Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 56

भीष्मस्योत्तरायणप्रतीक्षा तथा युधिष्ठिरागमनम् | Bhīṣma’s uttarāyaṇa moment and Yudhiṣṭhira’s arrival

Devanagari script

शिरो नागैर्महाभोगै: परिकीर्ण महात्मभि: । भविष्यति महाबाहो: सर्वलोके श्चरस्य च,सर्वलोकेश्वर महाबाहु बलरामजीका मस्तक बड़े-बड़े फनवाले विशालकाय सर्पोंसे घिरा हुआ होगा

Transliteration

śiro nāgair mahābhogaiḥ parikīrṇaṁ mahātmabhiḥ | bhaviṣyati mahābāhoḥ sarvalokeśvarasya ca ||

Translation

Īśvara phán: “Đầu của Balarāma, bậc đại dũng có cánh tay hùng mạnh, Chúa tể của muôn cõi, sẽ được bao quanh và che phủ bởi những đại xà có mang rộng lớn, bản tính cao quý.”

Word by Word

• शिरः: head
• शिरः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिरस्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• नागैः: by/with serpents
• नागैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाग
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• महाभोगैः: with great coils/hoods (huge-bodied)
• महाभोगैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महाभोग
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• परिकीर्णम्: surrounded, covered all around
• परिकीर्णम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परि-कीर्ण
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• महात्मभिः: by great-souled ones
• महात्मभिः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: महात्मन्
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• भविष्यति: will be
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू
• Form: Simple Future (Luṭ), Third, Singular

• महाबाहो: O mighty-armed one
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाबाहु
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• सर्वलोकेश्वरस्य: of the lord of all worlds
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्वलोकेश्वर
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

Speaker

ईश्वर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Īśvara
• Balarāma
• Nāgas (serpents)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse emphasizes the exalted, cosmic status of Balarāma as “Lord of all worlds,” conveyed through protective and reverential imagery: mighty nāgas encircle his head, suggesting divine sovereignty upheld by powerful beings aligned with cosmic order.

What is happening in the narrative?

Īśvara describes a future (or destined) scene in which Balarāma’s head is encircled by immense, hooded serpents (nāgas), portraying him as a supreme figure attended and honored by formidable beings.