Shloka 34

Guru’s Instruction on Dream, Mind, Guṇas, and Knowing Brahman

Svapna–Manas–Guṇa–Brahma-vicāra

Devanagari script

पद्मनाभो महायोगी महात्मा भूतभावन: । न संतापो न भी: कार्या शोको वा सुरसत्तमा:,सुरश्रेष्टण! ये महायोगी भूतभावन महात्मा पद्मनाभ हैं; अतः तुम्हें अपने मनसे संताप, भय एवं शोकको दूर कर देना चाहिये

Transliteration

padmanābho mahāyogī mahātmā bhūtabhāvanaḥ | na santāpo na bhīḥ kāryā śoko vā surasattama ||

Translation

Bhīṣma berkata: “Padmanābha—yogin agung, jiwa mulia, penopang dan sumber segala makhluk—dialah yang berada di balik semua ini. Karena itu, wahai yang terbaik di antara para dewa, jangan beri tempat dalam batinmu bagi duka, takut, ataupun sedih.”

Word by Word

पद्मनाभःPadmanabha (one whose navel is like a lotus / Vishnu)

महायोगीgreat yogin

महात्माgreat-souled one

भूतभावनःcreator/sustainer of beings

नnot

संतापःdistress, anguish

नnor

भीःfear

कार्याto be done / to be made (i.e., should be entertained)

शोकःgrief

वाor

सुरसत्तमाःO best of gods

Speaker

पितामह उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma (Pitāmaha)

Padmanābha (Viṣṇu/Nārāyaṇa)

Surasattama (best of the gods; addressee, likely Indra)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Recognize the supreme divine agency (Padmanābha, the sustainer of beings) and therefore abandon inner turmoil—do not nurture distress, fear, or grief; steadiness of mind is presented as the proper ethical-spiritual response.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma (Pitāmaha), in his instructive discourse in Śānti Parva, addresses a deity styled ‘best of the gods’ and offers reassurance: since the supreme Lord is the great yogin and source of beings, the listener should set aside anxiety, fear, and sorrow.