Shloka 9
बकवधोत्तर-प्रशमनम् | Post-slaying Stabilization after Baka’s Death
अष्टौ दंष्टा: सुतीक्ष्णाग्राश्चिरस्पापातदुस्सहा: । देहेषु मज्जयिष्यामि स्निग्धेषु पिशितेषु च,“आज मैं अपनी आठों दाढ़ोंको, जिनके अग्रभाग बड़े तीखे हैं और जिनकी चोट प्रारम्भसे ही अत्यन्त दुःसह होती है, दीर्घकालके पश्चात् मनुष्योंके शरीरों और चिकने मांसमें डुबाऊँगा
aṣṭau daṃṣṭrāḥ sutīkṣṇāgrāś ciraspāpātadussahāḥ | deheṣu majjayiṣyāmi snigdheṣu piśiteṣu ca ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “Today I shall plunge my eight fangs—whose tips are exceedingly sharp and whose blow has long been unbearable—into human bodies and into slick flesh.” The line conveys a vow of predatory violence, foregrounding the ethical contrast between dharma and the destructive impulses that drive beings toward cruelty.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical danger of indulging in violent intent: a deliberate vow to harm others is portrayed as a movement away from dharma, reminding the listener that cruelty and relish for injury are morally corrosive forces in the epic’s world.
A speaker (reported by Vaiśampāyana) voices a menacing resolve to attack—describing sharp fangs and the act of sinking them into bodies and flesh—signaling imminent predatory violence and escalating the episode’s threat.