Shloka 28
अलंघयदू वै सरितो जिघांसन् शक्रं वज्ं प्रहरन्तं निरास । स महेन्द्र: स्तूयते वै महाध्वरे विप्रैरैको ऋक््सहस: पुराणै:
alaṅghayad ū vai sarito jighāṃsan śakraṃ vajraṃ praharantaṃ nirāsa | sa mahendraḥ stūyate vai mahādhvare viprair eko ṛk-sahasraiḥ purāṇaiḥ ||
Bhīṣma dit : « Voulant abattre Śakra (Indra), il franchit d’un bond de nombreux fleuves et repoussa Indra, prêt à frapper du vajra (foudre). C’est lui-même qu’on célèbre comme Mahendra : dans les grands sacrifices, les brahmanes ne louent que lui, par des milliers d’antiques hymnes du Ṛg-veda. »
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Supreme divinity transcends and governs even the highest gods: the same reality that can thwart Indra’s thunderbolt is also the one praised in Vedic sacrifices. Ethically, it cautions against pride in power and directs reverence toward the ultimate source behind divine authority.
A divine figure (implied as the supreme lord) intends to slay Indra, crosses many rivers in pursuit, and repels Indra when he raises the vajra to strike. Bhīṣma then identifies that very being as ‘Mahendra,’ praised by Brahmins in great sacrifices with thousands of ancient Ṛgvedic hymns.