Origin of Bhisma Pancaka

Bhisma Pancaka vrata is named after Bhisma because he got it from the Lord and followed it. This is stated in Rupa Goswami's Mathura-mahatmya (189), where he cites a verse from Padma Purana (which is not traceable today):

atha bhīṣma-pañcake, pādme bhīṣmaṁ prati śrī-kṛṣṇa-vacanam—
tvayā kṛte vrate paścāt khyāsyate bhīṣma-pañcakam |
ye tatra janma-bhūmau me kariṣyanti mahā-vratam |
mathurāyāṁ tu gāṅgeyā teṣāṁ bhaktiḥ kare sthitā ||
Residing in Mathurā During Bhiṣma-pañcaka. In the Padma Purāna, Śri Kṛṣna says to Bhiṣma: O Gaṅgeya, this vow you have followed will henceforth be known as Bhiṣma-pañcaka. They who follow this great vow in My birthplace, Mathurā, find pure devotional service resting in their hand.
Bhisma-pancaka is elaborately described in the Uttara khanda of the Padma Purana (ch.124). It is stated there that it is named after Bhisma because he received it from the Lord:
bhīṣmeṇaitad yataḥ prāptaṁ vrataṁ pañca-dinātmakam
sakāśād vāsudevasya tenoktaṁ bhīṣma-pañcakam
"This vow lasting for five days was received by Bhiṣma from Vāsudeva, thus it is named after him as Bhiṣma-pañcaka." (Uttara, 124.29).
According to Anusasana Parva of the Mahabharata (ch.153 in CE), Bhisma left in the month of Magha (January-February), which is supported by Bhagavatam 1.9.29 where it is stated that he waited for the Uttarayana period. If you count three fourths of the Magha month that are mentioned in Anusanana Parva 153.28 then you arrive at Magha krsna-astami, which is also known as Bhismastami and which is usually considered an appearance day of Bhisma, while actually it is his disappearance day. This reckoning is supported by the commentator Nilakatha.
Here is a short article I wrote some years ago on this topic, but it's in the lingua franca of the former USSR:

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