Shloka 11

Adhyāya 70: Sātyaki’s Arrow-Display and the Bhūriśravas Engagement; Twilight Withdrawal

Devanagari script

अग्रजं सर्वभूतानां संकर्षणमकल्पयत्‌ | तस्मान्नारायणो जज्ञे देवदेव: सनातन:

Transliteration

agrajaṁ sarvabhūtānāṁ saṅkarṣaṇam akalpayat | tasmān nārāyaṇo jajñe devadevaḥ sanātanaḥ ||

Translation

Bhīṣma said: “He first brought forth Saṅkarṣaṇa, the primordial elder of all beings. From him was manifested Nārāyaṇa, the eternal God of gods.”

Word by Word

• अग्रजम्: the elder-born (first-born)
• अग्रजम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: अग्रज
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• सर्वभूतानाम्: of all beings
• सर्वभूतानाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्वभूत
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Plural

• संकर्षणम्: Saṅkarṣaṇa (Balarāma)
• संकर्षणम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: संकर्षण
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• अकल्पयत्: he manifested/produced/caused to appear
• अकल्पयत्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: कल्प्
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• तस्मात्: from him/therefrom
• तस्मात्: Apadana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Ablative, Singular

• नारायणः: Nārāyaṇa
• नारायणः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: नारायण
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• जज्ञे: was born/arose
• जज्ञे: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: जन्
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), 3rd, Singular, Ātmanepada

• देवदेवः: god of gods
• देवदेवः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवदेव
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• सनातनः: eternal
• सनातनः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सनातन
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Saṅkarṣaṇa
• Nārāyaṇa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse asserts a hierarchy of divine manifestation: the Supreme ordains Saṅkarṣaṇa as a primordial principle/elder, and from that arises Nārāyaṇa, the eternal Lord. Ethically, it grounds dharma in acknowledging a transcendent source of order beyond human power and conflict.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma is speaking in praise of the divine, describing a cosmogonic sequence of manifestation. The focus is not battlefield action but theological narration that elevates Nārāyaṇa’s eternal supremacy and frames events within a sacred cosmic order.