Duryodhana said:
In all the worlds, Vasudeva is spoken of as the Supreme Being. I desire, O grandsire, to know His origin and glory.
Bhishma said:
Vasudeva is the Supreme Being. He is the God of all gods. None superior to him of eyes like lotus-petals is to be seen, O bull of Bharata’s race!
Markandeya speaketh of Govinda as the most Wonderful and the most High, as the All-being, as the All-soul, as the Highest soul, and as the Supreme Being. Water, Air
and Fire were created by Him. That Divine Master and Lord of all the worlds created this Earth. That Supreme Being of illustrious Soul laid himself down on the waters. And
that Divine Being, made up of all kinds of energy, slept thereon in Yoga.
From His mouth, He created Fire; and from His breath, the Wind. Of unfading glory, He created from His mouth Speech and the Vedas. It is thus that He created first the
worlds, and also the gods along with the diverse classes of Rishis. And He created decay and death also of all creatures, as well as birth and growth.
He is Righteousness and of righteous soul. He is the giver of boons and the giver of all (our) wishes. He is the Actor and Action, and He is Himself the Divine Master. He first
made the past, the present and the future; He is the Creator of the universe. He is of illustrious Soul; He is the Master possessed of unfading glory.
He created Sankarshana, the first-born of all creatures. He created the divine Sesha who is known as Ananta and who upholdeth all creatures and the earth with its
mountains. Of Supreme Energy, He it is whom the regenerate ones know by yoga-meditation.
Sprung from the secretions of his ear, the great asura known by the name Madhu, fierce and of fierce deeds, entertaining a fierce intent and about to destroy Brahma, was
slain by that Supreme Being. O sire! In consequence of Madhu’s slaughter, the gods, the danavas, the human beings and the Rishis call Janardana, the slayer of Madhu.
He is the great Boar. He is the great Lion. And He is the three-stepped Lord. He is the mother and the father of all living creatures. There never was, nor be, any superior to
Him of eyes like lotus-petals.
From His mouth, He created the brahmanas, from His two arms the kshatriyas, from His thighs the vaisyas and from His feet the sudras. One, waiting dutifully on Him,
observant of vows with ascetic austerities on days of the full-moon and the new-moon, is sure to obtain the Divine Kesava, that Refuge of all embodied creatures, that
Essence of the Brahman and of Yoga.
Kesava is the higher Energy, the Grandsire of all the worlds. Him O King, the sages call Hrishikesa (the lord of the senses). He, should all know, is the Preceptor, the
Father and the Master.
Inexhaustible regions (of blessedness) are won by him with whom Krisna is gratified. He who, in a place of fear, seeketh the protection of Kesava, and he who frequently
readeth this description, becometh happy and endued with prosperity. Those men who attain to Krisna are never beguiled. Janardana always saveth those that are sunk in
great terrors. Knowing this truly, O Bharata, Yudhishthira, with his whole soul, O King, hath sought the shelter of the highly blessed Kesava, the Lord of Yoga, and the Lord
of the Earth.
Bhishma continued:
Hear from me, O King, this hymn that was uttered by Brahma himself. This hymn was, in days of yore, communicated by regenerate Rishis and the gods (to men) on earth.
Narada described Him as the Master and the Lord of the God of gods, and all the Sadhyas and the celestials, and as one acquainted with the nature of the Creator of the
worlds.
Markandeya spoke of Him as the Past, the Present and the Future, the Sacrifice of sacrifices and the Austerity of austerities.
The illustrious Bhrigu said of Him that ‘Thou art the God of the gods, and that Thine is the ancient form of Visnu’.
Dwaipayana said of Him that ’Thou art Vasudeva of the Vasus, the establisher of Sakra and the God of gods and all creatures’.
In days of yore, on the occasion of procreating creatures, the sages spoke of Him as Daksha, the Father of Creation.
Angiras said that ‘Thou art the Creator of all beings’.
Devala said of Him that the ‘Un-manifest is all Thy body, and the Manifest is in Thy mind, and that the gods are all the result of Thy breath. With Thy head is pervaded the
heavens, and Thy two arms support the earth. In Thy stomach are the three worlds, and Thou art the Eternal Being’.
Men exalted by asceticism know Him thus: ‘Thou art the Sat of Sat, with Rishis gratified with sight of Self. With royal sages of liberal minds, never retreating from battle, and
having morality for their highest end, Thou, O slayer of Madhu, art, the sole refuse’.
Even thus is that illustrious and Supreme Being, Hari, adored and worshipped by Sanatkumara and other ascetics endued with yoga. The truth about Kesava, O sire, is now
narrated to thee, both in brief and in detail. Turn thy heart in love to Kesava.
Sanjaya continued:
Hearing this sacred story, thy son, O great King, began to regard highly both Kesava and these mighty car-warriors, that is, the sons of Pandu. Then, O Monarch, Bhishma,
the son of Santanu, once more addressed thy son, saying:
Thou hast now heard truly, O King, about the glory of the high-souled Kesava and of Nara, about which thou hadst asked me. Thou hast also heard about the object for
which both Nara and Narayana have taken their births among men. Thou hast also been told the reason why those heroes are invincible and have never been vanquished in
battle, and why also, O King, the sons of Pandu are incapable of being slain in battle, by anybody.
Krisna beareth great love for the illustrious sons of Pandu. It is for this, O King of kings, that I say, ‘let peace be made with the Pandavas.’ Restraining thy passions, enjoy
thou the earth with thy mighty brothers (around thee). By disregarding the divine Nara and Narayana, thou shalt certainly be destroyed.
Having said these words, thy sire became silent, O Monarch, and dismissing the King, entered his tent. And the King also came back to his (own) tent, having worshipped
the illustrious grandsire. And then, O bull of Bharata’s race, he laid himself down on his white bed for passing the night in sleep.
