Shloka 4
Brahmacarya-Upāya: Jñāna, Śauca, and the Mind’s Role in Desire (शान्ति पर्व, अध्याय २०७)
असितो देवलस्तात वाल्मीकिश्न महातपा: । मार्कण्डेयश्व गोविन्दे कथयन्त्यद्भुतं महत्,तात! असित, देवल, महातपस्वी वाल्मीकि और महर्षि मार्कण्डेयजी भी इन भगवान् गोविन्दके विषयमें बड़ी अदभुत बातें कहा करते हैं
asito devalas tāta vālmīkiś ca mahātapāḥ | mārkaṇḍeyaś ca govinde kathayanty adbhutaṃ mahat ||
Bhīṣma said: “Dear one, Asita, Devala, the great ascetic Vālmīki, and the sage Mārkaṇḍeya too speak of Lord Govinda in wondrous and exalted ways.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse grounds devotion and theological understanding in the testimony of authoritative sages: the greatness of Govinda is not a private claim but a repeatedly affirmed truth in the sacred tradition, worthy of reverent attention.
Bhishma, while instructing his listener, cites eminent rishis—Asita, Devala, Valmiki, and Markandeya—as witnesses who recount extraordinary and exalted accounts about Govinda, thereby strengthening the credibility and sanctity of what is being discussed.