Why did Bhishma wait till Uttarayana to leave his body?
The event of Bhishma’s passing away is described in both Mahabharata and Srimad Bhagavatam with two different perspectives. Focus of Mahabharata is on showing that by practising Dharma one can achieve worldly success. There may be worldly reversals for those who are on the path of Dharma but eventually they will get success. Srimad Bhagavatam on the other hand focuses on Para Dharma (beyond Dharma) on the pure love and devotion for God.
The war between Bhishma and Arjuna was locked in a stalemate. As the Pandavas mulled over this situation, Shree Krishna advised them to visit Bhishma himself and request him to suggest a way out of this stalemate. Bhishma loved the Pandavas and knew that he stood as an obstacle in their path to victory and so when they visited Bhishma, he gave them a hint as to how they could defeat him. He told them that if faced by one who had once been of the opposite gender, he would lay down his arms and fight no longer. On the tenth day of battle Shikhandi was accompanied by Arjuna as his chariot protector and they faced Bhishma who avoided Shikhandi. He was then felled in the battle as Arjuna shot arrows at Bhishma, piercing his entire body. As Bhishma fell, his whole body was held above the ground by the shafts of Arjuna’s arrows which protruded from his back, and through his arms and legs. When the young princes of both armies gathered around him, inquiring if there was anything they could do, he told them that while his body lay on the bed of arrows above the ground, his head hung unsupported. Hearing this, many of the princes, both Kaurava and the Pandava alike brought him pillows of silk and velvet, but he refused them. He asked Arjuna to give him a pillow fit for a warrior. Arjuna then removed three arrows from his quiver and placed them underneath Bhishma’s head, the pointed arrow tips facing upwards. To quench Bhishma’s thirst, Arjuna shot an arrow into the earth, and a jet stream of water rose up into his mouth.
Arjun had asked The Supreme Lord in The Bhagavad Gita, verse 8.2, “How can one be united with God at the time of death?”
प्रयाणकाले च कथं ज्ञेयोऽसि नियतात्मभि:
|| The Bhagavad Gita 8.2||
Shree Krishna declares in this verse that those who relinquish the body while remembering Me at the moment of death will come to Me. There is certainly no doubt about this.
“अन्तकाले च मामेव स्मरन्मुक्त्वा कलेवरम् | य: प्रयाति स मद्भावं याति नास्त्यत्र संशय:”
|| The Srimad Bhagavad Gita 8.5||
Shree Krishna further explains that there are two paths — the path of light or the path of darkness. Where light; is symbolic to knowledge and darkness; is for ignorance.
The bright daylight, the moonlit fortnight of śhuklaḥ or the bright ascending moon, and the uttaraayan, the northern course of the sun, are all considered the time of light. The God-conscious souls; who detach from worldly attachments and depart by the path of light (knowledge and discrimination) attain God. They are liberated from the wheel of samsara, the cycle of life and death, and reach the divine Abode of God.
The ignorant souls who are attached to the world remain entangled in the bodily concept of life. They forget their relationship with God. Such souls depart by the path of darkness. The practitioners of Vedic rituals, who pass away during the six months of the sun’s southern course, dakshinayan, the dark fortnight of the moon, the time of smoke, the night, attain the celestial abodes. After enjoying celestial pleasures, they again return to the earth. These two, bright and dark paths, always exist in this world. The way of light leads to liberation and the way of darkness leads to rebirth.
यत्र काले त्वनावृत्तिमावृत्तिं चैव योगिन: |
प्रयाता यान्ति तं कालं वक्ष्यामि भरतर्षभ ||
अग्निर्ज्योतिरह: शुक्ल: षण्मासा उत्तरायणम् |
तत्र प्रयाता गच्छन्ति ब्रह्म ब्रह्मविदो जना: ||
धूमो रात्रिस्तथा कृष्ण: षण्मासा दक्षिणायनम् |
तत्र चान्द्रमसं ज्योतिर्योगी प्राप्य निवर्तते ||
शुक्लकृष्णे गती ह्येते जगत: शाश्वते मते |
एकया यात्यनावृत्तिमन्ययावर्तते पुन:||
|| The Srimad Bhagavad Gita 8.23–26||
Remember that Bhishma had the boon of Iccha Mrityu, the control over the time of his death from his father Shantanu. He did wait for 58 nights for the auspicious time of winter solstice or first day of Uttarayana to give up his body on the arrow bed. Finally, Bhishma gave up the fight, focusing his life force and breath, sealing the wounds, and waiting for the auspicious moment to give up his body on the arrow bed.
Mahabharata states that he attained salvation after his death. And Bhishma’s “death” illustrates the perfection of life — to “die” being totally absorbed in remembering the Lord. He did not die in an inauspicious time and ensured that he departs at an auspicious time. (Refer The SBG 8.23–26)
This goes on to show that how even by worldly standards his departure was a success!
Now from the point of Srimad Bhagavatam he waited for so long because Bhishma knew that Shree Krishna wanted him to perform a service. He wanted Bhishma to see the ultimate triumph of those whom he loved, who were virtuous, who followed the path of Dharma — The Pandavas. At another deeper level, Shree Krishna wanted to glorify his devotee Bhishma. Even though some people may think that Bhishma was short shortsighted in siding with the Kauravas and that it did muddle his intellect but that was not the case. The war had not affected his clarity of thought, his intelligence and his virtuosity. So when Yudhishthira became disconsolate grieving terribly for having being the cause of bloodshed in the Kurukshetra war, no body was able to convince him. Not even Lord Krishna but it was only Bhishma who was able to do it. He gave deeper and meaningful instructions to Yudhishthira on statesmanship and duties of a King. He also gave Vishnu Sahasranama , thousand names of Lord Vishnu, during this time to him. Shree Krishna, in this way, wanted the world to know that Bhishma’s wisdom was greater than everyone else. Then Krishna offered him the perfect departure by being at his side at that time . This is the ultimate success of a devotee. By beholding the Lord by his side in front of him externally, by meditating the Lord inside his heart internally, he left this world with certainty that he will unite with the Supreme (Refer The SBG 8.5). Shree Krishna wanted him to wait so that the depth of his wisdom can be known, his clarity of consciousness despite pain of 100s of arrows can be known, his virtuosity can be known. In this way, Supreme Lord Shree Krishna orchestrated the perfect departure for Bhishma!
Srimad Bhagavatam in a way is the practical example that illustrates the perfection of life — to “die” with the principles outlined in The Bhagavad Gita.
Hare Krishna!
