Srimad Bhagavatam — Dashama Skandha, Shloka 22
Draupadī Meets Kṛṣṇa’s Queens — Narratives of the Lord’s Marriages and the Queens’ Bhakti
आदाय व्यसृजन् केचित् सज्यं कर्तुमनीश्वरा: । आकोष्ठं ज्यां समुत्कृष्य पेतुरेकेऽमुना हता: ॥ २२ ॥
ādāya vyasṛjan kecit sajyaṁ kartum anīśvarāḥ ā-koṣṭhaṁ jyāṁ samutkṛṣya petur eke ’munāhatāḥ
Some picked up the bow but could not string it and, in frustration, cast it aside. Others managed to draw the bowstring to the tip, only for the bow to spring back and strike them down to the ground.
FAQs
This verse shows that even physically strong warriors become powerless—some cannot even string their bows, and others collapse—when confronted by Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s superior divine potency.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī describes opposing fighters who attempted to draw their bows fully (to the ear) but were struck down by Śrī Kṛṣṇa, indicating the Lord’s effortless dominance.
Relying on ego and brute force fails before higher reality; humility and surrender to the Supreme (and acting in dharma) is safer and ultimately victorious.