Shloka 92
Bhīṣma’s Śara-śayyā Stuti to Vāsudeva and Yogic Preparation for Dehotsarga
Body-Relinquishment
एको<पि कृष्णस्य कृत: प्रणामो दशाश्वमेधाव भूथेन तुल्य: । दशाश्वमेधी पुनरेति जन्म कृष्णप्रणामी न पुनर्भवाय
eko 'pi kṛṣṇasya kṛtaḥ praṇāmo daśāśvamedhāvabhṛthena tulyaḥ | daśāśvamedhī punar eti janma kṛṣṇapraṇāmī na punarbhavāya ||
Bhīṣma dit : Un seul salut révérencieux offert à Kṛṣṇa procure un mérite égal à l’ablution finale (avabhṛtha) de dix sacrifices Aśvamedha. Mais il est une différence plus haute encore : celui qui accomplit dix Aśvamedhas renaît pourtant dans ce monde, tandis que celui qui se prosterne devant Kṛṣṇa ne revient pas aux liens du devenir répété.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Devotional surrender expressed even through a single sincere praṇāma to Kṛṣṇa is presented as surpassing great ritual achievements: it grants not merely ritual merit but freedom from punarbhava (rebirth), emphasizing liberation-oriented devotion over merit-seeking sacrifice.
In the Śānti Parva discourse, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and the highest means to welfare. Here he praises the spiritual efficacy of bowing to Kṛṣṇa, comparing it to the culmination of major Vedic sacrifices and then asserting its superior result—release from saṃsāra.