Shloka 28
Śiśupāla-vākya: Bhīṣma-nindā and the ‘Haṃsa’ Exemplum (शिशुपालवाक्यम् — भीष्मनिन्दा, हंसदृष्टान्तः)
नक्षत्राणां मुखं चन्द्र आदित्यस्तेजसां मुखम् । पर्वतानां मुखं मेरुर्गरुड: पततां मुखम्,सूर्य, चन्द्रमा, नक्षत्र, ग्रह, दिशा और विदिशा सब उन्हींमें स्थित हैं। जैसे वेदोंमें अनिनिहोत्रकर्म, हन््दोंमें गायत्री, मनुष्योंमें राजा, नदियों (जलाशयों)-में समुद्र, नक्षत्रोंमें चन्द्रमा, तेजोमय पदार्थोंमें सूर्य, पर्वतोंमें मेरु और पक्षियोंमें गरुड श्रेष्ठ हैं, उसी प्रकार देवलोकसहित सम्पूर्ण लोकोंमें ऊपर-नीचे, दायें-बायें, जितने भी जगत्के आश्रय हैं, उन सबमें भगवान् श्रीकृष्ण ही श्रेष्ठ हैं
nakṣatrāṇāṁ mukhaṁ candra ādityas tejasāṁ mukham | parvatānāṁ mukhaṁ merur garuḍaḥ patatāṁ mukham ||
Bhīṣma said: “Among the stars, the Moon is foremost; among luminous beings, the Sun is foremost. Among mountains, Meru is foremost; among those that fly, Garuḍa is foremost.” By this chain of exemplars, he underscores a moral principle: in every class of beings there is a recognized summit, and likewise, across all worlds and supports of the cosmos, the Supreme Lord (identified here in the surrounding passage as Śrī Kṛṣṇa) is to be regarded as the highest refuge and excellence.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches by analogy: just as each domain has an acknowledged ‘foremost’ (Moon among stars, Sun among luminous powers, Meru among mountains, Garuḍa among birds), so too the Supreme Lord is the ultimate pre-eminent refuge and standard of excellence across all realms.
In the Sabha Parva context, Bhīṣma is speaking in a didactic, laudatory mode, using well-known cosmic hierarchies to support a broader claim made in the surrounding passage: that Śrī Kṛṣṇa is supreme among all supports of the worlds.