Shloka 60
Saṃhāra-krama (The Sequence of Cosmic Dissolution) — Yājñavalkya’s Discourse
ताराधिपं खे विमल॑ सतारं विश्वांश्व देवानुरगान् पितृश्च । शैलांश्व क॒त्स्नानुदधींश्व घोरान् नदीश्व॒ सर्वा: सवनान् घनांश्व
tārādhipaṁ khe vimalaṁ satāraṁ viśvāṁś ca devān uragān pitṝṁś ca | śailāṁś ca kṛtsnān udadhīṁś ca ghorān nadīś ca sarvāḥ savanān ghanāṁś ca ||
Bhishma berkata: “Ia dapat menjangkau dan memasuki: bulan yang tanpa noda, penguasa bintang-bintang, bersinar di langit yang penuh bintang; para Viśvedevas; para Nāga; para Pitṛ (leluhur); seluruh gunung; samudra yang mengerikan; semua sungai; hutan; dan awan. Seorang mahātma yang sempurna dalam yoga, bila ia menghendaki, seketika terbebas dan mencapai Brahman Tertinggi; atau, dengan kekuatan yoga, ia dapat pergi ke alam dan makhluk itu lalu masuk ke dalamnya.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights yogic mastery: a perfected yogin may choose immediate liberation into the supreme Brahman, or—short of final release—exercise extraordinary yogic reach to access and ‘enter’ various cosmic domains (deities, ancestors, and natural powers). The ethical implication is that such powers are secondary; the highest aim remains moksha.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and spiritual disciplines, Bhishma continues teaching about yoga and its fruits. Here he enumerates cosmic beings and regions to illustrate the scope of yogic accomplishment and the yogin’s freedom of movement across the universe.