Shloka 8

Devanagari script

सर्वोपायैर्निहन्तव्या: शत्रव: शत्रुसूदन | पुरा युद्धाद्‌ बलाद्‌ वापि प्रकुर्वन्ति तवाहितम्‌,शत्रुसूदन! जो आपका अहित करते हैं, उन शत्रुओंको बिना युद्धके अथवा युद्ध करके --सभी उपायोंसे मार डालना चाहिये

Transliteration

sarvopāyair nihantavyāḥ śatravaḥ śatrusūdana | purā yuddhād balād vāpi prakurvanti tavāhitam ||

Translation

„O Feindbezwinger, Feinde, die dir Unheil bereiten, müssen mit allen Mitteln vernichtet werden—sei es vor der Schlacht oder mit Gewalt, selbst ohne offenen Krieg.“

Word by Word

सर्वोपायैःby all means/strategies

निहन्तव्याःmust be slain

शत्रवःenemies

शत्रुसूदनO slayer of enemies (epithet)

पुराformerly; beforehand

युद्धात्from/without battle

बलात्by force; forcibly

वाor

अपिalso; even

प्रकुर्वन्तिthey do/commit

तवof you; your

अहितम्harm; what is not beneficial

शत्रुसूदनO slayer of enemies

Speaker

दुर्योधन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Duryodhana

Śatrusūdana (epithet of the addressee)

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse conveys an expedient, ruthless maxim of power: if someone acts against your welfare, you should eliminate them by any method, even outside formal battle. In the Mahābhārata’s ethical landscape, this reflects a turn away from restraint and fair combat toward adharma-driven realpolitik.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Sabha Parva context, Duryodhana is speaking in a charged political moment and presses a hardline strategy: treat opponents as threats to be removed preemptively or by force, rather than relying only on open warfare or negotiated limits.