Shloka 61

श्रेयो-धर्मकर्मविचारः

Inquiry into Śreyas, Dharma, and Karma

Devanagari script

भीष्म उवाच मूलस्थायी महादेवो भगवान्‌ स्वेन तेजसा । तत्स्थ:सृजति तान्‌ भावान्‌ नानारूपान्‌ महामना:

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca mūlasthāyī mahādevo bhagavān svena tejasā | tatsthaḥ sṛjati tān bhāvān nānārūpān mahāmanāḥ ||

Translation

భీష్ముడు పలికెను—యుధిష్ఠిరా! మూలకారణంలో స్థితుడైన మహాదేవుడు, మహామనస్కుడైన భగవంతుడు తన స్వతేజస్సులో నిలిచి, తన ప్రభావంతో నానారూపాలుగా సమస్త భావాలను సృష్టిస్తాడు.

Word by Word

• {'bhīṣma uvāca': 'Bhishma said', 'mūla-sthāyī': 'abiding in the root/primal cause', 'mahādevaḥ': 'the Great God

• supreme Lord', 'bhagavān': 'the Blessed Lord

• the divine possessor of sovereignty, power, and glory', 'svena tejasā': 'by/with His own splendor (intrinsic potency)', 'tat-sthaḥ': 'remaining established there (in that primal ground)', 'sṛjati': 'creates

• emanates', 'tān bhāvān': 'those beings/existences

• entities', 'nānā-rūpān': 'of many forms

• manifold in appearance', 'mahāmanāḥ': 'great-minded

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Mahadeva (the Great Lord)
• Bhagavan (the Lord)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that the supreme Lord remains established in the primal ground (mūla) and, without losing that transcendental stability, manifests the multiplicity of the world through His own inherent power (tejas). Creation is presented as an emanation from divine consciousness/energy rather than a struggle or deficiency.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Shanti Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira on dharma and higher truths. Here he shifts to a cosmological-metaphysical explanation: identifying the supreme deity as the root-abiding source who generates diverse beings and forms while remaining established in His own nature.