Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 1: “Creation”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Chapter Nine

The Passing Away of Bhismadeva in the Presence of Lord Krsna

SB1.9.1

TEXT 1

suta uvaca

iti bhitah praja-drohat

sarva-dharma-vivitsaya

tato vinasanam pragad

yatra deva-vrato ’patat

SYNONYMS

sutah uvaca—Sri Suta Gosvami said; iti—thus; bhitah—being afraid of; praja-drohat—because of killing the subjects; sarva—all; dharma—acts of religion; vivitsaya—for understanding; tatah—thereafter; vinasanam—the place where the fight was held; pragat—he went; yatra—where; deva-vratah—Bhismadeva; apatat—lay down for passing away.

TRANSLATION

Suta Gosvami said: Being afraid for having killed so many subjects on the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, Maharaja Yudhisthira went to the scene of the massacre. There, Bhismadeva was lying on a bed of arrows, about to pass away.

PURPORT

In this Ninth Chapter, as it is willed by Lord Sri Krsna, Bhismadeva will impart instructions to King Yudhisthira on the subject of occupational duties. Bhismadeva will also offer his last prayer to the Lord on the verge of passing away from this mortal world and thus become liberated from the bondage of further material engagements. Bhismadeva was endowed with the power of leaving his material body at will, and his lying down on the bed of arrows was his own choice. This passing away of the great warrior attracted the attention of all the contemporary elites, and all of them assembled there to show their feelings of love, respect and affection for the great soul.

SB1.9.2

TEXT 2

tada te bhratarah sarve

sadasvaih svarna-bhusitaih

anvagacchan rathair vipra

vyasa-dhaumyadayas tatha

SYNONYMS

tada—at that time; te—all of them; bhratarah—the brothers; sarve—all together; sat-asvaih—drawn by first-class horses; svarna—gold; bhusitaih—being decorated with; anvagacchan—followed one after another; rathaih—on the chariots; viprah—O brahmanas; vyasa—the sage Vyasa; dhaumya—Dhaumya; adayah—and others; tatha—also.

TRANSLATION

At that time all his brothers followed him on beautiful chariots drawn by first-class horses decorated with gold ornaments. With them were Vyasa and rsis like Dhaumya [the learned priest of the Pandavas] and others.

SB1.9.3

TEXT 3

bhagavan api viprarse

rathena sa-dhananjayah

sa tair vyarocata nrpah

kuvera iva guhyakaih

SYNONYMS

bhagavan—the Personality of Godhead (Sri Krsna); api—also; vipra-rse—O sage among the brahmanas; rathena—on the chariot; sa-dhananjayah—with Dhananjaya (Arjuna); sah—He; taih—by them; vyarocata—appeared to be highly aristocratic; nrpah—the King (Yudhisthira); kuvera—Kuvera, the treasurer of the demigods; iva—as; guhyakaih—companions known as Guhyakas.

TRANSLATION

O sage amongst the brahmanas, Lord Sri Krsna, the Personality of Godhead, also followed, seated on a chariot with Arjuna. Thus King Yudhisthira appeared very aristocratic, like Kuvera surrounded by his companions [the Guhyakas].

PURPORT

Lord Sri Krsna wanted the Pandavas to be present before Bhismadeva in the most aristocratic order so that he might be pleased to see them happy at the time of his death. Kuvera is the richest of all the demigods, and herein King Yudhisthira appeared like him (Kuvera), for the procession along with Sri Krsna was quite appropriate to the royalty of King Yudhisthira.

SB1.9.4

TEXT 4

drstva nipatitam bhumau

divas cyutam ivamaram

pranemuh pandava bhismam

sanugah saha cakrina

SYNONYMS

drstva—thus seeing; nipatitam—lying down; bhumau—on the ground; divah—from the sky; cyutam—fallen; iva—like; amaram—demigod; pranemuh—bowed down; pandavah—the sons of Pandu; bhismam—unto Bhisma; sa-anugah—with the younger brothers; saha—also with; cakrina—the Lord (carrying the disc).

