Papier Mache Kathakali
Mask of Arjuna
Indian mythology
abounds with the love stories of its many
Gods
and
Goddesses;
Sages and Apsaras; Kings and Queens; and Princes and Princesses. The epic
Mahabharata, in
particular, features several hundreds of characters, bringing us some
wonderful stories of love and passion. One such story is that of Arjuna, the
Pandava Prince. In this month's post, we related tales about the life and
loves of this valiant warrior prince.
Famed as a great archer, Arjuna also had an eye for fine
women.
Very handsome and brave, he quite naturally and effortlessly attracted women
wherever he went. Let us now learn a little about Arjuna and his life.
Birth and Early Life
Arjuna
was the 3rd of the Pandava princes. He was one of the central characters of
the Mahabharata and was the reason why with
Krishna
gave us the
Bhagavad
Gita. Arjuna had several wives, namely, Draupadi,
Subhadra
(Krishna's sister), Ulupi and Chitrangada. He had four sons from his wives,
namely, Srutakirti, Iravan, Babruvahana and the great warrior prince,
Abhimanyu.
Arjuna, which literally means, "bright" or "resplendent", was addressed by
several other names, including Phalguna (born on the day of the Uttara
Phalguni star), Jishnu (triumphant), Kiritin (one who wears a crown gifted
by Indra), Shwetavahana (one who mounts a chariot driven by white horses),
Bibhatsu (one who fights fair), Vijaya (the victorious one), Partha (son of
Pritha or Kunti), Savyasachin (ambidextrous), Dhananjaya (one who brings
prosperity), Gudakesha (one who can control his sleep), Kapidhwaja (one with
the flag of a monkey – he had the emblem of Hanuman on his flag), Parantapa
(one who destroys enemies with his focus), Gandivadhanvan or Gandivadhara
(one who wields the bow named Gandiva, created by Lord Brahma) and
Madhyapandava (the third of the five Pandava princes).
Arjuna
was referred to as the son of Pandu, by his first wife, Kunti. He was the
prince of the royal family of Hastinapura. Actually, though, Arjuna was
given to Kunti by
Lord
Indra. Hence, Indra was Arjuna's divine father. According to a curse,
Pandu would die if he tried to have children. Kunti had a boon whereby she
could call upon any
Deva
of her choice and he would gift her a child. Arjuna was born after
Yudhishthira and Bhima. After him came the twins, Nakula and Sahadeva, born
of Pandu's second wife, Madri.
Madri committed suicide soon after Pandu died. After that, the
Pandavas
came to Hastinapura to live along with their cousins, the Kauravas. The 100
Kauravas were born to Dhritarashtra and his wife, Gandhari. There, they were
trained in various aspects of science, religion, administration and the art
of warfare, by their grandfather,
Bhishma.
Arjuna Comes Under Drona's Tutelage
When the time came, Bhishma decided to put all the princes under the
tutelage of the able guru, Dronacharya. Under him, they learned archery,
weaponry and the martial arts. Arjuna was adept at archery and soon became
Drona's favorite disciple. He gave his pupil more attention than his own
son, Ashwatthama.
Arjuna had great focus and worked hard at archery. He once saved his teacher
from a crocodile attack. What the boy did not know was that Drona had
himself orchestrated the attack in order to test his students' skills.
Impressed with the boy's devotion to his teacher and the precision with
which he attacked the crocodile, Drona promised that he would make him the
greatest archer of all time. Drona kept up his word and he stopped at
nothing to ensure that he kept his promise. In fact, at a later time, when
he saw that Ekalavya had much greater skill than Arjuna, he demanded
Ekalavya to cut off his thumb and offer it to him as Gurudakshina (teacher's
fee). The boy willingly did so, and in the process, lost his chance to
become the greatest archer.
Ashwatthama and the Kauravas always resented the fact that Arjuna was their
teacher's most loved pupil. They, however, could do nothing about it and
could just watch the teacher-disciple bond becoming stronger by the day.
Arjuna Impresses Drupada
Drona demanded that, as his Gurudakshina, the Pandavas should attack Panchal
and capture King Drupada, and that Arjuna should make the arrest himself.
