Shloka 87
Bhīṣma’s Śara-śayyā Stuti to Vāsudeva and Yogic Preparation for Dehotsarga
Body-Relinquishment
नमस्ते भगवन् विष्णो लोकानां प्रभवाप्यय | त्वं हि कर्ता हृषीकेश संहर्ता चापराजित:
namaste bhagavan viṣṇo lokānāṃ prabhavāpyaya | tvaṃ hi kartā hṛṣīkeśa saṃhartā cāparājitaḥ ||
我顶礼世尊毗湿奴——不坏之主，诸世界之生起与归灭皆由汝。噫，赫利希凯沙！汝既为创造者，亦为毁灭者；无人能胜汝。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the supreme Lord (Viṣṇu/Hṛṣīkeśa) is the invincible ground of the cosmos—both its arising and its dissolution—so the ethically appropriate response is humility and devotion toward the source of order that transcends all worldly power.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction setting, Bhīṣma speaks in a devotional register, offering a formal salutation (stuti) to Viṣṇu, identifying him by epithets and cosmic functions (creator/destroyer) to affirm divine supremacy while expounding dharma-related teachings.