The Blessed Lord, seeing the concern of the sons of Uttānapāda, gently reassured them: “Do not fear. I will cause the boy to desist from his arduous austerity. Return to your own realms. It was through his union with Me that your breath was restrained, O sons of Uttānapāda.” Meanwhile, Sūta continued his narration. Driven by a deep sense of responsibility and the desire to uphold righteousness, Yudhiṣṭhira, out of fear of harming his subjects, journeyed to the place where the venerable Devavrata, known as Bhīṣma, lay upon his bed of arrows. At that time, all his brothers followed him, riding in chariots pulled by horses adorned with gold. The great sages Vyāsa, Dhaumya, and others accompanied them. The Blessed Lord Kṛṣṇa, too, rode in a chariot alongside Dhanañjaya (Arjuna). Amidst them, the king Yudhiṣṭhira shone with splendor, like Kubera among the Yakṣas. When the Pāṇḍavas and their retinue, together with the wielder of the discus, arrived and saw Bhīṣma fallen upon the earth like a celestial being cast down from heaven, they bowed to him with deep reverence. There, a gathering of illustrious sages assembled—great Brahmanas, divine sages, and royal sages—all drawn to witness the chief of the Bharatas. Among them were Parvata, Nārada, Dhaumya, the venerable Badarayana, Brihadasva, Bharadvāja with his disciples, and the son of Renuka. Vasishtha, Indrapramada, Trita, Gritsamada, Asita, Kakshivan, Gautama, Atri, Kaushika, and Sudarshana were also present. Many other pure-hearted sages arrived with their disciples, including Brahmarata, Kashyapa, Angiras, and others. Bhīṣma, perceiving the assembly of these most fortunate souls, honored them all, knowing well the distinctions of place and time and the principles of righteousness. He also worshipped Kṛṣṇa, seated there as the Lord of the universe, present in the heart, having assumed a form by His own maya, fully aware of His own majesty. Turning to the sons of Pandu, who sat before him with humility and affection, their eyes blinded by tears of deep attachment, Bhīṣma addressed them. With heartfelt sorrow, he said, “Alas, how grievous, how unjust it is that you, O sons of Dharma, so afflicted, devoted to the Brahmanas, to righteousness, and to Acyuta, should suffer or live in distress. After the great warrior Pandu departed, Kunti, left as a widow with young children, endured many hardships for your sake, again and again, like a mother protecting her child.” He continued, “I consider all that is unpleasant for you to be caused by time; the world and its rulers are under its sway, just as clouds are driven by the wind. Where the son of Dharma is king, Bhima wields the mace, Arjuna holds the Gandiva bow, and Kṛṣṇa 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, must protect the people. This indeed is Bhagavan Himself, the original Nārāyaṇa, who, concealing Himself among the Vrishnis, moves about, bewildering the world by His maya. His most secret power is known only by Bhagavan Shiva, the divine sage Nārada, 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—He 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, O King, see His compassion for those with exclusive devotion: as I prepare to give up my life, Kṛṣṇa 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 then described how Yudhiṣṭhira, hearing these words, questioned Bhīṣma as he lay upon his bed of arrows, while the sages listened intently. Yudhiṣṭhira asked about the 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, both in summary and detail, about duties concerning charity, kingship, liberation, women, and devotion to God, as well as their divisions and yogic aspects. Bhīṣma, the sage who knew the truth, described to him the aims of dharma, wealth, desire, and liberation, along with their means, as found in various stories and histories. As Bhīṣma was expounding on dharma, the auspicious time arrived—the time desired by yogis who wish for death at will, the northern course. Then, Bhīṣma withdrew his speech, which had flowed like a thousand streams, and fixed his mind, free from all attachments, upon the Primeval Person—upon Kṛṣṇa, shining in yellow garments, four-armed, standing before him, with eyes unblinking. With pure concentration, all inauspiciousness destroyed, and the fatigue of battle gone just by beholding Him, with all the activities of his senses ceased, Bhīṣma praised Janārdana, the creator, as he was about to depart. He said, “Thus, my mind, freed from thirst, is established in the Lord, the foremost of the Sātvatas, the all-pervading one, who, having attained His own bliss, sometimes enters into the world of nature, from which the flow of birth arises. May my pure love be fixed upon Him, the delight of the three worlds, dark as a tamāla tree, adorned with garments shining like the rays of the sun, whose form is encircled by curling locks, and whose lotus face is the friend of Arjuna.” “In battle, with His face adorned by sweat from exertion, His hair dusted by the smoke of horses, His armor gleaming as His skin was pierced by my sharp arrows—may Kṛṣṇa, my true self, be present for me. Hearing the words of His friend in the midst of battle, He placed the chariot between the two armies; as He stood protecting the lives of the enemy soldiers, may my love be fixed on Pārtha’s friend, who took away their strength.” “Seeing the opposing army and, out of a sense of fault, turning away from killing his own kin, He dispelled Arjuna’s confusion with knowledge of the Self—may I have supreme devotion to His lotus feet. Abandoning His own vow to fulfill mine, He leapt from the chariot, His upper garment falling, and rushed forward, whip in hand, like Hari advancing to slay an elephant. Pierced by sharp arrows, my bow shattered, my body drenched in blood, the aggressor rushed upon me to kill me—may that Lord Mukunda be my refuge.” “May my devotion, at the time of death, be fixed upon that Lord, the beauty of whom is to be seen as He stands on Arjuna’s chariot, holding the reins and whip, whom those slain here, upon seeing, attained their true form.” Thus, Bhīṣma, surrounded by sages, warriors, and the Lord Himself, offered his final prayers, his mind wholly absorbed in the vision of Kṛṣṇa, as he prepared to leave his mortal body, fulfilled in devotion and wisdom.