Drona had a grudge against Drupada and wanted to teach him a lesson. Drupada
secretly admired Arjuna and wished that the boy would marry his foster
daughter, Draupadi.
Drupada set up an arena where all the princes could display their talent.
Both the Pandavas and Kauravas impressed all present with their skill.
However, Arjuna stole the show, earning the praise of everyone present
there. Before he could be crowned as the victor, though,
Karna
challenged him. However, Karna was denied participation, as he was from a
lower caste.
In actuality, Karna was the son of Kunti. He was born to her before her
marriage. When Kunti got her boon, she had wanted to test it and called upon
Surya, the
Sun God.
He immediately manifested before her and gifted her a bonny baby boy, who
was blessed with a kavacha (armor) and kundala (pair of earrings), since
birth. Utterly dismayed and knowing that she would never be able to raise a
son as a single unwed mother, Kunti placed the baby in a casket and set him
afloat on a river.
He was found by charioteer Adhiratha, who brought him home. He and his wife,
Radha, named him Vasusena and raised him as their own child. Karna grew up
to become one of the great warriors, who also had a generous heart and spent
most of his life performing great acts of charity.
Karna was a close friend and confidant of
Duryodhan,
the eldest Kaurava prince. The latter even made him Kind of Anga. However,
being a charioteer's son, Karna was considered lower in caste than the
princes and therefore, could not participate in Drupada's competition.
The Kauravas resented the fact that Yudhishthira; not Duryodhana; was named
the crown prince and heir to the throne of Hastinapura. They planned many
ways in which to kill the Pandavas, but failed each time. Finally,
Duryodhana, along with his evil uncle Shakuni, plotted to destroy the
Pandavas' existence. The Kauravas created a Lakshagraha (House of Wax) and
invited the Pandavas to spend their vacation there. They planned to
eventually set the house on fire, thereby burning their cousins to ashes.
The Pandavas were alerted about the Kauravas' plan by Vidura, the
half-brother of Pandu and Dhritarashtra; also the minister of Hastinapura.
They managed to dig a tunnel and escape the Lakshagraha just before their
evil cousins set fire to it. Arjuna and Bhima immediately wanted to declare
war against the Kauravas, but Yudhishthira asked them to keep calm. They
then jointly decided to fake their own death and went into hiding, along
with their mother, Kunti.
Arjuna Weds Draupadi
The Birth of Pandavas and Draupadi's Swayamvara -
(Stories from Indian Mythology)
While still in hiding, the Pandavas disguised themselves as Brahmins and
decided to attend Draupadi's swayamvara (ceremony involving the bride
choosing her own husband).
Draupadi,
actually the Daughter of Fire (she and her brother, Drishtadyumna, had
manifested from the Yagna that Drupada had conduced), was an extremely
beautiful woman. Her swayamvara ceremony attracted the attention of several
kings and princes wanting to win her hand in marriage.
Drupada stipulated a condition for the one seeking to win his daughter's
hand in marriage. The Pinakin, the large Shiva Dhanush (bow belonging to
Lord Shiva) was placed in the mandap especially crated to test participants.
Those hopeful of wedding Draupadi would have to first lift and string the
same and then fire an arrow to pierce the eye of the golden fish circulating
from the ceiling, by only looking at its reflection in the artificially
created pool below.
Out of all the hopefuls present there, Karna and Arjuna were the only two
warriors capable of winning the challenge. Everyone else had already failed
at it, when Karna entered the mandap. He effortlessly lifted and strung the
Pinakin. He was just about to fire a shot, when Draupadi, prodded by
Krishna, asked him to stop. She stated that, since he was a Sutaputra
(charioteer's son), and hence from a much lower caste of society, he could
not participate in the swayamvara.
Arjuna then stepped into the mandap and, with extreme concentration and
focus, looked at the reflection of the fish and fired one single shot that
pierced its eye through and through. A pleased Draupadi was brought to the
mandap and placed the Varmala (the garland) around Arjuna's neck. This way,
Arjuna wedded
Draupadi,
the princess of Panchal.
