Shloka 46

Bhīṣma’s Śara-śayyā Stuti to Vāsudeva and Yogic Preparation for Dehotsarga

Body-Relinquishment

Devanagari script

यः सहस्रसमे सत्रे जज्ञे विश्वसृजामृषि: । हिरण्यपक्ष: शकुनिस्तस्मै हंसात्मने नम:,जो ऋषि हजार वर्षोमें पूर्ण होनेवाले प्रजापतियोंके यज्ञमें सोनेकी पाँखवाले पक्षीके रूपमें प्रकट हुए थे, उन हंसरूपधारी परमेश्वरको प्रणाम है

Transliteration

yaḥ sahasra-same satre jajñe viśva-sṛjām ṛṣiḥ | hiraṇya-pakṣaḥ śakunis tasmai haṃsātmane namaḥ ||

Translation

Bhishma berkata: “Sembah sujud kepada Tuhan Yang Maha Tinggi—yang, dalam sidang korban satra selama seribu tahun milik para Prajāpati pencipta alam, menzahir sebagai burung-ṛṣi bersayap emas, mengambil rupa haṃsa (angsa suci).”

Word by Word

यःwho

सहस्रसमेin the thousandth (year/occasion)

सत्रेin the sacrificial session (sattra)

जज्ञेwas born / manifested

विश्वसृजाम्of the creators of the universe (Prajāpatis)

ऋषिःthe sage

हिरण्यपक्षःhaving golden wings

शकुनिःbird

तस्मैto him

हंसात्मनेto the one whose nature is (that of) a swan

नमःsalutation

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Prajāpatis (world-creators)

Haṃsa (swan-form)

Hiraṇya-pakṣa (golden-winged bird-form)

Satra (thousand-year sacrificial session)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches dharmic reverence: acknowledging the divine as the inner reality behind cosmic creation and sacred ritual. By saluting the Lord in the haṃsa-form, it also points to purity and discriminative wisdom—qualities traditionally associated with the haṃsa.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma offers a hymn-like salutation, recalling a mythic manifestation during a thousand-year satra performed by the world-creating Prajāpatis. The Lord is praised as appearing as a golden-winged bird/swan, and Bhīṣma bows to that haṃsa-formed Supreme.