Shloka 155

Devanagari script

दण्डधारस्त्र्यम्बकश्ष उग्रदण्डो5ण्डनाशन: । विषाग्निपा: सुरश्रेष्ठ: सोमपास्त्वं मरुत्पति:,मेरे यज्ञरूपी मृगके वधिक तथा व्याधियोंको लाने और मिटानेवाले भी आप ही हैं। (कृष्णरूपमें) मस्तकपर शिखण्ड (मोरपंख) धारण करनेके कारण आप शिखण्डी हैं। आप कमलके समान नेत्रोंवाले, कमलके वनमें निवास करनेवाले, दण्ड धारण करनेवाले, त्र्म्बक, उग्रदण्ड और ब्रह्माण्डके संहारक हैं। विषाग्निको पी जानेवाले, देवश्रेष्ठ, सोमरसका पान करनेवाले और मरुद्‌गणोंके स्वामी हैं

Transliteration

daṇḍadhāras tryambakaś ca ugradaṇḍo brahmāṇḍanāśanaḥ | viṣāgnipāḥ suraśreṣṭhaḥ somapās tvaṃ marutpatiḥ ||

Translation

Bhīṣma preist den Höchsten: „Du bist der Träger des Strafstabes, Tryambaka (der dreiaugige Herr), dessen Zucht streng ist und dessen Macht selbst die kosmische Ordnung auflösen kann. Du kannst Gift und Feuer trinken; du bist der Beste unter den Göttern, ein Trinker des Soma und der Herr der Maruts.“

Word by Word

दण्डधारःbearer of a staff/rod

त्र्यम्बकःthe three-eyed one (Śiva)

चand

उग्रदण्डःhe whose rod/punishment is fierce

ब्रह्माण्डनाशनःdestroyer of the cosmic egg/universe

विषाग्निपाःdrinker of poison and fire

सुरश्रेष्ठःbest of the gods

सोमपाःdrinker of Soma

त्वम्you

मरुत्पतिःlord of the Maruts (storm-gods)

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Tryambaka (Śiva)

daṇḍa (rod of punishment)

brahmāṇḍa (cosmic egg/universe)

Soma

Maruts

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that the Supreme Lord embodies both mercy and discipline: he upholds dharma by wielding corrective authority (daṇḍa) and, at the cosmic level, has the power to dissolve the universe when order must be reset. Devotion here recognizes divine governance as ethically purposeful, not merely destructive.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma delivers teachings and praises the divine through a litany of epithets. Here he addresses the Lord with names strongly associated with Śiva (Tryambaka, poison/fire-drinker) and also with Vedic-divine sovereignty (Soma-drinker, lord of the Maruts), presenting the addressed deity as the all-encompassing source of divine powers.