TRANSLATION

Seeing him [Bhisma] lying on the ground, like a demigod fallen from the sky, the Pandava King Yudhisthira, along with his younger brothers and Lord Krsna, bowed down before him.

PURPORT

Lord Krsna was also a younger cousin of Maharaja Yudhisthira as well as the intimate friend of Arjuna. But all the family members of the Pandavas knew Lord Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Lord, although conscious of His supreme position, always behaved in a humanly custom, and so He also bowed down before the dying Bhismadeva as if He were one of the younger brothers of King Yudhisthira.

SB1.9.5

TEXT 5

tatra brahmarsayah sarve

devarsayas ca sattama

rajarsayas ca tatrasan

drastum bharata-pungavam

SYNONYMS

tatra—there; brahma-rsayahrsis among the brahmanas; sarve—all; deva-rsayahrsis among the demigods; ca—and; sattama—situated in the quality of goodness; raja-rsayahrsis among the kings; ca—and; tatra—in that place; asan—were present; drastum—just to see; bharata—the descendants of King Bharata; pungavam—the chief of.

TRANSLATION

Just to see the chief of the descendants of King Bharata [Bhisma], all the great souls in the universe, namely the rsis amongst the demigods, brahmanas and kings, all situated in the quality of goodness, were assembled there.

PURPORT

The rsis are those who have attained perfection by spiritual achievements. Such spiritual achievements can be earned by all, whether one is a king or a mendicant. Bhismadeva himself was also one of the brahmarsis and the chief of the descendants of King Bharata. All rsis are situated in the quality of goodness. All of them assembled there on hearing the news of the great warrior’s impending death.

SB1.9.6-7

TEXTS 6–7

parvato narado dhaumyo

bhagavan badarayanah

brhadasvo bharadvajah

sasisyo renuka-sutah

vasistha indrapramadas

trito grtsamado ’sitah

kaksivan gautamo ’tris ca

kausiko ’tha sudarsanah

SYNONYMS

parvatah—Parvata Muni; naradah—Narada Muni; dhaumyah—Dhaumya; bhagavan—incarnation of Godhead; badarayanah—Vyasadeva; brhadasvah—Brhadasva; bharadvajah—Bharadvaja; sa-sisyah—along with disciples; renuka-sutah—Parasurama; vasisthah—Vasistha; indrapramadah—Indrapramada; tritah—Trita; grtsamadah—Grtsamada; asitah—Asita; kaksivan—Kaksivan; gautamah—Gautama; atrih—Atri; ca—and; kausikah—Kausika; atha—as well as; sudarsanah—Sudarsana.

TRANSLATION

All the sages like Parvata Muni, Narada, Dhaumya, Vyasa the incarnation of God, Brhadasva, Bharadvaja and Parasurama and disciples, Vasistha, Indrapramada, Trita, Grtsamada, Asita, Kaksivan, Gautama, Atri, Kausika and Sudarsana were present.

PURPORT

Parvata Muni: is considered to be one of the oldest sages. He is almost always a constant companion of Narada Muni. They are also spacemen competent to travel in the air without the help of any material vehicle. Parvata Muni is also a devarsi, or a great sage amongst the demigods, like Narada. He was present along with Narada at the sacrificial ceremony of Maharaja Janamejaya, son of Maharaja Pariksit. In this sacrifice all the snakes of the world were to be killed. Parvata Muni and Narada Muni are called Gandharvas also because they can travel in the air singing the glories of the Lord. Since they can travel in the air, they observed Draupadi’s svayamvara ceremony (selecting of her own husband) from the air. Like Narada Muni, Parvata Muni also used to visit the royal assembly in the heaven of King Indra. As a Gandharva, sometimes he visited the royal assembly of Kuvera, one of the important demigods. Both Narada and Parvata were once in trouble with the daughter of Maharaja Srnjaya. Maharaja Srnjaya got the benediction of a son by Parvata Muni.

