Shloka 13

Bhīṣma’s Hymn to Viṣṇu and Kṛṣṇa’s Criteria for Divine Self-Disclosure

Devanagari script

न हाभक्ताय राजेन्द्र भक्तायानृजवे न च । दर्शयाम्यहमात्मानं न चाशान्ताय भारत,अर्हस्त्वं भीष्म मां द्रष्ट तपसा स्वेन पार्थिव । तव ह्ुपस्थिता लोका येभ्यो नावर्तते पुनः भूपाल! आप अपने तपोबलसे ही मेरा दर्शन करनेके योग्य हैं। आपके लिये वे दिव्य लोक प्रस्तुत हैं जहाँसे फिर इस लोकमें नहीं आना पड़ता

Transliteration

na hābhaktāya rājendra bhaktāyānṛjave na ca | darśayāmy aham ātmānaṁ na cāśāntāya bhārata | arhastvaṁ bhīṣma māṁ draṣṭuṁ tapasā svena pārthiva | tava hy upasthitā lokā yebhyo nāvartate punaḥ ||

Translation

Vāyu dijo: «Oh rey, no me revelo a quien carece de devoción, ni a quien, aun siendo devoto, no es recto; tampoco me muestro al que no posee paz interior, oh Bhārata. Pero tú, Bhīṣma, eres digno de contemplarme por la fuerza de tu propia austeridad, oh soberano. Para ti ya están dispuestos los mundos: esos reinos divinos de los que, una vez alcanzados, no se retorna jamás a este mundo».

Word by Word

• {'abhakta': 'one without devotion

• irreverent', 'bhakta': 'devoted

• faithful', 'anṛju / anṛjava': 'not straight

• lacking rectitude', 'darśayāmi': 'I cause to be seen

• I reveal', 'ātmānam': 'myself

• my own form/essence', 'aśānta': 'unpeaceful

• not tranquil', 'arhasi / arhastvam': 'you are worthy

• you deserve', 'draṣṭum': 'to see

• to behold', 'tapasā': 'by austerity

• by ascetic power', 'pārthiva': 'earthly ruler

• king', 'lokāḥ': 'worlds

• realms of existence', 'upasthitāḥ': 'present

• at hand', 'nāvartate punaḥ': 'does not return again'}

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyu (Vāyudeva)
• Bhīṣma
• Bhārata (address to Bhīṣma as descendant of Bharata)
• Rājendra / Pārthiva (kingly addressee)
• Divine worlds (lokāḥ)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Divine revelation is conditioned by inner qualifications: devotion must be joined with straightforward integrity (ārjava) and peace of mind (śānti). Austerity (tapas) grounded in these virtues makes one fit for higher realization and the attainment of realms described as ‘non-returning’ (apunarāvṛtti).

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyudeva addresses Bhīṣma, stating that he does not manifest to those lacking devotion, lacking rectitude, or lacking inner peace. He then affirms Bhīṣma’s eligibility—earned through his own tapas—and declares that exalted worlds are already prepared for him, from which one does not return to mortal existence.