Ślokam (श्लोकम्)
A metrical verse in Sanskrit.
Written according to strict rules of chandas (meter) like anuṣṭubh, triṣṭubh, jagatī, śārdūlavikrīḍita etc.
Has rhythm, symmetry, and is easy to recite and memorize.
Most of the Vedas, Itihāsas, Purāṇas, Bhagavad Gītā, Rāmāyaṇa, Mahābhārata are composed largely in ślokas.
Example: “yadā yadā hi dharmasya…” (Gītā 4.7)
Gadyam (गद्यम्)
Prose composition in Sanskrit.
Not bound by meter or rhythm, but still highly refined and ornamented.
Can be very elaborate, with long compounds (samāsa), flowing expressions, and deep bhakti or philosophical content.
Famous examples: Śrī Rāmānuja’s three gadya-trayas (Śaraṇāgati Gadyam, Śrīraṅga Gadyam, Vaikuṇṭha Gadyam).
Gadyams are often used for prayers, philosophical prose, and emotional outpourings because they allow free expression without metrical restriction.
Ślokam → Verse form, rhythmic, structured like poetry.
Gadyam → Prose form, free-flowing, like elevated speech or prayer.
So, a ślokam is like a song in rhythm, while a gadyam is like a prayerful speech.
Example
Example of a Ślokam (metrical verse)
From the Bhagavad Gītā (2.47):
karmaṇy-evādhikāras te mā phaleṣu kadācana
mā karma-phala-hetur bhūr mā te saṅgo ’stv akarmaṇi
This is in anuṣṭubh chandas (4 lines of 8 syllables each).
Has rhythm and balance.
Easy to chant musically.
Meaning (simple): “You have a right only to action, never to its fruits. Do not be attached to the fruits of actions, nor be attached to inaction.”
Example of a Gadyam (prose prayer)
From Śrī Rāmānuja’s Śaraṇāgati Gadyam:
akhila-bhuvana-janma-sthemaṅgati-niyati-anugraha-paripālana-sāmarthyaika-nidhi
aparimita-ascharya-ananta-kalyāṇa-guṇa-gaṇaugha-mahodadhi
śrīmannārāyaṇa! śaraṇam aham prapadye
Long flowing sentence, not bound by meter.
Rich in samāsa (compounds) and ornamentation.
Meaning (simple): “O Śrīman Nārāyaṇa! You are the ocean of infinite wondrous and auspicious qualities, the sole treasure of the power to create, sustain, control, and bless all the worlds. To You I surrender.”
The Feel
Ślokam → short, measured, rhythmic like poetry.
Gadyam → long, flowing, emotional, like a heartfelt prayer or philosophical .
As a śloka (in simple anuṣṭubh meter), and one as a gadyam (flowing prose) — on the theme of śaraṇāgati (surrender to God).
Ślokam (metrical verse)
tvameva śaraṇaṃ nātha dīna-bandho dayānidhe ।
pāhi māṃ karuṇā-sindho rakṣa rakṣa janārdana ॥
“You alone are my refuge, O Lord, friend of the helpless, treasure of compassion. Protect me, O ocean of mercy! Protect me, Janārdana.”
Gadyam (prose prayer)
anādi-kāla-pravṛtta-ananta-karma-bandhena baddho’ham, aśaktaḥ svātma-rakṣaṇe, sarva-doṣa-bhājanaḥ, akṛta-kṛtyaḥ, kṛta-niṣiddhaḥ, tvām eva dīna-bandhum, dayānidhim, karuṇā-sāgaraṃ, śaraṇam prapadye ।
“Bound by the endless chain of karma from time without beginning, unable to protect myself, full of faults, failing in duties and doing what should not be done — I take refuge in You alone, O friend of the helpless, treasure of compassion, ocean of mercy.”
The śloka is short, rhythmic, easy to sing.
The gadyam is long, detailed, pouring out helplessness and devotion.
How such śloka-gadyam pairs were historically used by teachers like Rāmānuja — why sometimes he chose verse, and sometimes prose?
Ślokam in Tradition
Ślokas are metrical verses.
Purpose:
Easy to memorize and chant daily.
Suitable for public recitation in temples or gatherings.
Condensed teaching in a musical, rhythmic form.
Rāmānuja composed Gadyatrayam (prose), but his predecessors like Āḻvārs poured their devotion in pāsurams (metrical Tamil verses), which function like ślokas in Sanskrit.
Even in Śrībhāṣya, ślokas from Upaniṣads and Gītā are quoted for authority.
Gadyam in Tradition
Gadya is free prose, without metrical rules.
Purpose:
Ideal for personal surrender and emotional outpouring.
Allows long compounds (samāsa), bringing majesty and depth.
Used when the soul directly addresses God in a flood of bhakti.
Śaraṇāgati Gadyam: Rāmānuja stands before Śrī Ranganātha and pours out his helplessness.
Vaikuṇṭha Gadyam: Describes in prose the splendor of Vaikuṇṭha in such detail that meter could not contain it.
Why Both Were Needed
Ślokam is like a song — sweet, brief, memorable.
Gadyam is like a speech or conversation — expansive, direct, overwhelming.
Rāmānuja chose gadyam at moments of total surrender, because the heart overflows and cannot be confined to the discipline of meter.
He left behind ślokas (through tradition and citations) for structured teaching, but gadyas for personal, living prayer.
Simple Analogy
Ślokam = a hymn you can sing daily in a group.
Gadyam = a heartfelt confession spoken alone before God.
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