Narada Muni: is inevitably associated with the narrations of the Puranas. He is described in the Bhagavatam. In his previous life he was the son of a maidservant, but by good association with pure devotees he became enlightened in devotional service, and in the next life he became a perfect man comparable with himself only. In the Mahabharata his name is mentioned in many places. He is the principle devarsi, or the chief sage amongst the demigods. He is the son and disciple of Brahmaji, and from him the disciplic succession in the line of Brahma has been spread. He initiated Prahlada Maharaja, Dhruva Maharaja and many celebrated devotees of the Lord. He initiated even Vyasadeva, the author of the Vedic literatures, and from Vyasadeva, Madhvacarya was initiated, and thus the Madhva-sampradaya, in which the Gaudiya-sampradaya is also included, has spread all over the universe. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu belonged to this Madhva-sampradaya; therefore, Brahmaji, Narada, Vyasa, down to Madhva, Caitanya and the Gosvamis all belonged to the same line of disciplic succession. Naradaji has instructed many kings from time immemorial. In the Bhagavatam we can see that he instructed Prahlada Maharaja while he was in the womb of his mother, and he instructed Vasudeva, father of Krsna, as well as Maharaja Yudhisthira.

Dhaumya: A great sage who practiced severe penances at Utkocaka Tirtha and was appointed royal priest of the Pandava kings. He acted as the priest in many religious functions of the Pandavas (samskara), and also each of the Pandavas was attended by him at the betrothal of Draupadi. He was present even during the exile of the Pandavas and used to advise them in circumstances when they were perplexed. He instructed them how to live incognito for one year, and his instructions were strictly followed by the Pandavas during that time. His name is mentioned also when the general funeral ceremony was performed after the Battle of Kuruksetra. In the Anusasana-parva of Mahabharata (127.15–16), he gave religious instructions very elaborately to Maharaja Yudhisthira. He was actually the right type of priest of a householder, for he could guide the Pandavas on the right path of religion. A priest is meant for guiding the householder progressively in the right path of asrama-dharma, or the occupational duty of a particular caste. There is practically no difference between the family priest and the spiritual master. The sages, saints and brahmanas were especially meant for such functions.

Badarayana (Vyasadeva): He is known as Krsna, Krsna-dvaipayana, Dvaipayana, Satyavati-suta, Parasarya, Parasaratmaja, Badarayana, Vedavyasa, etc. He was the son of Mahamuni Parasara in the womb of Satyavati prior to her betrothal with Maharaja Santanu, the father of the great general Grandfather Bhismadeva. He is a powerful incarnation of Narayana, and he broadcasts the Vedic wisdom to the world. As such, Vyasadeva is offered respects before one chants the Vedic literature, especially the Puranas. Sukadeva Gosvami was his son, and rsis like Vaisampayana were his disciples for different branches of the Vedas. He is the author of the great epic Mahabharata and the great transcendental literature Bhagavatam. The Brahma-sutras—the Vedanta-sutras, or Badarayana-sutras—were compiled by him. Amongst sages he is the most respected author by dint of severe penances. When he wanted to record the great epic Mahabharata for the welfare of all people in the age of Kali, he was feeling the necessity of a powerful writer who could take up his dictation. By the order of Brahmaji, Sri Ganesaji took up the charge of noting down the dictation on the condition that Vyasadeva would not stop dictation for a moment. The Mahabharata was thus compiled by the joint endeavor of Vyasa and Ganesa.

By the order of his mother, Satyavati, who was later married to Maharaja Santanu, and by the request of Bhismadeva, the eldest son of Maharaja Santanu by his first wife, the Ganges, he begot three brilliant sons, whose names are Dhrtarastra, Pandu and Vidura. The Mahabharata was compiled by Vyasadeva after the Battle of Kuruksetra and after the death of all the heroes of Mahabharata. It was first spoken in the royal assembly of Maharaja Janamejaya, the son of Maharaja Pariksit.

