Shloka 8

Devanagari script

सर्वोपायैर्निहन्तव्या: शत्रव: शत्रुसूदन | पुरा युद्धाद्‌ बलाद्‌ वापि प्रकुर्वन्ति तवाहितम्‌,शत्रुसूदन! जो आपका अहित करते हैं, उन शत्रुओंको बिना युद्धके अथवा युद्ध करके --सभी उपायोंसे मार डालना चाहिये

Transliteration

sarvopāyair nihantavyāḥ śatravaḥ śatrusūdana | purā yuddhād balād vāpi prakurvanti tavāhitam ||

Translation

శత్రుసూదన! నీకు హాని చేసే శత్రువులను యుద్ధానికి ముందే గానీ, యుద్ధంలో బలప్రయోగంతో గానీ—అన్ని ఉపాయాలతో సంహరించాలి.

Word by Word

सर्वोपायैःby all means/strategies

निहन्तव्याःmust be slain

शत्रवःenemies

शत्रुसूदनO slayer of enemies (epithet)

पुराformerly; beforehand

युद्धात्from/without battle

बलात्by force; forcibly

वाor

अपिalso; even

प्रकुर्वन्तिthey do/commit

तवof you; your

अहितम्harm; what is not beneficial

शत्रुसूदनO slayer of enemies

Speaker

दुर्योधन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Duryodhana

Śatrusūdana (epithet of the addressee)

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse conveys an expedient, ruthless maxim of power: if someone acts against your welfare, you should eliminate them by any method, even outside formal battle. In the Mahābhārata’s ethical landscape, this reflects a turn away from restraint and fair combat toward adharma-driven realpolitik.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Sabha Parva context, Duryodhana is speaking in a charged political moment and presses a hardline strategy: treat opponents as threats to be removed preemptively or by force, rather than relying only on open warfare or negotiated limits.