Mahabharata · 1.216.17–18
॥
Devanāgarī
तच् च दिव्यं धनुःश्रेष्ठं ब्रह्मणा निर्मितं पुरा ॥
गाण्डीवम् उपसंगृह्य बभूव मुदितो ऽर्जुनः ॥
हुताशनं नमस्कृत्य ततस् तद् अपि वीर्यवान् ॥
जग्राह बलम् आस्थाय ज्यया च युयुजे धनुः ॥
Transliteration (IAST)
tac ca divyaṃ dhanuḥśreṣṭhaṃ brahmaṇā nirmitaṃ purā ||
gāṇḍīvam upasaṃgṛhya babhūva mudito 'rjunaḥ ||
hutāśanaṃ namaskṛtya tatas tad api vīryavān ||
jagrāha balam āsthāya jyayā ca yuyuje dhanuḥ ||
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
तत् च दिव्यं धनुःश्रेष्ठं ब्रह्मणा निर्मितं पुराtat ca divyaṃ dhanuḥśreṣṭhaṃ brahmaṇā nirmitaṃ purāand that wondrous, finest of bows, fashioned by Brahma of old,
गाण्डीवम् उपसंगृह्य बभूव मुदितः अर्जुनःgāṇḍīvam upasaṃgṛhya babhūva muditaḥ arjunaḥArjuna took up Gandiva and rejoiced;
हुताशनं नमस्कृत्य ततः तत् अपि वीर्यवान्hutāśanaṃ namaskṛtya tataḥ tat api vīryavānhaving bowed to Agni, then that [bow], mighty,
जग्राह बलम् आस्थाय ज्यया च युयुजे धनुःjagrāha balam āsthāya jyayā ca yuyuje dhanuḥhe seized it, exerting his strength, and strung the bow with the bowstring;
तच्tacoriginal form "tac", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
मुदितोmuditooriginal form "mudito", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
ऽर्जुनः'rjunaḥoriginal form "'rjunaḥ", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
ततस्tatasoriginal form "tatas", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
तद्tadoriginal form "tad", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
Translation
And that wondrous, finest of bows, fashioned by Brahma of old, Arjuna took up — Gandiva — and rejoiced; having bowed to Agni, then, mighty as he was, he seized the bow, exerting his strength, and strung it with the bowstring.
Version
d59c0590c251 · published Jul 12, 2026, 6:11:48 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Here the hero receives the wondrous gift with gratitude. It is significant that Arjuna bows to Agni before taking up the bow: a gift is received with thanks to the giver. Gratitude is the companion of receiving grace. Thus the scripture reveals Arjuna's joy and reverence; and Gandiva, strung by his hand, finds a worthy bearer.