Brhadasva: An ancient sage who used to meet Maharaja Yudhisthira now and then. First of all he met Maharaja Yudhisthira at Kamyavana. This sage narrated the history of Maharaja Nala. There is another Brhadasva, who is the son of the Iksvaku dynasty (Mahabharata, Vana-parva 209.4–5)

Bharadvaja: He is one of the seven great rsis and was present at the time of the birth ceremony of Arjuna. The powerful rsi sometimes undertook severe penances on the shore of the Ganges, and his asrama is still celebrated at Prayagadhama. It is learned that this rsi, while taking bath in the Ganges, happened to meet Ghrtaci, one of the beautiful society girls of heaven, and thus he discharged semen, which was kept and preserved in an earthen pot and from which Drona was born. So Dronacarya is the son of Bharadvaja Muni. Others say that Bharadvaja the father of Drona is a different person from Maharsi Bharadvaja. He was a great devotee of Brahma. Once he approached Dronacarya and requested him to stop the Battle of Kuruksetra.

Parasurama, or Renukasuta: He is the son of Maharsi Jamadagni and Srimati Renuka. Thus he is also known as Renukasuta. He is one of the powerful incarnations of God, and he killed the ksatriya community as a whole twenty-one times. With the blood of the ksatriyas he pleased the souls of his forefathers. Later on he underwent severe penances at the Mahendra Parvata. After taking the whole earth from the ksatriyas, he gave it in charity to Kasyapa Muni. Parasurama instructed the Dhanur-veda, or the science of fighting, to Dronacarya because he happened to be a brahmana. He was present during the coronation of Maharaja Yudhisthira, and he celebrated the function along with other great rsis.

Parasurama is so old that he met both Rama and Krsna at different times. He fought with Rama, but he accepted Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He also praised Arjuna when he saw him with Krsna. When Bhisma refused to marry Amba, who wanted him to become her husband, Amba met Parasurama, and by her request only, he asked Bhismadeva to accept her as his wife. Bhisma refused to obey his order, although he was one of the spiritual masters of Bhismadeva. Parasurama fought with Bhismadeva when Bhisma neglected his warning. Both of them fought very severely, and at last Parasurama was pleased with Bhisma and gave him the benediction of becoming the greatest fighter in the world.

Vasistha: The great celebrated sage among the brahmanas, well known as the Brahmarsi Vasisthadeva. He is a prominent figure in both the Ramayana and Mahabharata periods. He celebrated the coronation ceremony of the Personality of Godhead Sri Rama. He was present also on the Battlefield of Kuruksetra. He could approach all the higher and lower planets, and his name is also connected with the history of Hiranyakasipu. There was a great tension between him and Visvamitra, who wanted his kamadhenu, wish-fulfilling cow. Vasistha Muni refused to spare his kamadhenu, and for this Visvamitra killed his one hundred sons. As a perfect brahmana he tolerated all the taunts of Visvamitra. Once he tried to commit suicide on account of Visvamitra’s torture, but all his attempts were unsuccessful. He jumped from a hill, but the stones on which he fell became a stack of cotton, and thus he was saved. He jumped into the ocean, but the waves washed him ashore. He jumped into the river, but the river also washed him ashore. Thus all his suicide attempts were unsuccessful. He is also one of the seven rsis and husband of Arundhati, the famous star.

Indrapramada: Another celebrated rsi.

Trita: One of the three sons of Prajapati Gautama. He was the third son, and his other two brothers were known as Ekat and Dvita. All the brothers were great sages and strict followers of the principles of religion. By dint of severe penances they were promoted to Brahmaloka (the planet where Brahmaji lives). Once Trita Muni fell into a well. He was an organizing worker of many sacrifices, and as one of the great sages he also came to show respect to Bhismaji at his deathbed. He was one of the seven sages in the Varunaloka. He hailed from the Western countries of the world. As such, most probably he belonged to the European countries. At that time the whole world was under one Vedic culture.

Grtsamada: One of the sages of the heavenly kingdom. He was a close friend of Indra, the King of heaven, and was as great as Brhaspati. He used to visit the royal assembly of Maharaja Yudhisthira, and he also visited the place where Bhismadeva breathed his last. Sometimes he explained the glories of Lord Siva before Maharaja Yudhisthira. He was the son of Vitahavya, and he resembled in features the body of Indra. Sometimes the enemies of Indra mistook him to be Indra and arrested him. He was a great scholar of the Rg-veda, and thus he was highly respected by the brahmana community. He lived a life of celibacy and was powerful in every respect.

