śrī-bādarāyaṇir uvāca
evaṁ vyavasito buddhyā
samādhāya mano hṛdi
jajāpa paramaṁ jāpyaṁ
prāg-janmany anuśikṣitam
(SB 8.3)

Gajendra, who in his previous life was a devotee named Indradyumna Maharaj (not the one who manifested Sri Jagannath dev), was cursed by Agastya Muni and got this birth of an elephant. (Despite becoming elephant he has remembrance of his previous life.) This is because the eternal nature of real self, if it is manifested sometime, it cannot be destroyed. In Chaitanya Charitamrita Srila Kaviraj Goswami has written that if you commit offence to a Vaishnava then Bhakti may be torn or be uprooted. He has given illustration of a tree that may be torn or uprooted (by the mad elephant of offence to a Vaishnava). But Jiva Goswami said ‘No’! Uprooted means you should not think totally uprooted. It may be enveloped for some time. When that offence, that hurdle, that hindrance will be removed then he will start from, upto which he has got the progress of devotion. He doesn’t have to start from the beginning. He will start from the progress he did in his earlier birth. Bhakti cannot be destroyed. Atma is eternal. It’s eternal nature cannot be destroyed.It may be enveloped for some reason for some time.

As you find in the case of Vṛtrāsura, he has the birth of a demon but by seeing his devotion Devraj Indra was also astonished. Vṛtrāsura was previously a devotee. By the curse of Parvati he became demon and in the birth of demon he was speaking such things which Emperor Indra could not even imagine. Our Guru Maharaj also used to say – “You should remember this teaching or this prayer or this saying of Vṛtrāsura. Vṛtrāsura has said this to Devraj Indra.” You would have heard these earlier I think.

puṁsāṁ kilaikānta-dhiyāṁ svakānāṁ
yāḥ sampado divi bhūmau rasāyām
na rāti yad dveṣa udvega ādhir
madaḥ kalir vyasanaṁ samprayāsaḥ
(SB 6.11.22)

One who has got one pointed exclusive devotion to Supreme Lord and whom Krishna has thought he is my own person—Krishna does not give him the wealth of this world neither of the heaven. Whom Krishna loves from the core of the heart, as His own and who has one pointed devotion to Sri Krishna, Krishna is saying ‘I do not give him the wealth of this world’. We think as much wealth we get so much so we have got the blessings and grace of Supreme Lord. It is not true. Because by getting this mundane property, worldly property, worldly fortune, riches—what will be the consequence? Dveṣaḥ - there will be malice; Udvega - worries/anxiety; ādhiḥ - mental agony; Kali - there will be quarrel/fight and serious mental, serious miseries. You will also have to take much trouble, much tension to retain that property. Such property will give much affliction, so much trouble, (therefore) God does not give to His own person. You should remember this, our Guru Maharaj used to say. We worldly people think if we get money if we get wealth then it is the grace of Sri Krishna but yet it is just the opposite. In the birth of a demon, Vṛtrāsura, he has not forgotten his previous devotion to Supreme Lord. That is there. Once that is manifested it cannot be destroyed.

Here also, in facing this danger, the previous nature of worshipping Krishna has now manifested in Gajendra. He has started praying to the Supreme Lord (even) being born in a beast life, elephant life:

śrī-gajendra uvāca
oṁ namo bhagavate tasmai
yata etac cid-ātmakam
puruṣāyādi-bījāya
pareśāyābhidhīmahi
(SB 8.3.2)

Shri Gajendra Uvaca: om tat sad iti nirdesaha brahamna

General meaning of Om is Hindu Trinity, that is Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. Om is Aa, Uu, Ma—Aum—it should be uttered like that. Aa indicates Vishnu, Uu indicates Maheshwar, Ma indicates Brahma.

But, once I had been to Tezpur Gaudiya Math. At that time I was there and Guru Maharaj was also there. First in Assam He started this Tezpur Gaudiya Math. There one of our brahmachari God Brother was once discussing with another local person on this topic and they are debating. The brahmachari is saying meaning of Om is Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh but the other person said another meaning. There was great altercation. Guru Maharaj was in His room. He heard they are talking loudly. He thought, What is the matter? What for they are fighting with each other? What is this? Guru Maharaj came there and inquired what is the matter? Brahmchari said I’m telling this as the meaning of Om but he is not accepting. He said this is the meaning. Then Guru Maharaj said, “Om is beeja (seed). In it everything is there. All the worshipers can see their objects of worship is there in Om--- everything is there. One can see him as Avatari Krishna; if anybody wants to see as Ram – correct, anyone wants to worship as Karnodashayi Vishnu – correct, everything is within that. In Pranav(Om)—everything is there. Radha Krishna is also there, Lakshmi Narayana is also there, everything is there. Why are you fighting? Stop this! What you are saying is the ordinary meeting, but every worshiper sees his own object of worship in Pranav. This is the seed for the ultimate reality.”