In some versions, Arjuna was the only one among the Pandavas to meet
Draupadi earlier. When he was trying to attack and kidnap Drupada, Draupadi,
who was trained in the martial arts, gave him a fierce fight. The fight went
on for some time, after which Arjuna moved away, saying that it was not
right to attack a woman. That episode, though, had made them realize that
they were irrevocably attracted to each other.
Draupadi Weds All the Pandavas
Kathakali Dancers as
Arjuna and Draupadi
After wedding Draupadi, the Pandavas returned home along with Draupadi.
Kunti was in the kitchen, preparing food for everyone. While entering their
humble little home, Arjuna joked to his mother that he had brought them
alms. Preoccupied with her work and not looking to check, Kunti asked him to
share it with his brothers. Dismayed by his mother's order and unable to
defy her, he requested all his brothers to accept Draupadi as their wife as
well. In this way, Draupadi had to marry all of the 5 Pandavas.
Draupadi was shocked at the turn of events and requested sage
Narada
to help her out. Accordingly, the Divine Sage made an arrangement with
regard to how the Pandavas would share her. Each of the brothers would have
exclusive right over her for a year, after which she would go to the next
brother for another year. Any brother who violated the other brother's right
to privacy at that time would have to go away on a 12-year tirtha-yatra
(pilgrimage to temples) in order to atone for that sin.
Draupadi had 5 sons, one from each of the Pandavas. They were known as the
Upapandavas. Srutakirti was the name of son born to Arjuna and Draupadi.
Arjuna Impresses Indra
According to some legends, Arjuna first met
Krishna
at Khandavaprastha or Khandava Vana, a forest, which lay on the west of the
Yamuna river. At a later time, the Pandavas cleared out this territory and
constructed their capital, Indraprastha, right here. Arjuna and Krishna
immediately formed a friendship, which was to continue for a lifetime.
The Khandava Vana was inhabited by Naga (snake) tribes, headed by the
serpent-king Takshaka. While working on clearing up this area, its
inhabitants were displaced. Takshaka resented this and he held this against
the entire Kuru clan, who ruled Indraprastha and Hastinapura.
Takshaka was a close friend of Lord Indra, who was the protecting deity of
the Khandava forest. When he saw this region being burned to the ground with
the help of Agni (the God of Fire), he flew into a rage and attacked Arjuna
with his Vajra (Lightning), injuring him. He then created heavy rains, in
order to thwart Agni's plans to burn down the forest. Agni went to Krishna
and requested him to help him with his work.
Agni, Krishna and Arjuna then invoked
Varuna,
the God of the Oceans. The latter gifted Arjuna his Gandiva (a moon-bow,
created by
Brahma).
From that time on, Arjuna always carried that bow. Agni too blessed him with
an incandescent chariot, driven by 4 horses; bearing a flag, which later had
Hanuman's image
on it. He additionally received his famous conch as well, which he blew
while entering the battlefield.
Krishna too fully supported Arjuna during the ensuing battle. He used his
Sudarshana Chakra whenever necessary and eventually, the latter won the war.
Agni then burned down the entire Khandava Vana, including all the evil
spirits and demons residing within it. Witnessing his son, Arjuna's valor,
Indra too was left feeling very proud and happy.
During the incident, Krishna and Arjuna saved one demon, Mayasura, the
architect of the Asuras. In return, he promised them that he would build the
palace at Indraprastha. Keeping up his word, he constructed Maya, the
imposing and impressive assembly hall, also known as the Hall of Illusions.
Once that was done, he also finished building the rest of the palace for the
Pandavas to live in.
Arjuna Leaves on a Tirtha-Yatra
Takshaka, still angered at losing at the hands of Arjuna, once stole cows
from the Brahmins in that area. The latter had to discuss the matter with
the eldest Pandava, Yudhishthira. Yudhishthira happened to be playing a game
of dice with Draupadi at the time and that meant that Arjuna had violated
the privacy clause.
Though they understood Arjuna's actions and forgave him for it, he was
insistent that he should suffer punishment for his actions. He hence left on
a 12-year tirtha-yatra. This long journey had a purpose to it – Arjuna met
his next wife during this pilgrimage.
