Shloka 33
Adhyāya 168: Arjuna’s counters to māyā-rains and the onset of darkness
Nivātakavaca engagement
स्थूणाकर्णमथो जालं शरवर्षमथोल्बणम् | शलभास्त्रमश्मवर्ष समास्थायाहमभ्ययाम्,स्थूणाकर्ण5, वारुणास्त्र-, भयंकर शरवर्षास्त्रर, शलभास्त्र5<४ तथा अभ्मवर्ष४ इन अस्त्रोंका सहारा ले मैं उस किरातपर टूट पड़ा
sthūṇākarṇam atho jālaṁ śaravarṣam atholbaṇam | śalabhāstram aśmavarṣaṁ samāsthāyāham abhyayām ||
Arjuna said: “Taking recourse to the weapons called Sthūṇākarṇa, Jāla, the dreadful shower of arrows, Śalabhāstra, and the rain of stones, I rushed straight at that Kirāta.” In the episode’s moral frame, the verse highlights Arjuna’s unwavering resolve and disciplined reliance on astras in a trial that tests not only martial skill but also humility before a superior, divinely-backed opponent.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a great warrior’s prowess is ultimately tested by a higher order of dharma: steadfast effort must be joined with humility, because the encounter is not merely combat but a divinely-structured trial of character and readiness.
Arjuna describes how he employed multiple astras—net-like restraint, arrow-showers, and stone-rain type weapons—and then charged at the Kirāta (hunter), intensifying the duel that culminates in recognizing the hunter’s divine nature.