Shloka 42
अध्याय १: महाप्रस्थानारम्भः
The Commencement of the Great Departure
ततस्ते भ्रातर: सर्वे धनंजयमचोदयन् । स जले प्राक्षिपच्चैतत्तथाक्षय्ये महेषुधी,यह सुनकर उन सब भाइयोंने अर्जुनको वह धनुष त्याग देनेके लिये कहा। तब अर्जुनने वह धनुष और दोनों अक्षय तरकस पानीमें फेंक दिये
tatas te bhrātaraḥ sarve dhanañjayam acodayan | sa jale prākṣipac caitat tathākṣayyau maheṣudhī ||
Da drängten alle seine Brüder Dhanañjaya (Arjuna), die Waffen abzulegen. Ihrem Rat folgend warf Arjuna jenen Bogen und die beiden unerschöpflichen Köcher ins Wasser.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights ethical detachment at life’s end: even divinely empowered instruments of power are to be relinquished when one turns from worldly duty to the final path of renunciation.
As the Pāṇḍavas proceed on the Great Departure, the brothers tell Arjuna to abandon his weapons; Arjuna complies by throwing the bow and the two inexhaustible quivers into the water.