Shloka 6
प्रजापतयः देवगणाश्च दिशि-दिशि स्थिताः ऋषयः
Prajāpatis, Deva-Groups, and the Ṛṣis Assigned to the Directions
मही महीजा: पवनो<न््तरिक्ष॑ जलौकसश्लैव जलं दिवं च । दिवौकसश्चापि यतः प्रसूता- स्तदुच्यतां मे भगवन् पुराणम्,भगवन्! पृथ्वी, पार्थिव पदार्थ, वायु, आकाश, जलजन्तु, जल, द्युलोक और देवता जिससे उत्पन्न होते हैं, वह पुरातन वस्तु क्या है? यह मुझे बताइये
bhīṣma uvāca |
mahī mahījāḥ pavano 'ntarikṣaṃ jalaukasaś caiva jalaṃ divaṃ ca |
divaukasaś cāpi yataḥ prasūtās tad ucyatāṃ me bhagavan purāṇam ||
Bhishma berkata: “Wahai Yang Mulia, dari hakikat purba apakah bumi dan segala yang bersifat duniawi berasal—angin, antariksa, makhluk penghuni air, air itu sendiri, alam surga, bahkan para dewa penghuni surga? Katakanlah kepadaku, wahai Tuhan, apakah sumber kuno itu.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a philosophical inquiry into the single primordial source from which all elements, worlds, and beings arise, setting up a teaching on first principles (the ultimate cause behind the manifest cosmos).
Bhishma, in instruction mode during the Shanti Parva, asks a revered teacher to identify the ancient, original reality from which earth, atmosphere, water, heaven, and the gods themselves are said to originate.