This hymn is a lesson on the best death possible for human beings: available only for human beings. This possibility is the reason why human existence is an invaluable one. Almost each shloka of Bhishma stuti is a deep and powerful capsule demonstrating the most important lesson and act of life: how best to die so as to acquire a spiritual body in Vaikunth directly and be liberated from this material world's bondages.
One of the pancha stutis (five hymns) of the Srimad Bhagavatam Maha Puran, Bhishma stuti is similar to Gajendra stuti (also known as Gajendra Moksha), as both are released from the cycle of birth and death.
Bhishma withdraws all his senses into their master, the mind and focusses this mind on the One Lord, just as described by Sri Krishna in Chapters 2 and 6 of the Bhagavad Gita.
Bhishma dwells on the activities of the Lord in order to withdraw his mind from all else, keeps it focused and merges into the Lord. With a few exceptions, Bhishma limits this remembering process to his immediate experiences: the war and the Sri Krishna as 'Vijaya sakhe' (friend of Vijaya (victory), another name of Arjuna). This war takes place within every human being, if that human surrenders to the guidance of the Lord as Arjuna did. Bhishma refers often to the Lord, Arjuna, the chariot and the horses. The Katha Upanishad gives the meaning of this metaphor in unmistakable words. The senses are the horses and the physical body is the chariot.
After withdrawing all his senses, Bhishma meditates on the four-armed form of the Lord and states in his last verse that the same Lord is present in each heart just as the sun perceived differently is but One.
Bhishma's last words are 'vidhutah bheda mohah' (freed from the delusion of duality).
