Shloka 104
Adhyāya 284: Tapas as a Corrective to Household Attachment
Parāśara’s Instruction
सहस्रोद्यतशूलाय सहस्रनयनाय च । नमो बालार्कवर्णाय बालरूपधराय च
sahasrodyataśūlāya sahasranayanāya ca | namo bālārkavarṇāya bālarūpadharāya ca ||
பீஷ்மர் கூறினார்— ஆயிரம் உயர்த்திய சூலங்களைத் தாங்கியவனே, ஆயிரம் கண்களுடையவனே—உனக்கு வணக்கம். உன் ஒளி காலைச் சூரியனைப் போலத் திகழ்கிறது; நீ குழந்தை வடிவம் ஏற்கிறாய்—உனக்கு प्रणாமம்।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches reverent recognition of the divine as both formidable (many weapons, many eyes—omniscient vigilance and protective force) and compassionate/accessible (child-form, gentle radiance). Ethically, it models devotion aligned with dharma: surrender to a higher moral order that can protect and guide.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma speaks from his bed of arrows, instructing Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and related themes. Here he utters a hymn of salutation, praising a deity with cosmic attributes—multiplicity of eyes and weapons and the brilliance of the morning sun—while also noting the deity’s childlike form.