In that sacred place, the prince, having been consecrated and purified, spent the night in observance. With a mind steady and focused, he served the Supreme Person just as he had been instructed. Every three nights, he subsisted only on wood-apple and jujube fruits, dedicating an entire month to worshipping Hari according to his capacity. As the second month began, the young boy prepared food from fallen leaves, grass, and similar offerings every sixth day, continuing his worship of the Lord. In the third month, his austerity deepened; on every ninth day, he lived only on water, his mind absorbed in meditation as he approached the Glorious Lord. By the fourth month, on every twelfth day, he sustained himself on air alone, having conquered his breath, and maintained his meditation on the Lord. When the fifth month arrived, the prince, now master of his breath, stood unmoving on one leg, like a pillar, meditating on the Absolute. Withdrawing his mind from all distractions and fixing it in his heart—the seat of the elements and senses—he meditated solely on the Lord’s form, seeing nothing else. As he sustained the Supreme, the Lord of primordial matter and the great elements, the support of all, the three worlds themselves began to tremble. The earth, pressed by his big toe as he stood on one foot, bent beneath him, much like an elephant’s platform tilts under its enormous weight. As he meditated on the Self of the universe, closing the doors of his senses with unwavering concentration, the worlds and their guardians became oppressed and breathless, seeking refuge in Hari. The gods cried out, “O Lord, we do not know of such restraint of life-breath in all beings, moving and unmoving, whose abode is You. Please grant us release from this distress; we have come to You, the ultimate refuge.” The Blessed Lord replied, “Do not fear. I will cause the boy to desist from these arduous austerities. Return to your own realms. It was because of his union with Me that your breath was restrained, O sons of Uttānapāda.” Sūta then continued: Out of concern for his subjects and desiring to understand all righteousness, the king went to the place where Devavrata lay. At that time, all his brothers followed, their horses adorned in gold, riding in chariots, accompanied by sages such as Vyāsa, Dhaumya, and others. The Blessed Lord Himself, along with Dhanañjaya, rode in a chariot; among them, the king shone like Kubera among the Yakṣas. Upon seeing Bhīṣma fallen on the ground—like a god fallen from heaven—the Pāṇḍavas, their followers, and Krishna, wielder of the discus, bowed to him. There, all the great sages among the Brahmanas, the foremost divine sages, and royal sages gathered to see the chief of the Bharatas. Parvata, Narada, Dhaumya, the venerable Badarayana, Brihadasva, Bharadvaja with his disciples, and the son of Renuka were present. Vasishtha, Indrapramada, Trita, Gritsamada, Asita, Kakshivan, Gautama, Atri, Kaushika, and Sudarshana were also there. Other pure-hearted sages, like Brahmarata and others, arrived with their disciples—Kashyapa, Angiras, and the rest. Having perceived those assembled, most fortunate ones, Bhīṣma—the best of the Vasus—who knew righteousness and the proper distinctions of place and time, honored them all. He also worshipped Krishna, who knows His own majesty, seated there as Lord of the universe, present in the heart, having assumed a form through His own maya. Bhīṣma then addressed the sons of Pandu, who sat before him with humility and affection, their eyes blinded by tears of deep attachment. He said, “Alas, how grievous, how unjust it is that you, O sons of Dharma—afflicted, devoted to the Brahmanas, to righteousness, and to Acyuta—are not fit to suffer or to live in distress. With the great warrior Pandu gone, Kunti, left with young children and as a widow, has endured many hardships for your sake, time and again, like a mother with her child. I consider all that is unpleasant for you to be caused by time; the world, with its rulers, is under its sway, just as clouds are driven by the wind. Where the son of Dharma is king, Bhima wields the mace, Krishna holds the Gandiva bow, and Krishna is your friend—how can there be adversity? O King, no one ever knows His intention; even those endowed with inquiry are bewildered by it, as are the wise. Therefore, O best of the Bharatas, understand this to be the arrangement of destiny; being thus ordained, O protectorless one, you, as the lord, protect the people. This indeed is Bhagavan Himself, the original Narayana, who, concealing Himself among the Vrishnis, moves about, bewildering the world by His maya. His most secret power is known by Bhagavan Shiva, the divine sage Narada, and Bhagavan Kapila, O King. He whom you consider your maternal cousin, dear friend, best well-wisher, whom you made your minister, messenger, and charioteer out of affection—for the one who is the soul of all, who sees all equally, who is nondual and free from ego, there is never any fault in the differences He causes in people's minds. Yet, see, O King, His compassion for those with exclusive devotion: as I am giving up my life, Krishna Himself has come before me. The yogi who, with devotion, fixes his mind upon Him and utters His name with his voice, is freed from desires and actions when he leaves his body. May that Lord of gods, Bhagavan, wait until I relinquish this body; He, with a smiling face, reddish eyes, radiant lotus-like countenance, and four arms, stands before me as the path of my meditation.” Sūta said: Yudhiṣṭhira, having heard this, questioned Bhīṣma, who lay upon the bed of arrows, about various duties, as the sages listened attentively. He asked about duties prescribed for people according to their nature, class, and stage of life, and about the characteristics of both detachment and attachment as taught in the scriptures. He inquired, in summary and detail, about the duties of charity, kingship, liberation, women, and devotion to God, as well as their divisions and yogic aspects. The sage, knowing the truth, described to him the aims of dharma, wealth, desire, and liberation, along with their means, as found in various stories and histories.