Shloka 43

Adhyāya 168: Arjuna’s counters to māyā-rains and the onset of darkness

Nivātakavaca engagement

Devanagari script

हित्वा किरातरूपं च भगवांस्त्रिदशे श्वर: । स्वरूपं दिव्यमास्थाय तस्थौ तत्र महेश्वर:

Transliteration

arjuna uvāca | hitvā kirātarūpaṃ ca bhagavāṃs tridāśeśvaraḥ | svarūpaṃ divyam āsthāya tasthau tatra maheśvaraḥ ||

Translation

Arjuna dit : «Alors le Seigneur Bienheureux, souverain des dieux, rejetant le déguisement de Kirāta (chasseur des montagnes), reprit sa propre forme divine et rayonnante. Là, Mahādeva se tint révélé.» Dans le récit, l’épisode souligne que la divinité peut prendre un masque humble ou d’épreuve afin de sonder la résolution du chercheur ; lorsque la constance et la sincérité sont prouvées, la présence divine se dévoile au grand jour, attestant que la dévotion et l’effort discipliné transforment l’être sur le plan éthique.

Word by Word

• {'arjuna uvāca': 'Arjuna said', 'hitvā': 'having abandoned, casting aside', 'kirātarūpam': 'the form/guise of a Kirāta (hunter of the mountains)', 'bhagavān': 'the Blessed Lord

• a venerable epithet for a deity', 'tridāśa-īśvaraḥ': 'lord of the thirty (gods)

• i.e., ruler of the devas', 'svarūpam': 'one’s own true form', 'divyam': 'divine, radiant, celestial', 'āsthāya': 'having assumed, taking refuge in/entering into', 'tasthau': 'stood, remained', 'tatra': 'there, in that place', 'maheśvaraḥ': 'Mahā-īśvara

Speaker

अजुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Arjuna
• Mahādeva (Śiva, Maheśvara)
• Kirāta (hunter guise)
• Devas (Tridaśa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The divine may appear in an ordinary or challenging guise to test sincerity, humility, and steadfastness; when the seeker’s resolve is proven, grace manifests as clear revelation and empowerment.

What is happening in the narrative?

After appearing as a Kirāta (hunter) and engaging in the preceding encounter, Śiva abandons that disguise and stands revealed in his radiant divine form before Arjuna.