Shloka 8
Jaitrya-nimitta: Signs of Prospective Victory and the Priority of Conciliation (जयलक्षण-निमित्त तथा सान्त्व-प्रधान नीति)
प्रसन्नभा: पावकश्षोर्ध्वरश्मि: प्रदक्षिणावर्त शिखो विधूम: । पुण्या गन्धाश्वाहुतीनां भवन्ति जयस्यैतद् भाविनो रूपमाहु:
bhīṣma uvāca | prasannabhāḥ pāvakaś cordhvaraśmiḥ pradakṣiṇāvartaśikho vidhūmaḥ | puṇyā gandhāś cāhūtīnāṁ bhavanti jayasya etad bhāvino rūpam āhuḥ ||
Bhishma said: When the sacrificial fire burns without smoke, its flame is clear and steady, its tongues rise upward or curl to the right, and the offerings give forth a pure fragrance—these are declared to be auspicious signs, indicating victory that is about to come.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Purity and harmony in ritual—symbolized by a smokeless, bright, right-turning, upward-rising fire with a pleasant fragrance—are taken as auspicious indicators that an endeavor is aligned with dharma and will likely succeed.
Bhishma is describing traditional auspicious omens connected with sacrificial rites: specific behaviors of the fire and the scent of offerings are interpreted as signs foretelling imminent victory.