clouded by grief on account of
the slaughter of his kinsmen, and do thou, by this, quickly dispel that
grief of his!"'"

SECTION LII

"Vaisampayana said, 'Hearing these words of Krishna fraught with Morality
and profit, Santanu's Bhishma, answered him in the following words.

"'Bhishma said, "O master of all the worlds, O mighty-armed one, O Siva, O
Narayana, O thou of unfading glory, hearing the words spoken by thee I
have been filled with joy. But what words (of instruction), O master of
speech, can I say in thy presence, when especially in all the subjects of
speech have been dealt with in thy speech?[157] Whatever in either world
should be done or is done, proceeds from thy intelligent self, O god!
That person who is competent to discourse on the subject of heaven in the
presence of the chief of the gods himself is competent to discourse on
the interpretation of morality and pleasure and profit and salvation in
thy presence. My mind, O slayer of Madhu, is exceedingly agitated by the
pain of arrow-wounds. My limbs are weak. My understanding is not clear. I
am so afflicted, O Govinda, by these shafts resembling poison or fire
that I have not power to utter anything. My strength is abandoning me. My
life-breaths are hastening to leave me. The very vitals of my body are
burning. My understanding is clouded. From weakness my utterance is
becoming indistinct. How then can I venture to speak? O enhancer of (the
glory of) Dasarha's race, be gratified with me. O mighty-armed one, I
will not say anything. Pardon me (for my unwillingness). The very master
of speech (Vrihaspati), in speaking in thy presence, will be overcome by
hesitation. I cannot any longer distinguish the points of the compass,
nor the sky from the earth! Through thy energy, O slayer of Madhu, I am
only barely alive. Do thou, therefore, thyself speak for the good of king
Yudhishthira the just, for thou art the ordainer of all the ordinances.
How, O Krishna, when thou, the eternal creator of the universe, art
present, can one like me speak (on such subjects) like a disciple in the
presence of the preceptor?"

"'Vasudeva said, "The words spoken by thee are worthy of thee that art the
foremost one of Kuru's race, thee that art endued with great energy, thee
that art of great soul, and thee that art possessed of great patience and
conversant with every subject. Regarding what thou hast said unto me
about the pain of thy arrow-wounds, receive, O Bhishma,