Asita: There was a king of the same name, but herein the Asita mentioned is the Asita Devala Rsi, a great powerful sage of the time. He explained to his father 1,500,000 verses from the Mahabharata. He was one of the members in the snake sacrifice of Maharaja Janamejaya. He was also present during the coronation ceremony of Maharaja Yudhisthira along with other great rsis. He also gave Maharaja Yudhisthira instructions while he was on the Anjana Hill. He was also one of the devotees of Lord Siva.

Kaksivan: One of the sons of Gautama Muni and the father of the great sage Candakausika. He was one of the members of Parliament of Maharaja Yudhisthira.

Atri: Atri Muni was a great brahmana sage and was one of the mental sons of Brahmaji. Brahmaji is so powerful that simply by thinking of a son he can have it. These sons are known as manasa-putras. Out of seven manasa-putras of Brahmaji and out of the seven great brahmana sages, Atri was one. In his family the great Pracetas were also born. Atri Muni had two ksatriya sons who became kings. King Arthama is one of them. He is counted as one of the twenty-one prajapatis. His wife’s name was Anasuya, and he helped Maharaja Pariksit in his great sacrifices.

Kausika: One of the permanent rsi members in the royal assembly of Maharaja Yudhisthira. He sometimes met Lord Krsna. There are several other sages of the same name.

Sudarsana: This wheel which is accepted by the Personality of Godhead (Visnu or Krsna) as His personal weapon is the most powerful weapon, greater than the brahmastras or similar other disastrous weapons. In some of the Vedic literatures it is said that Agnideva, the fire-god, presented this weapon to Lord Sri Krsna, but factually this weapon is eternally carried by the Lord. Agnideva presented this weapon to Krsna in the same way that Rukmini was given by Maharaja Rukma to the Lord. The Lord accepts such presentations from His devotees, even though such presentations are eternally His property. There is an elaborate description of this weapon in the Adi-parva of the Mahabharata. Lord Sri Krsna used this weapon to kill Sisupala, a rival of the Lord. He also killed Salva by this weapon, and sometimes He wanted His friend Arjuna to use it to kill his enemies (Mahabharata, Virata-parva 56.3).

SB1.9.8

TEXT 8

anye ca munayo brahman

brahmaratadayo ’malah

sisyair upeta ajagmuh

kasyapangirasadayah

SYNONYMS

anye—many others; ca—also; munayah—sages; brahman—O brahmanas; brahmarata—Sukadeva Gosvami; adayah—and such others; amalah—completely purified; sisyaih—by the disciples; upetah—accompanied; ajagmuh—arrived; kasyapa—Kasyapa; angirasa—Angirasa; adayah—others.

TRANSLATION

And many others like Sukadeva Gosvami and other purified souls, Kasyapa and Angirasa and others, all accompanied by their respective disciples, arrived there.

PURPORT

Sukadeva Gosvami (Brahmarata): The famous son and disciple of Sri Vyasadeva, who taught him first the Mahabharata and then Srimad-Bhagavatam. Sukadeva Gosvami recited 1,400,000 verses of the Mahabharata in the councils of the Gandharvas, Yaksas and Raksasas, and he recited Srimad-Bhagavatam for the first time in the presence of Maharaja Pariksit. He thoroughly studied all the Vedic literatures from his great father. Thus he was a completely purified soul by dint of his extensive knowledge in the principles of religion. From Mahabharata, Sabha-parva (4.11) it is understood that he was also present in the royal assembly of Maharaja Yudhisthira and at the fasting of Maharaja Pariksit. As a bona fide disciple of Sri Vyasadeva, he inquired from his father very extensively about religious principles and spiritual values, and his great father also satisfied him by teaching him the yoga system by which one can attain the spiritual kingdom, the difference between fruitive work and empiric knowledge, the ways and means of attaining spiritual realization, the four asramas (namely the student life, the householder’s life, the retired life and the renounced life), the sublime position of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the process of seeing Him eye to eye, the bona fide candidate for receiving knowledge, the consideration of the five elements, the unique position of intelligence, the consciousness of the material nature and the living entity, the symptoms of the self-realized soul, the working principles of the material body, the symptoms of the influential modes of nature, the tree of perpetual desire, and psychic activities. Sometimes he went to the sun planet with the permission of his father and Naradaji. Descriptions of his travel in space are given in the Santi-parva of the Mahabharata (332). At last he attained the transcendental realm. He is known by different names like Araneya, Arunisuta, Vaiyasaki and Vyasatmaja.

