Shloka 11
अश्वशिरो-आख्यानम्
Aśvaśiras / Hayaśiras Narrative: Retrieval of the Vedas
अष्टचक्रं हि तद् यान॑ भूतयुक्तं मनोरमम् । तत्राद्यौ लोकनाथौ तौ कृशौ धमनिसंततौ
aṣṭacakraṃ hi tad yānaṃ bhūtayuktaṃ manoramam | tatrādyau lokanāthau tau kṛśau dhamanisaṃtatau ||
قال بهيشما: «إن تلك المركبة البهيجة كانت ذات ثماني عجلات، وقد شُدَّت إليها كائناتٌ حية كثيرة. وهناك غدا سيدا العوالم الأولان هزيلين غاية الهزال من شدة الرياضة، حتى برزت عروقُهما. وقد اشتدّ نورُهما الزهدي حتى إن الآلهة أنفسهم عسر عليهم النظر إليهما؛ ولم يكن يقدر على رؤيتهما إلا من نال رضاهما وفضلهما».
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the ethical-spiritual principle that intense tapas (austerity) generates tejas (spiritual radiance) that is not merely a spectacle but a moral power: access to the divine vision is governed by anugraha (grace) and worthiness, not by mere curiosity or status—even gods cannot easily behold it.
Bhishma describes a wondrous eight-wheeled conveyance yoked with many beings, and depicts two primordial world-lords who have become extremely thin from prolonged austerities, their veins visible; their radiance has become so formidable that only those favored by them can see them.