Shloka 17
Bhīṣma’s Śara-śayyā Stuti to Vāsudeva and Yogic Preparation for Dehotsarga
Body-Relinquishment
शुचिं शुचिपदं हंसं तत्पदं परमेष्ठिनम्
śuciṁ śucipadaṁ haṁsaṁ tatpadaṁ parameṣṭhinam
毗湿摩说道：“当观想那至净者——其所住即为清净；那 haṁsa，至上的灵性‘天鹅’——那正是最高的归处，帕拉梅什提因（Parameṣṭhin，至尊者）。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates purity (śuci) and the ‘pure abode’ (śucipada) as the spiritual orientation for dharma: peace and right living are grounded in inner cleansing and contemplation of the highest reality, symbolized as the haṁsa and named Parameṣṭhin.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and the means to peace after the war. Here he uses compact, mantra-like epithets to direct attention toward meditative remembrance of the supreme, presenting the highest goal as purity and the exalted ‘abode’ of Parameṣṭhin.