Shloka 103
।। सम्प्रेक्ष्य वै महाबुद्धिश्रचिन्तयित्वा च भारत
saṃprekṣya vai mahābuddhiś cintayitvā ca bhārata, bhārata! haṃsānāṃ jāte samaye tān dṛṣṭvā parama-buddhimān bhīṣmaḥ kiñcid vicārya tān uvāca—ahaṃ sūryasya dakṣiṇāyane vartamāne kathaṃcid api ihaḥ prāṇān parityajya na yāsyāmi; eṣa me manasaḥ niścitaḥ saṅkalpaḥ.
Sañjaya said: O Bhārata! Seeing the swans as the time came for their departure, Bhīṣma—though supremely wise—looked on, reflected for a while, and then spoke to them: “So long as the sun is in its southern course, I will not depart from here in any way. This is my settled resolve.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights disciplined resolve (saṅkalpa) and self-mastery: Bhīṣma, even amid suffering, chooses the ethically and ritually significant time for departure, showing steadiness of mind and fidelity to a vow rather than being driven by pain or circumstance.
Sañjaya narrates that Bhīṣma observes swans preparing to depart, reflects, and declares that he will not leave his body while the sun is in dakṣiṇāyana; he will remain where he is until the auspicious shift of the sun’s course.