Shloka 91
एको नैक: सव: कः कि यत् तत् पदमनुत्तमम् | लोकबन्धुलोंकनाथो माधवो भक्तवत्सल:
eko naikaḥ savaḥ kaḥ kim yat tat padam anuttamam | lokabandhur lokanātho mādhavo bhaktavatsalaḥ ||
Bhīṣma dit : « Il est Un — sans division intérieure — et pourtant multiple par ses innombrables descentes. Il est la forme même du sacrifice, l’incarnation de la béatitude et le Brahman à contempler ; établi par lui-même et source de toute expansion. Il est la Demeure suprême, sans égale, accessible aux chercheurs de délivrance. Il est l’ami des mondes, le Seigneur des mondes vers qui tous peuvent se tourner — Mādhava — tendrement attaché à ses dévots ».
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse praises the Supreme as simultaneously transcendent unity (ekaḥ) and manifold in manifestation (naikaḥ), identifying Him as sacrifice, bliss, and the contemplable Brahman, and as the highest goal (anuttama-pada) reached by seekers—especially through devotion, since He is bhaktavatsala.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs on dharma and extols the divine through a litany of names and attributes. Here he enumerates epithets of Mādhava to convey His supreme nature, His accessibility as Lord and friend of beings, and His special affection for devotees.