Shloka 73
Bhīṣma’s Śara-śayyā Stuti to Vāsudeva and Yogic Preparation for Dehotsarga
Body-Relinquishment
जो अन्न-जलरूपी ईंधनको पाकर शरीरके भीतर रस और प्राणशक्तिको बढ़ाते तथा सम्पूर्ण प्राणियोंको धारण करते हैं
prāṇānāṃ dhāraṇārthāya yo 'cchannaṃ bhuṅkte caturvidham | antarbhūtaḥ pacaty agnis tasmai pākātmane namaḥ ||
Bhishma said: Salutations to that Supreme Lord who, for the sustaining of the vital breaths, partakes of food in its four forms and, abiding within the body as the digestive fire, cooks and transforms it—thereby increasing sap (nourishment) and life-force and upholding all living beings. This teaching frames bodily nourishment as a sacred, inward sacrifice: the divine itself becomes the fire that digests, so eating is to be done with reverence and restraint, in service of life and dharma.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the Supreme Lord sustains life by becoming the inner digestive fire that transforms food into nourishment and supports prāṇa. Therefore, eating is not mere indulgence but a dharmic act—done with gratitude, moderation, and awareness that the divine operates within the body.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and higher principles. Here he offers a reverential salutation (namaḥ) to the Lord as the indwelling power that digests the fourfold food and thereby maintains all beings, integrating physiology with spiritual devotion.