Arjuna Marries Ulupi
Ulupi or Uloopi was a Naga princess and the daughter of the serpent-king,
Kauravya, who was the ruler of the underwater kingdom of snakes in the
Ganga. Arjuna started his tirtha-yatra from the banks of the river Ganga.
There, Ulupi saw him and immediately fell in love with him. She was an
expert at the martial arts. She captured him and forcefully took him to Naga
Loka (the land of the snake-people).
She told him that she would set him free only if he married her and that
otherwise, she would keep him captive for life. Arjuna was impressed with
Ulupi's skills. This way, Arjuna wedded Ulupi and they had a son by
name Iravan. Ulupi also gave him the boon that he would forever be
invincible underwater and that all animals living in the water would always
obey him.
Ulupi Saves Arjuna's Life
At a much later time, Ulupi taught the art of warfare to Babruvahana,
Arjuna's son by another wife, Chitrangada. Babruvahana, a powerful warrior,
attacked Arjuna during a fight. At that time, the Pandavas performed the
Ashwamedha Yagna and released the sacrificial horse to roam freely. The ones
performing this Yagna would automatically own all the territories the horse
covered, until the time someone else captured it.
The horse entered Babruvahana's territory – he did not want his land to be
seized by the Pandavas. He did not know that Arjuna was his father and
proceeded to fight him. During the course of the battle, Babruvahana's arrow
hit Arjuna and rendered him unconscious. Ulupi came to know of the battle
and realized that Arjuna would die if she did not intervene in time. She
rushed to the spot and, using the knowledge that only her Naga clan had,
brought him back to life. Later, she united Babruvahana and Arjuna.
There is an interesting side-story to this legend. It is believed that
Devi
Ganga once cursed Arjuna that he would be killed by his own son. During the
Great War of Kurukshetra, Arjuna had cheated while killing Bhishma. Knowing
that he would not be able to defeat the stalwart by fair means, he had
placed Shikhandi (a eunuch) in front of himself and had attacked Bhishma,
using Shikhandi as a shield, knowing that the Grandmaster would never attack
a woman.
Ulupi begged Ganga for forgiveness. Relenting, Ganga told her that the curse
had to take effect and that Babruvahana would kill her. However, she also
promised that Ulupi would be able to bring him back to life with the help of
the Mritasanjivani (a herb that can bring alive the dead). Ulupi then
returned to her underwater world once the Pandavas started on their final
journey.
Arjuna Weds Chitrangada
During the course of his self-imposed tirtha-yatra, Arjuna visited several
pilgrimages in India, including Kalinga and the ashrams of the Saptarishis
(Seven Sages). Travelling far and wide, he finally reached the palace of
Manipur, situated in the Northeast region of India. The entire region of
Manipur was famed for its natural beauty and peaceful people. The region was
fiercely guarded by Chitrangada, the daughter of king Chitravahana.
Chitrangada was the oldest of the king's children and was brought up as a
"prince". She was an ace archer and was an expert in warfare and all aspects
of governance as well. Being powerful and so good at managing the kingdom,
she also preferred to dress up as a prince and not as a princess.
Arjuna met her and was impressed with her fighting abilities, but mistook
her to be a prince. Chitrangada took one look at him and immediately fell
for him. She then went to her father and requested him to get this handsome
ascetic married to her (Arjuna had disguised himself as an ascetic at the
time of his tirtha-yatra).
Once the king realized Arjuna's true identity, he was only too willing to
make him his son-in-law. The latter, however, was not willing to marry his
daughter. Rejected so suddenly and sharply; Chitrangada went into deep
despair. She, however, decided that she would recover from this and would
not take "no" for an answer.
She sought the grace of Kamadeva (the God of Love), who transformed her into
the most beautiful and feminine woman anyone had ever seen. She then went
back to meet Arjuna, who could not resist her feminine charms this time. He,
though, had no idea that this woman that he had fallen in love with was
actually Chitrangada. She was ecstatic at receiving his love, but somewhere
deep down, she was still restless, as she knew that Arjuna was not in love
with her true self.
