Mahabharata 3.39.3 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 39, Shloka 3
Arjuna’s Himalayan Departure and the Commencement of Severe Tapas
Janamejaya’s Inquiry; Sages Approach Śiva
श्रीमद् धनुरुपादाय शरांश्चवाशीविषोपमान् । निष्पपात महावेगो दहनो देहवानिव,वे एक शोभायमान धनुष और सर्पोके समान विषाक्त बाण लेकर बड़े वेगसे चले। मानो साक्षात् अग्निदेव ही देह धारण करके निकले हों
śrīmad dhanuḥ upādāya śarāṃś ca āśīviṣopamān | niṣpapāta mahāvego dahano dehavān iva ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: Baginda mengangkat busur yang gemilang serta anak panah yang berbisa seperti ular maut, lalu meluru dengan kelajuan dahsyat—seolah-olah Dewa Api sendiri menjelma dan menerjah ke medan tindakan. Rangkap ini meninggikan ketegangan moral kisah: kekuatan dan kesiagaan perang digambarkan sebagai daya yang menggetarkan; apabila dilepaskan, ia mampu membakar kendali diri dan membawa akibat yang segera.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how martial power, once taken up, becomes a force like fire—swift, consuming, and difficult to contain. Ethically, it hints that strength must be governed by discernment; otherwise it can scorch both the target and the moral order surrounding the act.
A warrior (implicitly understood from context) arms himself with a splendid bow and deadly arrows and rushes forward at great speed. The narrator intensifies the scene by comparing him to embodied Fire (Agni), signaling imminent, potentially devastating action.
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