Shloka 8
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 209: Śaraṇāgati of the Cursed Apsarases; Nārītīrtha-prasiddhi; Arjuna’s Vimocana
अन्तर्भूमिगतान् नागाज्जित्वा तौ च महारथौ | समुद्रवासिनी: सर्वा म्लेच्छजातीर्विजिग्यतु:,उन दोनों महारथियोंने भूमिके अंदर पातालमें रहनेवाले नागोंको जीतकर समुद्रके तटपर निवास करनेवाली सम्पूर्ण म्लेच्छ जातियोंको परास्त किया
antarbhūmi-gatān nāgān jitvā tau ca mahārathau | samudra-vāsinīḥ sarvā mleccha-jātīr vijigyatuḥ ||
Nārada said: Those two great chariot-warriors first subdued the Nāgas dwelling in the subterranean regions beneath the earth; then they went on to conquer all the Mleccha tribes living along the seacoast—portraying their far-ranging campaign and the ideal of royal prowess expressed as the bringing of hostile or unruly peoples under control.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a royal-heroic ideal: a kṣatriya’s fame and authority are established through the subduing of formidable opponents across the world’s extremes (netherworld and seacoast). Ethically, it reflects the epic’s linkage of sovereignty with the capacity to impose order, though it also preserves the Mahābhārata’s awareness of culturally marked ‘others’ (mlecchas) within narratives of expansion.
Nārada reports that two renowned warriors conducted a sweeping campaign: they first defeated the Nāgas said to dwell beneath the earth, and thereafter overcame all coastal Mleccha communities—indicating the breadth of their military reach and the consolidation of power over diverse regions and peoples.