In the next few weeks, Manipur came under attack from intruders. The
villagers approached Arjuna with the news of the attack, also lamenting that
their princess, who was once known for her bravery, was suddenly nowhere to
be found. Arjuna was interested to know more about the woman, who he
learned, could equal his own valiance on the battlefield. At this juncture,
Chitrangada had no other option but to reveal her true self. A stunned
Arjuna realized that he loved her, not just for her beauty, but for the
actual wholesome person that she actually was. He then happily agreed to
take her hand in marriage.
Before the wedding, Chitravahana stipulated conditions that Chitrangada
would stay on in Manipur even after the marriage and that the children they
would have out of their marriage would remain in Manipur, as heirs to
Chitravahana's throne. Arjuna thought about this condition and then agreed.
In due course of time, they had a son, called Babruvahana. After a few
months, Arjuna left Chitrangada behind and continued his travels. Her love
for Arjuna was true and she bitterly missed him. However, she was happy to
serve her father and rule the kingdom. Babruvahana grew up to be a
strapping, handsome prince. He too was an accomplished warrior, who survived
the Great War of Kurukshetra and then went on to rule the small kingdom.
Rabindranath Tagore's Portrayal of Chitrangada
Rabindranath
Tagore adapted the story of Arjuna and Chitrangada and made it into a
famous dance drama. Tagore's portrayal of Chitrangada is a lyrical
expression of love, power and conquest. This central female character
embodied the sort of strength that few other women did, in the literature of
that era. In his work, the story had a happy ending and they lived on
together, happily for ever after.
Arjuna Weds Subhadra
Arjuna continued on with his tirtha-yatra, traveling to many, many more
places in India, including parts of South India. He then reached Dwaraka,
the place where his cousin and close friend, Krishna, resided. Krishna
decided to make his visit comfortable and got on with all the arrangements.
Arjuna disguised himself as a "Yati" or a nomadic monk. Krishna, however,
understood his true identity and invited him to stay in his palace.
Jagannath, Balaram
and Subhadra
Arjuna had heard much about Krishna's beautiful sister, Subhadra, and was
eager to meet her. Balarama, in the meantime, had already promised his
favorite disciple, Duryodhana, that he would give his sister in marriage to
him. Sensing Arjuna's interest as well, Krishna advised him to kidnap
Subhadra, before Duryodhana could make her his own. Balarama was furious
when he learned about his sister's abduction, but he was pacified after
Krishna convinced him that Subhadra had wanted it that way and that she was
happy with Arjuna.
The couple lived happily in Dwaraka for a year and then moved to Pushkar for
another year. In the meantime, Draupadi was adamant that no other Pandava
wife should stay in her city. So, when Arjuna wanted to bring Subhadra back
with him, he asked her to disguise herself as a milkmaid. Draupadi was angry
when she realized that she had been tricked. However, knowing that this was
her beloved friend, Krishna's sister, she forgave her and let her live with
Arjuna for the 4 years that she lived with each of the other Pandavas.
Arjuna and Subhadra had a son, by name Abhimanyu.
Arjuna's Life Post His Tirtha-Yatra
After the tenure of his tirtha-yatra, Arjuna was sent by Yudhishthira to
seize kingdoms for their upcoming Rajasuya Yagna, so that he could be
crowned Emperor of Indraprastha. Accordingly, the former conquered several
kingdoms, most of them, situated to the east of Indraprastha. Many of these
kingdoms willingly gave into his authority and so, he did not have much
trouble taking over reign of these territories.
The Pandavas' Exile
Soon after Yudhishthira lost to Duryodhana's crafty uncle, Shakuni, in the
Game of Dice, he along with the Pandavas were forced to go into exile for
the next 13 years, including one year of Agyaatavaasa (anonymity).
Shiva and Parvati in
Hunter's Disguise
After the Khandava Vana incident, Indra had already promised Arjuna all his
weapons, including his Vajra, as a boon for matching his own skills while in
battle with him. Sage Vyasa, sensing an impending war with the Kauravas,
advised him to additionally obtain the Pashupatastra from Lord Shiva. In
accordance with his wishes, Arjuna left his brothers, to appease Shiva.
