Shloka 21
एकान्तिधर्म-प्रश्नः (Inquiry into Ekāntin Dharma) / The Origin and Practice of Single-Pointed Nārāyaṇa-Centered Discipline
सर्वभावेन भक्त: स देवदेवं जनार्दनम् | अनादिमध्यनिधनं लोककर्तारमव्ययम्,वे आदि, मध्य और अन्तसे रहित, अविनाशी, लोककर्ता देवदेव जनार्दनके भजनमें सम्पूर्णभावसे लगे रहते थे
sarvabhāvena bhaktaḥ sa devadevaṃ janārdanam | anādimadhyanidhanaṃ lokakartāram avyayam ||
तो सर्वभावे देवदेव जनार्दनाचा भक्त होता—जो आदि, मध्य व अंत यांपासून रहित, अविनाशी आणि लोककर्ता आहे.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
True devotion is total—‘sarvabhāvena’—and is directed to the Supreme who is imperishable and beyond time (without beginning, middle, or end). Such bhakti is presented as a comprehensive ethical stance: aligning one’s whole life with the eternal source and sustainer of the world.
Bhishma, in his instruction during the Shanti Parva, describes a person’s unwavering devotion to Janardana, characterizing the deity with theological epithets (devadeva, avyaya, lokakartā). The focus is didactic: establishing the object and quality of devotion as part of dharma-teaching.