Shloka 16

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

Devanagari script

व्यावर्तमाने भगवत्युदीचीं सूर्ये दिशं कालवशात्‌ प्रपन्ने । गन्तासि लोकान्‌ पुरुषप्रवीर नावर्तते यानुपलभ्य विद्वान्‌

Transliteration

vyāvartamāne bhagavaty udīcīṁ sūrye diśaṁ kālavaśāt prapanne | gantāsi lokān puruṣapravīra nāvartate yān upalabhya vidvān ||

Translation

Vāyu dit : «Ô plus grand héros parmi les hommes, lorsque le Soleil bienheureux, contraint par le Temps, se retournera et entrera dans la voie du nord, alors tu partiras vers ces mondes où, une fois parvenus, les sages ne reviennent plus en ce royaume mortel.»

Word by Word

• {'vyāvartamāne': 'when turning back, reversing course', 'bhagavati': 'in/when the blessed one (here: the Sun as a divine being)', 'udīcīm diśam': 'the northern direction

• the northward course', 'sūrye': 'the Sun', 'kālavaśāt': 'under the power of Time

• by destiny/inevitability', 'prapanne': 'having entered, having resorted to', 'gantāsi': 'you will go

• you shall depart', 'lokān': 'worlds, realms of existence', 'puruṣa-pravīra': 'foremost hero among men', 'na āvartate': 'does not return', 'yān': 'which (worlds)', 'upalabhya': 'having attained, having realized', 'vidvān': 'a wise/knowing person'}

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyu (Wind-god)
• Sūrya (Sun-god)
• udīcī diś (northern direction)
• kāla (Time/Destiny)
• lokāḥ (realms/worlds)
• puruṣapravīra (addressed hero)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse links spiritual departure to cosmic timing: when the Sun enters the northward course (uttarāyaṇa), the hero is instructed to go to the highest realms—those from which the wise do not return—signaling liberation or a final, non-returning attainment beyond rebirth.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyu addresses a celebrated human hero and gives a directive about the proper moment of departure: when the Sun, driven by the force of Time, turns toward the northern path, the hero should proceed to the transcendent worlds associated with non-return.