Shloka 24
Vyaktāvyakta-Viveka and Nivṛtti as Paramā Gati
Manifest–Unmanifest Discrimination and the Supreme Path of Withdrawal
नारायणादृषिगणास्तथा मुख्या: सुरासुरा: । राजर्षय: पुराणाश्न परमं दुःखभेषजम्
nārāyaṇād ṛṣigaṇās tathā mukhyāḥ surāsurāḥ | rājarṣayaḥ purāṇāś ca paramaṃ duḥkhabheṣajam ||
Disse Bhīṣma: De Nārāyaṇa, as hostes de rishis, bem como os mais eminentes entre deuses e asuras, e os antigos sábios reais, vieram a conhecer o remédio supremo para a tristeza. Esse conhecimento mais elevado (de Brahman) é ensinado como o medicamento final que cura todo sofrimento.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents Brahman-knowledge (the highest spiritual realization) as the supreme medicine for duḥkha (suffering), and grounds its authority by stating that sages, gods, asuras, and ancient royal sages have known it through Nārāyaṇa.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on peace and liberation, Bhīṣma continues advising Yudhiṣṭhira by elevating Nārāyaṇa as the ultimate source and by emphasizing that the highest knowledge is universally acknowledged—even by diverse cosmic beings—as the cure for sorrow.