Shloka 34
मरीचिर्दमनो हंस: सुपर्णो भुजगोत्तम: | हिरण्यनाभ: सुतपा: पद्मना भः प्रजापति:
marīcir damano haṁsaḥ suparṇo bhujagottamaḥ | hiraṇyanābhaḥ sutapāḥ padmanābhaḥ prajāpatiḥ ||
Bhīṣma disse: Ele é Marīci, o radiante; Damana, o que refreia os seres desviados; Haṁsa, que assume a forma de cisne para transmitir a Brahmā a sabedoria védica; Suparṇa, o Garuḍa de belas asas; Bhujagottama, o primeiro entre as serpentes como Śeṣa; Hiraṇyanābha, cujo umbigo é esplêndido como o ouro; Sutapā, que realiza nobres austeridades (como Nara–Nārāyaṇa em Badarikāśrama); Padmanābha, de umbigo de lótus; e Prajāpati, o Senhor que nutre e governa todas as criaturas.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that dharma is upheld by the divine through multiple functions—restraint of wrongdoing (damana), illumination and wisdom (marīci, haṁsa), protection and support (garuḍa, śeṣa), and sustaining governance of beings (prajāpati). Remembering these forms cultivates reverence for moral order and disciplined living.
Bhishma is reciting a sequence of divine names/epithets, identifying the Lord through well-known manifestations and attributes (Marīci, Haṁsa, Garuḍa, Śeṣa, Padmanābha, Prajāpati). The passage functions as a devotional and doctrinal enumeration within his instruction on righteous conduct.