahmā also took up residence on a flat mountain peak in the northeast (Īśāna) direction. Today, that place is known as Brahmachaur.
To the south lies the confluence of the Svarṇabhadrā, Pūrṇabhadrā, and Śrī Nārāyaṇī rivers, where Lord Śiva resides, now known as Śivalay Ghaṭ. To the west, Goddess Durgā manifested as Keulanī Devī, giving the village its name Keulanī. To the north once stood a shrine of Lord Gaṇeśa, worshipped by the Tharu community and known as Muṇḍai Sthān.
Being pleased with Gajendra’s prayer, Lord Nārāyaṇa blessed him, saying:
“Whoever remembers this līlā, chants your prayer,
beholds rivers, forests, mountains, groves,
vines, and celestial trees with devotion
shall be freed from sorrow, fear, and suffering
and will ultimately attain mokṣa.”
Furthermore, those who perform tarpana and śrāddha here with the waters of the Gaṇḍakī River, remembering their ancestors
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At the foothills of the Trikuta Mountains, on the banks of the sacred Śrīkṛṣṇāgaṇḍakī (Nārāyaṇī) River, there once existed a beautiful forest. This divine woodland was served and frequented by gods, gandharvas, yakṣas, kinnaras, siddhas, cāraṇas, and countless ṛṣis and mahāṛṣis. The forest echoed with the melodious sounds of peacocks, cuckoos, and many other birds. Numerous animals—deer, boar, antelope, rhinoceros, wild cows, porcupines, lions, tigers, monkeys, and many others—made this enchanting forest their home. As stated in the Vāmana Purāṇa:
“Gandharvaiḥ Kinnarair yadhaiḥ Siddha–Cāraṇa–Guhyakaiḥ.”
The Trikuta mountains were rich with mines of gold, silver, and copper. Even today, red, white, and black soils can be seen as remnants of those mineral deposits:
“Raupyāyasa–Hiraṇmayaiḥ.”
At the foot of Trikuta, the Gaṇḍakī River expanded like a lake.
In this forest, an elephant named Gajendra was the king of all animals. All creatures, great and small, lived in fear of him. One day, Gajendra, intoxicated with the vigor of youth, arrived at the Gaṇḍakī River with his herd to play in the water. Splashing water with his trunk, he enjoyed with the elephant cows and calves. Suddenly, a powerful crocodile seized Gajendra’s leg with a fierce grip:
“Grāho balīyān caraṇe ruṣā gṛhīt.”
A terrible battle began between the king of the forest (the elephant) and the king of the waters (the crocodile). Other elephants and calves tried to save their king by pulling him with their trunks, but even after a long struggle, they could not free him. The fight went on for years, and Gajendra’s strength slowly faded. Eventually, the other elephants gave up and left him.
Weak and helpless, Gajendra realized that neither his own strength nor the help of others could save him. At that moment, memories of his devotion from a previous life awakened within him. With firm faith that Lord Nārāyaṇa, the protector of the surrendered, alone could save him, he began to offer a divine prayer:
Om namo bhagavate tasmai yata etac cidātmakam
puruṣāyādi–bījāya pareśāyābhidhīmahi
In this hymn, he did not mention any particular deity by name. Hearing this divine prayer, Brahmā and other gods hoped he might be calling upon them. But as the crocodile dragged him deeper into the water and only his trunk remained above the surface, Lord Nārāyaṇa—compassionate toward His devotees—instantly mounted Garuḍa and appeared.
Seeing Him, Gajendra plucked a lotus with great effort from the water and offered it with his exhausted trunk, saying:
So ’ntaḥ sarasy urubalena gṛhīta ārtaḥ
dṛṣṭvā garutmati hariṃ khaga–pātita–cakram
utkṣipya sa ambuja–karaḥ giram āha kṛcchrān
nārāyaṇa akhila–guro bhagavan namaste
Lord Hari, the friend of the distressed, immediately cut off the crocodile’s head with His Sudarśana Chakra and rescued Gajendra. This story is narrated in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, Varāha Purāṇa, and other scriptures.
In their previous births, Gajendra had been King Indradyumna of the Pāṇḍya dynasty. Because of a curse by Sage Agastya, he was reborn as an elephant. The crocodile was previously a gandharva named Hūhū, who had become a crocodile due to a curse by Sage Devala. Both sages had blessed them that though they would be born as an elephant and crocodile, they would ultimately attain liberation through the grace of Lord Hari. Thus, both Gajendra and the crocodile attained mokṣa.
Witnessing this divine act, all gods, sages, yakṣas, kinnaras, and gandharvas showered flowers from the sky in joy. After granting liberation to both, Lord Nārāyaṇa Himself remained in this sacred place in a single divine form. Because the Lord personally granted Gajendra liberation here, this place became known as Śrī Gajendra Mokṣa Divya Dhāma.
Seeing that the Lord Himself resided here, Lord Brahmā also took up residence on the flat peak of a mountain in the northeast (Īśāna) direction. Today, that place is known as Brahmachaur.
To the south of Gajendra Mokṣa Dhāma is the confluence of the Svarṇabhadrā, Pūrṇabhadrā, and Śrī Nārāyaṇī rivers, where Lord Śiva resides, now known as Śivalay Ghaṭ. To the west, Goddess Durgā manifested as Keulanī Devī, and the nearby village is called Keulanī. In the north once existed a shrine to Lord Gaṇeśa, worshipped by the Tharu community and known as Muṇḍai Sthān.
Being pleased with Gajendra’s prayer, Lord Nārāyaṇa, mounted on Garuḍa, blessed him, saying:
“Whoever remembers this līlā, chants your prayer,
and beholds rivers, forests, mountains, groves,
vines, and celestial trees with devotion,
shall be freed from sorrow, suffering, and fear,
and will ultimately attain mokṣa.”
Furthermore, those who, remembering their ancestors, perform tarpana and śrāddha here with the waters of the Gaṇḍakī River will grant their ancestors liberation.
