Shloka 12
Abhimanyunidhana-prakāśaḥ — Vasudeva–Kṛṣṇa–Subhadrā–Kuntī śoka-saṃvāda
Disclosure and Consolation
अकरोत् स ततः काल॑ शरतल्पगतो मुनि: । अयनं दक्षिण हित्वा सम्प्राप्ते चोत्तरायणे
akarot sa tataḥ kālaṁ śaratālpagato muniḥ | ayanaṁ dakṣiṇaṁ hitvā samprāpte cottarāyaṇe ||
ヴァースデーヴァは語った。――そののち、矢の床に横たわるその聖仙は、自ら逝去の時を選び取った。太陽の運行が南へ向かう時期（ダクシナーヤナ）には去らず、その季が尽き、北へ向かう運行（ウッタラーヤナ）が到来してはじめて死を受け入れた――時を律して掌中に収める修行の力と、戦後の荒廃のただ中にあっても誓戒を守り抜く不動の節義を示したのである。
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights disciplined self-governance: even in extreme suffering, one can uphold vows and choose the proper time for one’s final act, aligning personal conduct with a larger moral and cosmic order.
Kṛṣṇa (Vāsudeva) explains that Bhīṣma, lying on the arrow-bed, did not relinquish life during dakṣiṇāyana; he waited until uttarāyaṇa arrived and then deliberately accepted death.