Shloka 39
सुप्रसाद: प्रसन्नात्मा विश्वधृग विश्वभुग् विभु: । सत्कर्ता सत्कृत: साधुर्जह्लुनरायणो नर:
suprasādaḥ prasannātmā viśvadhṛg viśvabhug vibhuḥ | satkartā satkṛtaḥ sādhur jahlur nārāyaṇo naraḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: He is supremely gracious and ever serene in spirit; He upholds the whole world and sustains it, all-pervading and sovereign. He honors His devotees and is Himself honored even by the most venerable; He brings the righteous to fulfillment, withdraws beings at the time of dissolution, rests upon the cosmic waters as Nārāyaṇa, and as Nara leads His devotees to the highest abode.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the Divine is simultaneously compassionate and sustaining: serene in nature, all-pervading, honoring the virtuous, and guiding devotees to the highest good. It encourages trust in dharma and devotion by portraying God as the ultimate support of the world and the moral order.
Bhīṣma is describing and praising the Lord through a sequence of epithets (names/attributes), presenting a theological portrait: protector of the cosmos, recipient of worship, accomplisher of devotees’ aims, and the one who withdraws creation at dissolution—identified as Nārāyaṇa and Nara.