Shloka 20
Adhyātma–Adhibhūta–Adhidaivata Correspondences and the Triguṇa Lakṣaṇas (Śānti-parva 301)
विष्णु क्रान्ते बले शक्रं कोष्ठे सक्ते तथानलम् । अप्सु देवीं समासक्तामपस्तेजसि संश्रिता:,गतिका आधार विष्णु, बलका इन्द्र, उदरका अग्नि तथा पृथ्वीदेवीका आधार जल है। झलका तेज, तेजका वायु, वायुका आकाश, आकाशका आश्रय महत्तत्त्व अर्थात् महत्तत्त्वका कार्य अहंकार है और अहंकारका अधिष्ठान समष्टि बुद्धि है
viṣṇu-krānte bale śakraṁ koṣṭhe sakte tathānalam | apsu devīṁ samāsaktām apas-tejasi saṁśritāḥ ||
Bhishma said: “In Viṣṇu is established movement and support; in strength is established Śakra (Indra); in the belly (the digestive cavity) is fixed Agni (fire). The Goddess is closely connected with the waters, and the waters are supported by fiery energy (tejas).” The teaching points to an ordered interdependence in creation: each power abides in a higher support, reminding the listener that worldly might and elemental forces are not independent but rest upon a deeper cosmic foundation.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches a hierarchy of support among powers and elements: gods and forces function by resting in deeper principles. This encourages humility and dharmic insight—recognizing that personal or worldly power is derivative, sustained by a larger cosmic order.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on higher knowledge and right understanding. Here he presents a cosmological mapping—linking deities and elements—to show how creation is structured through mutual dependence and ultimate grounding.