Shloka 19
Adhyāya 348: Nāga–Nīgabhāryā Saṃvāda on Anger, Hope, and Ethical Response
असुरवधकरस्तपसां निधि: सुमहतां यशसां च भाजनम् | मधुकैटभहा कृतधर्मविदां गतिदो- 5भयदो मखभागहरोडस्तु शरणं स ते
asuravadhakaraḥ tapasāṁ nidhiḥ sumahatāṁ yaśasāṁ ca bhājanam | madhukaiṭabhahā kṛtadharmavidāṁ gatido ’bhayado makhabhāgaharaś cāstu śaraṇaṁ sa te nārāyaṇaḥ ||
قال فَيْشَمْبَايَنَ: ليكن نَارايَنَ ملجأَك—هو الذي يقتلُ الأَسُورَة، كنزُ التَّقَشُّف (التَّبَس)، ومستحقُّ مقامِ العظمةِ والمجد؛ قاتلُ مَدْهُو وكَيْطَبْهَ؛ مانحُ السبيلِ الأعلى لمن يعرفون الدَّرْمَ ويقيمونه؛ واهبُ الأمان؛ والمتقبِّلُ لنصيبِ القربان.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames Nārāyaṇa as the ultimate refuge: He protects (abhayada), upholds and rewards dharma (gatida to kṛtadharmavid), and is honored through yajña (makhabhāgahara). Ethically, it teaches that safety and right destiny arise from devotion aligned with disciplined tapas, righteous conduct, and reverent offering.
Vaiśampāyana delivers an invocation/blessing, praising Nārāyaṇa with epithets—destroyer of Asuras, slayer of Madhu and Kaiṭabha, giver of fearlessness and good destiny—and prays that this deity become the listener’s shelter. It functions as a protective and dharmic benediction within the Śānti-parvan discourse.