Shloka 87
Bhīṣma’s Śara-śayyā Stuti to Vāsudeva and Yogic Preparation for Dehotsarga
Body-Relinquishment
नमस्ते भगवन् विष्णो लोकानां प्रभवाप्यय | त्वं हि कर्ता हृषीकेश संहर्ता चापराजित:,संसारकी उत्पत्ति करनेवाले अविनाशी भगवान् विष्णु! आपको नमस्कार है। हृषीकेश! आप सबके जन्मदाता और संहारकर्ता हैं। आप किसीसे पराजित नहीं होते
namaste bhagavan viṣṇo lokānāṃ prabhavāpyaya | tvaṃ hi kartā hṛṣīkeśa saṃhartā cāparājitaḥ ||
Ehrfürchtig verneige ich mich vor Bhagavan Viṣṇu, dem Unvergänglichen, Ursprung und Auflösung aller Welten. O Hṛṣīkeśa, du bist Schöpfer und Zerstörer; niemand vermag dich zu besiegen.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the supreme Lord (Viṣṇu/Hṛṣīkeśa) is the invincible ground of the cosmos—both its arising and its dissolution—so the ethically appropriate response is humility and devotion toward the source of order that transcends all worldly power.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction setting, Bhīṣma speaks in a devotional register, offering a formal salutation (stuti) to Viṣṇu, identifying him by epithets and cosmic functions (creator/destroyer) to affirm divine supremacy while expounding dharma-related teachings.