Shloka 19
अश्वशिरो-आख्यानम्
Aśvaśiras / Hayaśiras Narrative: Retrieval of the Vedas
एतौ हि परमं धाम का5नयोराद्विकक्रिया
etau hi paramaṃ dhāma kānayoḥ ādvika-kriyā | ye hi dvau parama-dhāma-svarūpau | inayoḥ etat nitya-karma katham | etau dvau yaśasvinau devatau samasta-prāṇināṃ pitṛ-devatau | etau parama-buddhimantau dvau bandhu kasyā devatāyā yajanaṃ kurutaḥ keṣāṃ ca pitṝṇāṃ pūjanaṃ kurutaḥ |
毗湿摩说道：“此二者实即至上之所依、至高之住处本身。既然如此，属于他们的原初而恒常之仪轨究竟为何？因为这两位光耀的天神，是一切众生之父，亦是一切众生之神圣护持者。二者至智，且以亲族相系；那么，他们礼敬何神，又供奉何等祖灵（祖先）呢？”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a theological inquiry: if certain two divine principles are themselves the highest reality (paramaṃ dhāma), then their ‘eternal duty’ cannot be ordinary ritual for personal gain. The question points toward a higher understanding of dharma—where worship and ancestral honour are reinterpreted in relation to ultimate reality rather than as merely external acts.
Bhishma, in his instruction during the Shanti Parva, raises a probing question about two exalted deities described as the fathers and divine guardians of all beings. He asks whom they could possibly worship and which ancestors they could honour, setting up a discussion on the hierarchy of divinity, the meaning of ritual action, and the nature of supreme dharma.