The Gods Request Garuda to Reduce His Brightness
Table of Contents (The Complete Mahabharata in Simple English)
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| Note: In the previous post, we read how the gods were terrified when Garuda grew in size and brightness after his birth. In today’s post, we will read about how the gods approached the great bird, with love and praise, to request him to reduce his brightness. |
The gods along with Agni Deva went to Garuda and showed their love and praise for the might bird in these words:
“You are the destroyer of all and the creator of all. You are the Hiranyagarbha itself. You thought of creation and brought it forth in the form of Daksha and the other Prajapatis.
You are Indra — the king of God’s. You are Hayagriva, the horse-faced incarnation of Vishnu.
At the burning of Tripura, Vishnu became the arrow that was released by Mahadev for the destruction of the asuric city. You are the Lord of the universe. You are the mouth of Vishnu. You are the four-faced Padmaja. You are like a wise brahmana. You are the elements like Agni and Pavana.
You are knowledge and you are the illusion that we are all subject to. You are the all-pervading spirit. You are the truth and the god of gods. You are fearless and unchanged.
You are Brahma without attributes (possibly a reference to the supreme who is without any attributes).
You are the energy of the Sun. You are the intellect. You are our great protector.
You are an ocean of holiness. You don’t have any dark attributes. You are purity itself. You have the six high attributes. No one can defeat you in any contest.
O Garuda of excellent deeds, the whole universe has emanated from you. You are everything that has ever been or not been.
You are pure knowledge. Just like the Sun, you show us everything in the universe. Your splendour is greater than the Sun.
You are the destroyer of all. You are everything that is perishable and also everything that is imperishable. You are resplendent like Agni and you burn everything just like Surya does in his anger.
O great one, even the fire that destroys everything during the time of pralay, cannot destroy you.
O mighty Garuda, you who move in the sky, we seek your protection.
O lord of birds your energy is extraordinary. Your splendour is like that of the fire. Your brightness is like that of lightning and darkness cannot approach you. When you fly, you reach the very clouds. You are the cause and effect of all things. You are invincible and you are the giver of boons.
O Lord, the entire universe is heating up because of your splendour which resembles heated gold.
O Garuda, protect these high-souled gods, who in fear of you are flying in different directions in heaven.
O best of birds, lord of all, you are the son of the merciful and high-souled Rishi Kasyapa. Therefore, do not be angry. Have mercy on the universe. You are supreme. Pacify your anger and save us.
O great bird, the ten points of the universe, the sky, the heavens, the earth, and our hearts tremble when we hear you roar.
O Garuda, have mercy on us and reduce the heat and brightness of your body.
O illustrious one, grant us good fortune and joy.
When the gods praised Garuda with love, that great bird reduced his energy and brightness for their benefit.
| Note: In the next post, we will find out how Garuda’s elder brother, Aruna, became Surya’s charioteer. |
Table of Contents (The Complete Mahabharata in Simple English)
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