The unknown facts about mahabharata's Arjun

 The unknown facts about Arjun

One thing that will very much happen to you when you read Vyasa’s Mahabharata, is that you will fall in love with the character Arjuna! Your guide will be Arjuna, you will be inspired from Arjuna, you will want to be like Arjuna, you will know why Krishna’s favorite was Arjuna, you will know why everyone (except Kauravas and Karna) loved Arjuna the most, you will know why Mahadeva and his portion Hanuman supported Arjuna!

Before reading Mahabharata my views regarding Arjuna was totally different. I considered him as arrogant spoiled prince who just want to be superior than everyone and is jealous of everyone around him. Karna was my superhero as i watched starplus Mahbahrata that time(Yeah i regret it!). Now since i read Mabharata, my views regading Arjuna is totally changed. I consider Arjuna as my teacher, guide, inspiration and my Father.

If i talk about Arjuna’s warrior skills than answer will be too long. Let me just point how he was as a person:

• Before reading Mahabharata i considered Arjuna as egoistic human being having no compassion at all, After reading the epic i understood how stupid i was to judge character before reading the epic. It was Arjuna during Gurdakshina war who stopped Bhima from killing the ordinary soldiers. While fighting with Jayadrath, it was Arjuna who was stopping Bhima from killing his soldiers. He was so compassionate that when Chitrasena accepted his defeat and asked to not fight now, than Arjuna immediately pulls his sword back. Chitrasena, impressed by quality of Arjuna was now friend of Arjuna. Someone who turns his enemy to a friend by his qualities, Yes that’s Vibhatsu!

• People consider Arjuna a coward for not fighting before Kuruksherta war, for which Krishna had to give him the knowledge known as Bhagvad Gita. That is not cowardice, that is love and compassion for his elders. He would rather die than to use weapons on his relatives, his elders. Those brothers who always bullied him as a child, those who were responsible for his beloved wife’s insult, those who always did injustice to them whether giving barren land, or not giving rajya back after 13 years which was against pact or trying to burn them in Lakshagriha, it was Arjuna who thought to leave war and not fight considering them as his relatives. It was him who treated them as relatives even though they did worse than worst to him, yes that’s Parantapa!

• It was Arjuna who thought about soldiers and gave them rest and cared about them. Even his opposites praised his caring qualities. Yes who is even appreciated by his enemies, that’s Savyasachi!

• He got the weapon known as Pahupatastra, that weapon which have no counter and could turn universe to ashes, if it would have been Kauravas or Karna or Ashwatthama, the weapon could be used by them solely to kill Arjuna! But Mahadeva himself believed in Arjuna, that he will not use the weapon since it could do damage to all the living entities. When he was fighting with Lord Shiva, he was injured to the core, yet he gave his best. This act even impressed Mahadeva. One who impressed god of the gods, Mahadeva, Yes that is Dhananjaya!

• After hearing his son’s death, after hearing that how he was brutally killed by bunch of cowards, he didn’t thought for a moment and vowed to kill Jayadrath before sunset. If he would not have been able to kill him, that would be called arrogance, but he did kill him by overcoming lots and lots of challenges. That is not arrogance, that is self confidence! He never cared about Vasvi dart of Karna, because he was confident that he had knowlege of encountering all those weapons, that’s Partha.

• When he was learning under Guru Drona, he showed his thirst for knowledge. While other kauravas and Karna(yes karna was taught by Guru Drona), Aswatthama learnt to be better than Arjuna, Arjuna learnt to be better version of himself. He had so much thirst for knowledge, even though Aswatthama had big mouth of water vessel and he had small, to learn more from Guru Drona, he used to speedily run to fulfil his quest of knowledge. He always was fond of learning new things and bettering himself whether learning how to dance and sing. Yes that’s Gandivdhari!

• Once when it got dark while eating food, when other started to search for light it was Arjuna who thought to learn to shoot arrow in dark. He thought, while he was able to eat in dark, he could be able to shoot during dark too. He started to teach himself to shoot arrow in dark and succeeded. He was only one to testify the bird’s eye test and chrocodile test. That’s Krishna!

• After the war, it was Arjuna who offered his wealth to Dhritarashra to fulfil the rituals of Kauravas. He considered Dhritarashtra his own father and Gandhari his own mother, even though they were always biased for Kauravas. Yes, that’s Vijaya!

• He had amazing willpower. While doing austerity of Mahadeva he didn’t eat a grain of food for 4 months (120 days!!). That’s Shvethavāhana.

• When Vyasa asked him to return Brahmisraashtra since it could do damage to the the world, he didn’t think twice, and for humanity he quickly withdraw the ashtra. He who is epitome of humanity, that’s Phalguna.

• When Brahmana came with a problem, that his cows were theft by robbers. He came to Arjuna to solve the problems, when Arjuna’s Gandiva was in the room of Draupadi. Knowing that Yudhisthira was in her room, knowing that he should go to vanvas for 13 years, yet he went to save the cows not thninking about it’s consequences. He who is kinder the the kindest, that’s Jishnu!

• At that period poweful men and men in general were allowed to have as many wives as they want to and they didn’t need their wife’s permission to do so. But seeing Draupadi upset at his marriage with Subhadra, he vowed not to marry another woman and fulfilled the promise given to her. He even fulfilled the wish of Ulupi to marry him(Ulupi was actually widow). Even though he promised Ulupi just to spend a night with her, and did Gandharva Vivah, he gave her equal rights as his wife. He brought her in Hastinapur after Kurukshetra and they lived their for about 36 years. Yes that’s our hero, Kirti!

• Whenever he won the battle with his extraordinary and unimaginable skills, he gave all credits to his teachers and to his elders. Yes that’s Gudakesha!

• When Krishna left his body, Arjuna became lifeless. He coudn’t see world devoid of his soulmate Krishna. Yet he fulfiled his duty and he offered fire to Vasudeva ,took charge of everything,left Dwaraka before it got drenched by ocean. Yes he was unable to save all the ladies but still he fought and guarded Krishna’s successors and his prominent wives. Yes that’s Madhava’s Kaunteya!

• At his journey to death, he saw his beloved wife’s death and his brother’s death in front of him. He was grief-stricken! He died not because of his arrogance, he died because he couldn’t bear the death of his family. Yes that’s our Mahanayaka Arjuna!

The more i think about his character, the more i get inspired. Mahabharata is all about Arjuna, it is all about his life story, his character development. He was a human, yet he did such things in his lifetime which was unimaginable even by gods!

When Arjun reveals his identity to Uttar Kumar, he is asked to explain the origin of his ten names. He says,

“I was Dhananjaya when I conquered the kings during the Rajasuya yagna and won wealth from them.

I am Vijaya because I have never been defeated in battle.

The horses the Lord of Fire gave me are white, so I am Swetavahana.

My father Indra set a crown on my head in Devaloka, so I am Kiriti.

I fight fairly, so am I Bhibhatsu;

Savyasachi, being equally skilled in both hands;

Arjuna, since my skin has the color of that tree;

Phalguna, since I was born under the Uttara Phalguni nakshatra.

I am Jishnu because I am fierce when roused and because of my solemn oath: that if anyone spills even a drop of my brother Yudhishtira’s blood on to the ground, I will kill that man and all his clan.

Finally, I am Partha because I am my mother Pritha’s son.”