Shiva appeared as an ordinary hunter and challenged him for a fight. He then
easily dominated over Arjuna and won against him almost effortlessly.
Arjuna was perplexed as to how an ordinary hunter could subdue him so
easily. He prayed to Shiva for strength and then saw the garlands he had
offered to Shiva, hanging around the hunter's neck. Instantly realizing that
the hunter was none other than Shiva, he bowed down to his Lord. Pleased,
Shiva gave him the Pashupatastra, also telling him how to use it.
After Shiva left, all the Lokapalas appeared before him. Kubera, Yama and
Varuna blessed Arjuna with their weapons as well. Indra then took him to his
own palace at Amravati, asked his divine apsaras to entertain his son and
asked the Gandharva, Chitrasena, to teach him to sing and dance. He
additionally taught him the uses of all the divine weapons and told him
under what circumstances he could use each one of them.
Urvashi Curses Arjuna
While teaching him the arts, Urvashi fell in love with Arjuna and made
amorous advances toward him. Arjuna, however, made it very clear that he was
not interested in having a relationship with her. He said that, since
Urvashi had had a relationship with his ancestor Pururava, she would attain
the status of his mother and therefore, he respected her as he respected his
mother, Kunti. The apsara got angry at this and cursed him that he would
become a eunuch and would have to live among women, singing and dancing to
entertain them. On Indra's request, she relented and reduced her curse to a
period of one year of Arjuna's choice.
Urvashi's curse proved to be a blessing in disguise and served Arjuna's
purpose at a later time, when the Pandavas had to spend time, during the
period of Agyaatavasa, in the kingdom of Virata. Here, Arjuna chose to take
the form of a eunuch, called Brihannala. During the year he spent here, he
taught song and dance to King Virata's duagther, Uttara. Much later, he
arranged Uttara's marriage with his own son, Abhimanyu.
On hearing about Kuchaka's death, Duryodhana suspected the Pandavas' hand
behind it. Wanting to blow the lid off their agyaatavasa, he decided to
attack the Matsya kingdom, where the 5 princes were in hiding. Uttar tried
to fight off the mighty army, but failed miserably and wanted to flee.
Arjuna, posing as Brihannala, was his charioteer. He decided to switch
places with Uttar and singlehandedly defeated a bevy of stalwarts including
Bhishma, Drona, Kripacharya, Karna, Ashwatthama and a whole host of other
greats. He then fired the Sammohana astra to put his enemies to sleep. Once
they fell asleep on the battleground, he took away all of the Kauravas'
clothing, except those of Bhishma and Drona and left the site.
Arjuna is Subdued by Hanuman
Arjuna continued to travel, learn more and gather more divine weapons and
powers to use them. He visited Rama Setu in Dhanushkodi. There, he met
Hanuman, who challenged him to build a similar bridge of arrows that would
be able to bear his weight. Filled with great false pride, Arjuna started
using all his divine weapons to build his bridge. He even went to the extent
of telling Hanuman that he would end his own life if he could not meet the
challenge.
Eventually, he failed in his tries and called to Krishna for help. Krishna
appeared before them and chided both Arjuna and Hanuman for having crossed
the boundaries of decency and discipline. While the former realized his
folly and was humbled, Hanuman promised him that he would forever reside in
Arjuna's flag during the time of the Kurukshetra war.
The Great War of Kurukshetra
Towards the very end of the battle, Arjuna was overcome with doubt and guilt
regarding fighting and killing his own kin and his wonderful teachers.
Krishna, who was his charioteer, then took on the reins of his life as well,
preaching the Bhagavad Gita to him. This went on to become one of the
greatest ever holy scriptures of Hinduism. Enthused by Krishna's timely
advice, Arjuna went ahead to contribute a great deal to the Great War of
Kurukshetra.
Here are details of his contributions, in brief:
Killing Bhagaddata
On the 13th day of battle, Arjuna's son Abhimanyu was slain. At the time, he
was busy fighting Bhagaddata, the king of Pragjyotisha. He later decapitated
Bhagaddata by firing an arrow at him.