And now here it (Om) means Bhagavatah. Who is Bhagavan? In Bhagavatam you will find.

vadanti tat tattva-vidas
tattvaṁ yaj jṣānam advayam
brahmeti paramātmeti
bhagavān iti śabdyate
(SB 1.2.11)

tattva-vidas—One who knows the ontological aspect of the reality. tat means that which is beyond the comprehension of mind and sense organs. ’Tat’ means that, He cannot be comprehended—Adhokṣaja. One Who reserves the right to not being exposed to human senses is called Adhokṣaja. Our Param Gurudev has explained it in this way. Sometimes in English, many matters can be understood more clearly.

Tat - Those who have knowledge of that Adhokṣaja, transcendental reality, they say absolute knowledge is the reality, undivided knowledge. brahmeti paramātmeti

bhagavān iti śabdyate - Absolute knowledge, undivided knowledge is stated as Brahma, Paramatma and Bhagavan – same absolute knowledge. There is Brahma aspect, there is Paramatma aspect and there is Bhagavad aspect.

Who is Brahma—greatest of the greatest and also who can sustain, maintain all. He can sustain, maintain and give power to all others. He can increase his qualities—for that reason, he is called Brahma—greatest of the greatest. And Paramatma – minutest of the minutest. Jiva-atma is the minutest particle. Supreme Lord is residing within that minutest particle (therefore) minutest of the minutest. And Bhagavan is Sarva-Shaktiman means one who has got all powers. ‘Bhaga’ means Shakti, ‘Van’ means one who possesses powers/opulences. Generally, we hear about six-fold opulence but He possesses infinite opulences. One who has got totality of the six-fold opulence—totality of wealth, totality of power, totality of fame, totality of beauty, totality of knowledge, totality of renunciation is called Bhagavan. In addition to this, he possesses all kinds of powers.

Here Gajendra is saying,—‘I am taking shelter to Bhagavan’. There is no word similar to Bhagavan which can express all comprehensive idea of the ultimate reality. You will not find in any other religion. If you say ‘God’, if you say ‘Allah’ -- it may be near to Brahma or Paramatma. But Bhagavan is Brahma, Bhagavan is Paramatma and Bhagavan is in their middle also. Bhagavan is everything. Word ‘Bhagavan’ includes everything. You will not find equivalent word in any other religious faith in this world. This is an all comprehensive idea. Gajendra is saying – “I am taking shelter to the ‘Bhagavan’, not Brahma, not Paramatma. To Sarv-Shaktiman, who can rescue me. After a moment I shall be killed, at that time who can rescue me -- I am taking shelter of that. He is not cipher. I am not submitting to a cipher. I am submitting to Bhagavan, who has got all powers. He can take initiative. He is almighty, He is transcendental. He can do everything. I am not submitting to a cipher who has got no attributes, no power”.(A person who thinks like this) he is deceiving the whole world and himself. "Here Gajendra says No—I am taking shelter to Almighty.

Once one person told me in a foreign country that I have got a hobby to go through Gita, I like Gita very much. Daily I read Gita. Then I was astonished—such a person is here in the foreign country, they are going through Gita. I praised him, I never thought that such a person is here. After that what he said – Swamiji although I go through Gita, I don’t believe Krishna is Supreme Lord. He (Krishna) was born, He had parents. He might be a super human being but I don’t believe He is Supreme Lord. He might be a great diplomat, a great politician. I only said—alright you have gone through Gita; you please cite some evidence from Gita itself to substantiate your saying that Krishna is a human being, super human being, a diplomat, a politician. There is no such evidence,(but) just the opposite.

mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat
kiṣcid asti dhanaṣ-jaya
mayi sarvam idaṁ protaṁ
sūtre maṇi-gaṇā iva
(BG 7.7)

There is nothing superior to Me, ‘M’ capital.

yasmāt kṣaram atīto ’ham
akṣarād api cottamaḥ
ato ’smi loke vede ca
prathitaḥ puruṣottamaḥ
(BG 15.18)

kṣara means fallible jiva. Sri Krishna is saying here “I cannot be comprehended by the conditioned souls of the world by their mind and sense organs. I am beyond their comprehension. I am supremely superior to Brahma and Paramatma, so I am called Purushottam.”

brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham
amṛtasyāvyayasya ca
śāśvatasya ca dharmasya
sukhasyaikāntikasya ca
(BG 14.27)

I am the cause of impersonal person - formless God , in Gita it’s said.

janma karma ca me divyam
evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ
tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma
naiti mām eti so ’rjuna
(BG 4.9)