Shloka 19
असुरवधकरस्तपसां निधि: सुमहतां यशसां च भाजनम् | मधुकैटभहा कृतधर्मविदां गतिदो- 5भयदो मखभागहरोडस्तु शरणं स ते,असुरोंका वध करनेवाले, तपस्याकी निधि, विशाल यशके भाजन, मधु और कैटभके हन्ता, सत्ययुगके धर्मोका ज्ञान रखकर उनका पालन करनेवालोंको सदगति प्रदान करनेवाले, अभयदाता तथा यज्ञका भाग ग्रहण करनेवाले भगवान् नारायण तुम्हें शरण दें
asuravadhakaraḥ tapasāṁ nidhiḥ sumahatāṁ yaśasāṁ ca bhājanam | madhukaiṭabhahā kṛtadharmavidāṁ gatido ’bhayado makhabhāgaharaś cāstu śaraṇaṁ sa te nārāyaṇaḥ ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。願わくはナーラーヤナが汝の帰依処となるように—アスラを滅ぼし、タパス（苦行）の宝蔵にして、偉大と栄光の器。マドゥとカイタバを討ち、定められたダルマを知り守る者に最高の道を授け、無畏を与え、また祭祀の分け前を受け取る御方である。
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.