Shloka 31

Parāśara’s Counsel on बुद्धि (Discernment), Karma-Consequences, and Avoidance of Pāpānubandha Actions

Devanagari script

विष्णुश्न भगवान्‌ देव: सर्वलोकाभिपूजित:

Transliteration

viṣṇuś ca bhagavān devaḥ sarvalokābhipūjitaḥ

Translation

Bhīṣma said: “Vishnu—the Blessed Lord, the divine Godhead—is revered and worshipped by all the worlds.”

Word by Word

• विष्णुः: Vishnu
• विष्णुः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: विष्णु
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• भगवान्: the Blessed/Lordly one
• भगवान्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भगवत्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• देवः: god, deity
• देवः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• सर्वलोकाभिपूजितः: worshipped by all worlds
• सर्वलोकाभिपूजितः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व-लोक-अभि-पूजित
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Viṣṇu

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse affirms Vishnu’s universal supremacy and worthiness of reverence: the divine is not a sectarian power but the one honored across all realms, grounding dharma in devotion and recognition of the highest Lord.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct; here he turns to explicit praise of Vishnu, presenting him as the universally worshipped deity to frame the ethical teaching within devotion to the supreme.