युगादिकृद् युगावर्तो नैकमायो महाशन: । अदृश्योड्व्यक्तरूपश्न सहस्नजिदनन्तजित्
yugādikṛd yugāvarto naikamāyo mahāśanaḥ | adṛśyo 'vyaktarūpaś ca sahasrajid anantajit ||
युगादिकृद् युगावर्तो नैकमायो महाशनः । अदृश्योऽव्यक्तरूपश्च सहस्रजिदनन्तजित् ॥
भीष्म उवाच
The verse presents the Supreme as the controller of cosmic time and dissolution: he initiates the yugas, turns their cycle, manifests through many powers (māyā), yet remains beyond sensory grasp and unmanifest in essence. Ethically, it grounds dharma in reverence for a transcendent ruler whose victory is universal and inexhaustible.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma is instructing Yudhiṣṭhira and praising the supreme deity through a sequence of epithets. This verse continues that litany, describing divine attributes—cosmic governance, hiddenness, and invincibility—within Bhīṣma’s didactic discourse on dharma and devotion.