Having spoken thus to King Yudhishthira, righteous of soul, Arjuna, bull of the Bharatas, began to lay down his weapons. He unstrung the noble, thunderous Gandiva, destroyer of foes and giver of fearlessness, with which alone upon his chariot he had conquered gods, men, serpents, and other prosperous countries. From that bow with which the heroic ascetic had defended Kurukshetra, Yudhishthira removed the inexhaustible bowstring. From that bow with which Bhimasena had conquered the Panchalas in battle and alone held back countless foes during the conquest of the quarters -- that bow whose twang sent enemies fleeing in battle as from the crash of a splitting mountain or the stroke of a thunderbolt, and with which he had touched the king of the Sindhus -- faultless Bhimasena unfastened the strap of the string. From the bow with which the Pandava had conquered the western quarter, valiant Samkrandana removed the string; from the weapon with which the righteous hero Sahadeva had conquered the southern quarter, he too removed the string. Yellow, long swords, costly quivers, and broad, razor-sharp arrows they laid down together with the bows.