Felling Bhishma
Arjuna Fights Bhishma in the Battle of Kurukshetra
Unable to defeat the great warrior Bhishma, Arjuna, on Krishna's advice,
fought standing behind Shikhandi. He knew that his grandfather would never
attack a woman and that it was the only way he could ever hope to defeat the
mighty doyen. It was on the 10th day of battle that Bhishma fell to the
ground, pierced by Arjuna's multiple arrows. These arrows acted as a bed
(Sharashaiya) on which the great warrior lay for the rest of the war.
Inconsolable and reduced to tears, Arjuna shot yet another arrow. This acted
as a pillow for the grievously wounded Bhishma to rest his head on. He shot
one more arrow piercing the earth, allowing Ganga to spurt forth and provide
water to nourish her son.
Killing the Trigartas
On the 12th and 13th days of battle, Arjuna fought and killed the
Trigarthas. On the 18th day, he also killed Susharma, who had also caused
him much agony in the battlefield.
Killing Jayadratha
Jayadratha was one of the main people responsible for Abhimanyu's death.
Knowing that Arjuna would kill him, the Kauravas protected him in the
battlefield. Arjuna had vowed to kill him before
sunset
that very day, failing which he would jump into a pyre he had created for
himself. The Kauravas decided to keep Jayadratha hidden till sunset, after
which Arjuna would have to kill himself for having failed. As it neared the
time for sunset, Krishna created an artificial eclipse by hiding the sun
with his Sudarshana Chakra. Jubilant that Arjuna had lost the wager,
Jayadratha came out to mock Arjuna. At that very moment, Krishna brought
back his Discus and Arjuna fired an arrow to decapitate him.
Killing Karna
Karna Trying to Lift the Wheel of the Chariot in the
Battlefield of Kurkshetra
Karna was
Arjuna's sworn rival – each had taken a vow to kill the other in battle.
Karna was an equal and hence, Arjuna could not defeat him with ease. Karna
caused much damage to the Pandava army and used several divine weapons to
subdue his enemy. In one particular incident, Krishna saved Arjuna from
Karna's wrath, by lowering their chariot wheel into the earth. This way, the
latter's lethal arrow missed him by mere centimeters. On the 17th day of
battle, the 2 warriors fought on bravely. Karna tried to fire the deadly
Brahmastra at Arjuna. However, Parasurama had cursed him that he would
forget important mantras just when he needed them the most. Forgetting the
actual mantra, he failed to invoke the astra, thus giving Arjuna further
lease of life. At one point during the battle, Karna's chariot wheel got
stuck in the mud. He jumped off the chariot to free the wheel, asking Arjuna
to pause and consider the most important etiquette of war – never to attack
one who is unarmed. At Krishna's signal, Arjuna went against the rules and
used the Anjalika weapon on him, while he was still trying to lift the
chariot wheel off the ground. In this way, Arjuna slayed the great Karna.
Arjuna's Death
Around the onset of the Kali Yuga, Krishna departed from this earth. Arjuna
and the other Pandavas too retired from their positions, leaving the throne
to the only surviving heir and Arjuna's grandson, Parikshit. Giving up all
their material ties, the Pandavas, accompanied by a dog, proceeded to take
their final pilgrimage to the Himalayas.
On the way,
Agni
manifested before Arjuna and asked him to surrender his Gandiva and the
quivers, which the former had obtained from Varuna. Arjuna obeyed as
directed, offered his obeisance to the Gandiva and returned it to
Agni.
During the course of that journey, all of them, except for the eldest
Pandava, Yudhishthira, grew weak and fell dead. Arjuna died after Draupadi,
Sahadeva and Nakula. Thus ended the life of the valiant warrior prince;
Arjuna.
Only Yudhishthira was permitted to keep his mortal body, after he reached
the gates of heaven, following the death of Bhima. Such was the level of his
righteousness. Except for telling one lie, he had otherwise led a sinless
life. Hence, he was asked to enter heaven only after taking a short tour of
hell. All the rest of them had to spend some time in hell in order to atone
for their sins.