Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 54
भीष्मस्योत्तरायणप्रतीक्षा तथा युधिष्ठिरागमनम् | Bhīṣma’s uttarāyaṇa moment and Yudhiṣṭhira’s arrival
तस्य चैवाग्रजो भ्राता सिताद्रिनिचयप्रभ: । हली बल इति ख्यातो भविष्यति धराधर:
tasya caivāgrajo bhrātā sitādrinicayaprabhaḥ | halī bala iti khyāto bhaviṣyati dharādharaḥ ||
Y su hermano mayor, resplandeciente con una blancura como las cumbres apiñadas del monte Kailāsa, será célebre como Halī y como Bala (Balarāma). Él será el «portador de la tierra»: el propio Śeṣa Nāga encarnará en la forma de Balarāma.
ईश्वर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames Balarāma not merely as a heroic elder brother but as a cosmic support-principle: Śeṣa, the bearer of the earth, manifests to uphold stability and order. It emphasizes that divine roles appear in the world to sustain dharma through strength, steadiness, and support.
Īśvara describes the future manifestation of the main figure’s elder brother: he will be famed as Halī/Haladhara and Bala (Balarāma), shining with a white radiance likened to mountain masses, and identified as Śeṣa Nāga incarnate.