Kasyapa: One of the prajapatis, the son of Marici and one of the sons-in-law of Prajapati Daksa. He is the father of the gigantic bird Garuda, who was given elephants and tortoises as eatables. He married thirteen daughters of Prajapati Daksa, and their names are Aditi, Diti, Danu, Kastha, Arista, Surasa, Ila, Muni, Krodhavasa, Tamra, Surabhi, Sarama and Timi. He begot many children, both demigods and demons, by those wives. From his first wife, Aditi, all the twelve Adityas were born; one of them is Vamana, the incarnation of Godhead. This great sage, Kasyapa, was also present at the time of Arjuna’s birth. He received a presentation of the whole world from Parasurama, and later on he asked Parasurama to go out of the world. His other name is Aristanemi. He lives on the northern side of the universe.

Angirasa: He is the son of Maharsi Angira and is known as Brhaspati, the priest of the demigods. It is said that Dronacarya was his partial incarnation. Sukracarya was the spiritual master of the demons, and Brhaspati challenged him. His son is Kaca, and he delivered the fire weapon first to Bharadvaja Muni. He begot six sons (like the fire-god) by his wife Candramasi, one of the reputed stars. He could travel in space, and therefore he could present himself even in the planets of Brahmaloka and Indraloka. He advised the King of heaven, Indra, about conquering the demons. Once he cursed Indra, who thus had to become a hog on the earth and was unwilling to return to heaven. Such is the power of the attraction of the illusory energy. Even a hog does not wish to part with its earthly possessions in exchange for a heavenly kingdom. He was the religious preceptor of the natives of different planets.

SB1.9.9

TEXT 9

tan sametan maha-bhagan

upalabhya vasuttamah

pujayam asa dharma-jno

desa-kala-vibhagavit

SYNONYMS

tan—all of them; sametan—assembled together; maha-bhagan—all greatly powerful; upalabhya—having received; vasu-uttamah—the best among the Vasus (Bhismadeva); pujayam asa—welcomed; dharma-jnah—one who knows religious principles; desa—place; kala—time; vibhaga-vit—one who knows the adjustment of place and time.

TRANSLATION

Bhismadeva, who was the best amongst the eight Vasus, received and welcomed all the great and powerful rsis who were assembled there, for he knew perfectly all the religious principles according to time and place.

PURPORT

Expert religionists know perfectly well how to adjust religious principles in terms of time and place. All the great acaryas or religious preachers or reformers of the world executed their mission by adjustment of religious principles in terms of time and place. There are different climates and situations in different parts of the world, and if one has to discharge his duties to preach the message of the Lord, he must be expert in adjusting things in terms of the time and place. Bhismadeva was one of the twelve great authorities in preaching this cult of devotional service, and therefore he could receive and welcome all the powerful sages assembled there at his deathbed from all parts of the universe. He was certainly unable at that time to welcome and receive them physically because he was neither at his home nor in a normal healthy condition. But he was quite fit by the activities of his sound mind, and therefore he could utter sweet words with hearty expressions, and all of them were well received. One can perform one’s duty by physical work, by mind and by words. And he knew well how to utilize them in the proper place, and therefore there was no difficulty for him to receive them, although physically unfit.

SB1.9.10

TEXT 10

krsnam ca tat-prabhava-jna

asinam jagad-isvaram

hrdi-stham pujayam asa

mayayopatta-vigraham

SYNONYMS

krsnam—unto Lord Sri Krsna; ca—also; tat—of Him; prabhava-jnah—the knower of the glories (Bhisma); asinam—sitting; jagat-isvaram—the Lord of the universe; hrdi-stham—situated in the heart; pujayam asa—worshiped; mayaya—by internal potency; upatta—manifested; vigraham—a form.

