Shloka 9
पितामहो जगन्नाथ: सावित्री ब्रह्मण: सती । वेदभूरथ कर्ता च विष्णुर्नारायण: प्रभु:
bhīṣma uvāca |
pitāmaho jagannāthaḥ sāvitrī brahmaṇaḥ satī |
vedabhūr atha kartā ca viṣṇur nārāyaṇaḥ prabhuḥ ||
Bhishma said: “The Grandsire, the Lord of the world—Brahmā, self-born and the very source of life for all beings—together with his chaste consort Sāvitrī; and the Lord Nārāyaṇa (Viṣṇu), the creator and the very womb of the Vedas—(these and the divine lineages to be named) are to be revered.” In context, this verse opens a protective invocation: by remembering the highest cosmic principles—creation (Brahmā), sacred knowledge (the Vedas), and preservation/order (Nārāyaṇa)—one aligns oneself with dharma and seeks safeguarding through reverent recollection.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Recollection of the highest divine principles—Brahmā as cosmic progenitor, Sāvitrī as chaste Vedic inspiration, and Nārāyaṇa as the lordly source of sacred order—functions as a dharmic act. The verse models how reverence and right remembrance are used to seek protection and to orient the mind toward cosmic law (ṛta/dharma).
Bhīṣma begins a formal enumeration/invocation. This verse names the first figures—Brahmā with Sāvitrī and Nārāyaṇa/Viṣṇu—before the text proceeds to list further deities, sages, rivers, mountains, and sacred places as part of a comprehensive protective recitation.