Shloka 943
धर्मस्य बहुद्वारत्वम् — Nārada’s Audience with Indra (Śānti-parva 340)
विनाशयिष्यामि तत: सर्वान् सौभनिवासिन: । तदनन्तर सहस्र भुजाओंसे सुशोभित बलिपुत्र बाणासुरको पराजित करके शाल्वके सौभ विमानमें रहनेवाले समस्त योद्धाओंका विनाश कर डालूँगा
vināśayiṣyāmi tataḥ sarvān saubhanivāsinaḥ | tadanantaraṁ sahasra-bhujābhiḥ suśobhitaṁ baliputraṁ bāṇāsuraṁ parājitya śālvasya saubha-vimāne nivasantas sarvān yoddhān vināśayiṣyāmi |
“Rồi ta sẽ tiêu diệt hết thảy những kẻ cư ngụ trong Saubha. Sau đó, khi đã đánh bại Bāṇāsura—con trai của Bali, rực rỡ với ngàn cánh tay—ta sẽ quét sạch mọi chiến binh đang ở trong thành lũy trên không Saubha của Śālva.”
(भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the ethic of consequential action in warfare: overwhelming power and vows of total destruction are portrayed as a grave, force-driven response, implicitly inviting reflection on restraint versus annihilation and the moral weight of violent resolve.
The speaker declares an intention to wipe out all warriors living in Śālva’s flying fortress Saubha, stating that after defeating the thousand-armed asura Bāṇāsura (son of Bali), he will proceed to destroy the remaining Saubha-dwellers.