TRANSLATION

Lord Sri Krsna is situated in everyone’s heart, yet He manifests His transcendental form by His internal potency. This very Lord was sitting before Bhismadeva, and since Bhismadeva knew of His glories, he worshiped Him duly.

PURPORT

The Lord’s omnipotency is displayed by His simultaneous presence in every place. He is present always in His eternal abode Goloka Vrndavana, and still He is present in everyone’s heart and even within every invisible atom. When He manifests His eternal transcendental form in the material world, He does so by His internal potency. The external potency, or the material energy, has nothing to do with His eternal form. All these truths were known to Sri Bhismadeva, who worshiped Him accordingly.

SB1.9.11

TEXT 11

pandu-putran upasinan

prasraya-prema-sangatan

abhyacastanuragasrair

andhibhutena caksusa

SYNONYMS

pandu—the late father of Maharaja Yudhisthira and his brothers; putran—the sons of; upasinan—sitting silently nearby; prasraya—being overtaken; prema—in feelings of love; sangatan—having gathered; abhyacasta—congratulated; anuraga—feelingly; asraih—by tears of ecstasy; andhibhutena—overwhelmed; caksusa—with his eyes.

TRANSLATION

The sons of Maharaja Pandu were sitting silently nearby, overtaken with affection for their dying grandfather. Seeing this, Bhismadeva congratulated them with feeling. There were tears of ecstasy in his eyes, for he was overwhelmed by love and affection.

PURPORT

When Maharaja Pandu died, his sons were all small children, and naturally they were brought up under the affection of elderly members of the royal family, specifically by Bhismadeva. Later on, when the Pandavas were grown up, they were cheated by cunning Duryodhana and company, and Bhismadeva, although he knew that the Pandavas were innocent and were unnecessarily put into trouble, could not take the side of the Pandavas for political reasons. At the last stage of his life, when Bhismadeva saw his most exalted grandsons, headed by Maharaja Yudhisthira, sitting very gently at his side, the great warrior-grandfather could not check his loving tears, which were automatically flowing from his eyes. He remembered the great tribulations suffered by his most pious grandsons. Certainly he was the most satisfied man because of Yudhisthira’s being enthroned in place of Duryodhana, and thus he began to congratulate them.

SB1.9.12

TEXT 12

aho kastam aho ’nyayyam

yad yuyam dharma-nandanah

jivitum narhatha klistam

vipra-dharmacyutasrayah

SYNONYMS

aho—oh; kastam—what terrible sufferings; aho—oh; anyayyam—what terrible injustice; yat—because; yuyam—all of you good souls; dharma-nandanah—sons of religion personified; jivitum—to remain alive; na—never; arhatha—deserve; klistam—suffering; viprabrahmanas; dharma—piety; acyuta—God; asrayah—being protected by.

TRANSLATION

Bhismadeva said: Oh, what terrible sufferings and what terrible injustices you good souls suffer for being the sons of religion personified. You did not deserve to remain alive under those tribulations, yet you were protected by the brahmanas, God and religion.

PURPORT

Maharaja Yudhisthira was disturbed due to the great massacre in the Battle of Kuruksetra. Bhismadeva could understand this, and therefore he spoke first of the terrible sufferings of Maharaja Yudhisthira. He was put into difficulty by injustice only, and the Battle of Kuruksetra was fought just to counteract this injustice. Therefore, he should not regret the great massacre. He wanted to point out particularly that they were always protected by the brahmanas, the Lord and religious principles. As long as they were protected by these three important items, there was no cause of disappointment. Thus Bhismadeva encouraged Maharaja Yudhisthira to dissipate his despondency. As long as a person is fully in cooperation with the wishes of the Lord, guided by the bona fide brahmanas and Vaisnavas and strictly following religious principles, one has no cause for despondency, however trying the circumstances of life. Bhismadeva, as one of the authorities in the line, wanted to impress this point upon the Pandavas.

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