Shloka 19
Gāndhārī’s Battlefield Survey: The Fallen and the Onset of Funeral Rites (शल्य-भगीरथ-भीष्म-द्रोणादि-दर्शनम्)
अतूलपूर्ण गाड़्नेयस्त्रिभि्बाणै: समन्वितम् | उपधायोपधानाग्रयं दत्तं गाण्डीवधन्चना,इन गंगानन्दन भीष्मने रुई भरा हुआ तकिया नहीं लिया है। इन्होंने तो गाण्डीवधारी अर्जुनके दिये हुए तीन बाणोंद्वारा निर्मित श्रेष्ठ उपधान (तकिये)-को ही स्वीकार किया है
atūlapūrṇaṃ gāḍhneyas tribhir bāṇaiḥ samanvitam | upadhāyopadhānāgryaṃ dattaṃ gāṇḍīvadhanvanā ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Bhīṣma did not accept a pillow stuffed with cotton. Instead, he accepted as his headrest the finest support fashioned from three arrows, given by Arjuna, the wielder of the Gāṇḍīva. The scene underscores austere acceptance and warrior-dharma even amid suffering: comfort is not sought through luxury, but through what accords with one’s station and the solemnity of the moment.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even in extreme pain, Bhīṣma maintains kṣatriya-austerity and dignity: he refuses soft luxury (a cotton pillow) and accepts a headrest consistent with the warrior context—arrows given by Arjuna—showing restraint, self-mastery, and adherence to dharma.
In the aftermath of the war (Strī Parva context of grief and consequences), Bhīṣma is being attended to. A cotton-stuffed pillow is not taken; instead, a superior headrest made from three arrows—given by Arjuna, wielder of the Gāṇḍīva—is placed for him.