Shloka 131
स एव पूर्व निजघान दैत्यान् स पूर्वदेवश्च बभूव सम्राट् । स भूतानां भावनो भूतभव्य: स विश्वस्यास्य जगतश्लाभिगोप्ता
sa eva pūrvaṁ nijaghāna daityān sa pūrvadevaś ca babhūva samrāṭ | sa bhūtānāṁ bhāvano bhūtabhavyaḥ sa viśvasyāsya jagataś cābhigoptā ||
Bhishma said: “He alone, in former times, struck down the Daityas; and he became the sovereign among the primeval gods. He is the nurturer of all beings—of what has been and what will be—and the vigilant protector of this entire universe.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse affirms a single supreme protector who both restrains destructive forces (slaying the Daityas) and sustains all beings across time. Ethically, it frames power as legitimate when it upholds cosmic order and protects the world.
Bhishma is praising and describing the supreme divine ruler: one who in ancient times defeated the Daityas, became sovereign among the gods, and continues as the sustainer and guardian of the entire universe.