Bhīshmapañcaka Vrata

The Bhīshmapañcaka is a five-day vrata (sacred vow) kept in the bright fortnight of the month of Kārtika, from the Ekādaśī (11th day) to the Pūrṇimā (15th day, the full moon). Pañcaka means “a group of five”. Each day, Bhagavān Vishṇu is worshipped through one part of his body, moving upward: the feet on the first day, then the knees, the navel, the shoulders, and finally the head.

The vrata uses pañcagavya for purification and is said to give merit equal to an Aśvamedha, the great horse yajña. It is linked with Bhīshma, the great warrior and teacher of the Mahābhārata, who is named here as the son of Śantanu, of the Vaiyāghrapāda gotra and the Sāṃkṛta pravara.

The Five Days of Pūjā

The Bhīshmapañcaka takes up the last five days of the month of Kārtika:

This rise from feet to head is like a devotional journey from the lowest to the highest: from the feet that devotees touch when they bow down, to the crown that stands for the Supreme. By worshipping each part of Bhagavān Vishṇu on following days, the devotee receives a five-day darśana (sacred sight) of the whole divine form, which reaches its peak on the Kārtika full moon.

Pañcagavya and Purification

The Bhīshmapañcaka calls for pañcagavya, the five purifying products of the cow: milk, curd, ghee, urine and dung. Pañcagavya is one of the strongest purifiers in the Vedic tradition. It is used in yajñas and vratas, and to purify people, places and things from ritual impurity. Its use in this vrata ties it to the honouring of the cow that runs through all of Kārtika’s observances, including the Govardhana pūjā on the pratipad (first day).

Merit Equal to the Aśvamedha

The Padma Purāṇa says that the Bhīshmapañcaka vrata gives merit equal to an Aśvamedha yajña, the horse yajña. The Aśvamedha is one of the grandest and most meritorious Vedic rites and was traditionally open only to great kings and emperors. Through this five-day vrata, any follower of Vishṇu can gain the same merit without the huge wealth a real Aśvamedha needs. This is an example of the Purāṇic teaching that the month of Kārtika makes the highest merits available through simple means.

Link with Bhīshma

The vrata takes its name from Bhīshma Pitāmaha, the great teacher of the Mahābhārata and grandfather-figure to both the Pāṇḍavas and the Kauravas. The Padma Purāṇa gives his lineage here: son of Śantanu, of the Vaiyāghrapāda gotra and the Sāṃkṛta pravara. Gotra and pravara are the markers of ancestral line by which a person’s place in the Vedic yajña tradition is set, and naming them roots Bhīshma in that hereditary tradition. The link between this great warrior of dharma and the Kārtika vrata suggests that Bhīshma’s own keeping of this vrata was seen as a supremely meritorious act, fitting for one so devoted to dharma.

Sources

• Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Uttara Khaṇḍa, Chapter 124