Parva 6 of 18 · 117 adhyayas
भीष्मपर्व
Book of Bhishma
Bhīṣma-parva
Setting: Kurukshetra, days 1-10 of the war
Central figure: Krishna as Partha-sarathi and Bhishma the patriarch
Inside this parva
The Bhagavad Gita
Adhyayas 25-42 of Bhishma Parva contain the 700-verse dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna on the Kurukshetra battlefield — the most-quoted scripture in all Hinduism.
Read the Gita →Parva summary
The most pivotal parva. Arjuna falters at the battlefield and asks Krishna to drive his chariot between the two armies. There Krishna delivers the Bhagavad Gita — 18 chapters of yoga, sankhya, karma, bhakti and jnana, culminating in the Vishvarupa-darshana. Arjuna takes up his Gandiva. Bhishma fights for ten days, devastating the Pandava army. On the tenth day, Shikhandi (whom Bhishma will not strike) shields Arjuna; Arjuna fells Bhishma with a hundred arrows. Bhishma lies on the bed of arrows, waiting for Uttarayana to release his life.
Key episodes
- ●Arjuna's vishada at the start of battle
- ●Bhagavad Gita — Krishna's teaching
- ●Vishvarupa-darshana
- ●Ten days of Bhishma's command
- ●Shikhandi shields Arjuna
- ●Bhishma falls on the bed of arrows
Central teaching
Doubt at the threshold of action is sacred — but action must follow. The Gita is the answer to the only question that matters.