Mahabharata 3.42.9 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 42, Shloka 9
Lokapāla-samāgamaḥ—Arjuna Receives Astras from the World-Guardians
Book 3, Chapter 42
तस्मिन् रथे स्थितं सूतं तप्तहेमविभूषितम् । दृष्टवा पार्थों महाबाहुर्देवमेवान्वतर्कयत्
tasmin rathe sthitaṁ sūtaṁ tapta-hemavibhūṣitam | dṛṣṭvā pārtho mahābāhur devam evānv atarkayat ||
Al ver al auriga sentado en aquel carro, adornado con ornamentos de oro bruñido, Pārtha (Arjuna), de poderosos brazos, juzgó que no era sino un dios. La escena subraya cómo el fulgor divino y el porte noble inspiran reverencia, y a la vez insinúa un tema recurrente del poema: lo divino puede aparecer en papeles humanos para guiar los acontecimientos hacia el dharma.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how extraordinary splendor and conduct can evoke recognition of the divine, suggesting that dharma is often advanced through seemingly human agents whose presence and qualities reveal a higher order.
Arjuna notices a charioteer seated on a chariot, richly adorned with burnished-gold ornaments; struck by the figure’s radiance, he reasons that the charioteer must be a divine being.
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