Shloka 83
बक-गौतमाख्यानम् / The Baka–Gautama Account
On Gratitude and Friendship Ethics
असेरष्टौ हि नामानि रहस्यानि निबोध मे । पाण्डवेय सदा यानि कीर्तयन् लभते जयम्
aser aṣṭau hi nāmāni rahasyāni nibodha me | pāṇḍaveya sadā yāni kīrtayan labhate jayam, pāṇḍunandana ||
Bhīṣma dit : «Apprends de moi les huit noms secrets de l’épée. Ô descendant de Pāṇḍu, celui qui récite sans cesse ces noms obtient la victoire au combat, ô fils de Pāṇḍu.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that disciplined remembrance/recitation of consecrated, ‘secret’ names connected with a weapon (here, the sword) is believed to confer steadiness and success—framing victory not merely as force, but as supported by sanctioned knowledge, restraint, and right conduct.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction to the Pāṇḍava king, Bhīṣma introduces a set of eight esoteric names of the sword and tells Yudhiṣṭhira that one who regularly recites them gains victory in warfare, preparing to enumerate those names in the subsequent verses.