यवक्रीतश्च रैभ्यश्व॒ अर्वावसुपरावसू । ओऔशिजजश्चैव कक्षीवान् बलश्षाड्रिरस: सुत:
yavakrītaś ca raibhyaś ca arvāvasu-parāvasū | auśijajaś caiva kakṣīvān balaḥ śāḍrasaḥ sutaḥ ||
Bhishma berkata: “Aku akan menyebut nama para resi yang terkemuka—Yavakrīta dan Raibhya; Arvāvasu dan Parāvasu; Kakṣīvān, putera Uśij; serta Bala, putera Śāḍrasa. Para resi ini dikenang sebagai yang memiliki sinar Brahman dan sebagai penegak tatanan dunia.”
भीष्म उवाच
The verse underscores the ethical and cultural authority of ṛṣis: their spiritual discipline (brahmatejas) and exemplary lives are presented as foundations for sustaining social and cosmic order, making their names and lineages worthy of remembrance.
Bhishma, in an instructive discourse, begins enumerating renowned sages—identifying some by patronymics—to establish a lineage of spiritual exemplars and to lend weight to the dharmic instruction being conveyed in this section.