धर्मस्य बहुद्वारत्वम् — Nārada’s Audience with Indra (Śānti-parva 340)
इदं महोपनिषदं चतुर्वेदसमन्वितम्
idaṃ mahopaniṣadaṃ caturvedasamanvitam
ਭੀਸ਼ਮ ਨੇ ਆਖਿਆ—ਇਹ ਮਹਾਨ ਉਪਨਿਸ਼ਦੀ ਉਪਦੇਸ਼ ਚਾਰਾਂ ਵੇਦਾਂ ਨਾਲ ਸਮਨਵਿਤ ਹੈ।
भीष्म उवाच
The verse asserts the authority and completeness of the instruction being given: it is presented as a “great Upaniṣad,” i.e., a highest, inward doctrine, and it is not opposed to Vedic revelation but consonant with all four Vedas—thereby grounding ethical and spiritual guidance in recognized śruti-based legitimacy.
In Śānti Parva’s didactic setting, Bhīṣma continues instructing Yudhiṣṭhira and frames the forthcoming (or ongoing) discourse as an exalted, Upaniṣadic-level teaching aligned with the entire Vedic corpus, signaling its seriousness and normative weight for dharma and liberation-oriented conduct.