Shloka 50
भीष्मस्य भीमसेन-निरोधः
Bhīṣma checks Bhīmasena; matched engagements intensify
असंख्येयगुणाधार जय सर्वपरायण । नारायण सुदुष्पार जय शार्ज्ुधनुर्धर
asaṅkhyeyaguṇādhāra jaya sarvaparāyaṇa | nārāyaṇa suduṣpāra jaya śārṅgadhanurdhara || yasyā nābhau samutpannaṃ ādi-padmaṃ sanātanam | viśālākṣa mahādeva lokādhipataye namaḥ || bhūta-bhavya-bhavat-svāmin jaya te jagatāṃ pate | saumyaṃ te rūpam īśāna svayambhū brahma te sutaḥ || asaṅkhyeyaguṇādhāra sarvaśaraṇadāyaka | nārāyaṇa suduṣpāra jaya śārṅgadhanurdhara ||
Pinuri ni Bhīṣma si Nārāyaṇa bilang di-nauubos na saligan ng di-mabilang na kabutihan at huling kanlungan ng lahat ng nilalang. Mula sa Kanyang pusod sumibol ang unang lotus; malalapad ang Kanyang mga mata, at Siya ang Panginoon maging ng mga pinuno ng mga daigdig. Siya ang may kapangyarihan sa nakaraan, hinaharap, at kasalukuyan; banayad ang Kanyang anyo; at sinasabing maging si Brahmā na Kusang-sinilang ay lumitaw bilang Kanyang anak. Sa paghayag na ang Kanyang kadakilaan ay halos di-masukat, paulit-ulit Siyang pinupugayan ni Bhīṣma bilang tagapagdala ng busog na Śārṅga—isang debosyon na naglalarawan sa digmaan hindi lamang bilang karahasan, kundi bilang larangang tinatawag ang sukdulang paghahari, pag-iingat, at dharma.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that ultimate refuge and authority lie in Nārāyaṇa: He is the ground of innumerable virtues, sovereign over time (past–present–future), and even the source of cosmic creation (the lotus and Brahmā). In a dharmic frame, devotion to the highest Lord reorients the meaning of conflict toward protection, rightful order, and surrender to a transcendent moral center.
In the Bhīṣma Parva war setting, Bhīṣma utters a hymn of praise (stuti) to Nārāyaṇa/Viṣṇu—identified by the epithet ‘bearer of the Śārṅga bow.’ He proclaims the Lord’s cosmic signs (navel-lotus, Brahmā as son) and repeatedly offers salutations, emphasizing the Lord’s unfathomable greatness amid the unfolding battle.