Arjuna Returns from Heaven

Verse 1 (3.166.1)

ततः कदाचिद्धरिसंप्रयुक्तं । महेन्द्रवाहं सहसोपयातम् । विद्युत्प्रभं प्रेक्ष्य महारथानां । हर्षोऽर्जुनं चिन्तयतां बभूव ॥

tataḥ kadāciddharisaṃprayuktaṃ | mahendravāhaṃ sahasopayātam | vidyutprabhaṃ prekṣya mahārathānāṃ | harṣo'rjunaṃ cintayatāṃ babhūva

Then one day the great chariot-warriors, who were thinking of Arjuna, saw great Indra's chariot, yoked to bay horses and bright as lightning, suddenly approaching, and joy filled them.

Verse 2 (3.166.2)

स दीप्यमानः सहसाऽन्तरिक्षं । प्रकाशयन्मातलिसंगृहीतः । बभौ महोल्केव घनान्तरस्था । शिखेव चाग्नेर्ज्वलिता विधूमा ॥

sa dīpyamānaḥ sahasā'ntarikṣaṃ | prakāśayanmātalisaṃgṛhītaḥ | babhau maholkeva ghanāntarasthā | śikheva cāgnerjvalitā vidhūmā

Blazing and suddenly lighting up the sky, guided by Matali, it shone like a great meteor amid the clouds, like a smokeless tongue of flaming fire.

Verse 3 (3.166.3)

तमास्थितः संददृशे किरीटी । स्रग्वी नवान्याभरणानि बिभ्रत् । धनंजयो वज्रधरप्रभावः । श्रिया ज्वलन्पर्वतमाजगाम ॥

tamāsthitaḥ saṃdadṛśe kirīṭī | sragvī navānyābharaṇāni bibhrat | dhanaṃjayo vajradharaprabhāvaḥ | śriyā jvalanparvatamājagāma

Standing in it was seen the diademed Dhananjaya, garlanded, wearing new ornaments, mighty as the wielder of the thunderbolt; blazing with splendour, he came to the mountain.

Note on the text: Corrected आजगाम् → आजगाम (stray virama in Wikisource; the critical edition reads ājagāma).

Verse 4 (3.166.4)

स शैलमासाद्य किरीटमाली । महेन्द्रवाहादवरुह्य तस्मात् । धौम्यस्य पादावभिवाद्य पूर्व- । मजातशत्रोस्तदनन्तरं च ॥

sa śailamāsādya kirīṭamālī | mahendravāhādavaruhya tasmāt | dhaumyasya pādāvabhivādya pūrva- | majātaśatrostadanantaraṃ ca

Reaching the mountain, the hero with diadem and garland stepped down from great Indra's chariot and saluted first the feet of Dhaumya, and after that those of Ajatashatru.

Verse 5 (3.166.5)

वृकोदरस्यापि च वन्द्य पादौ । माद्रीसुताभ्यामभिवादितश्च । समेत्य कृष्णां परिसान्त्व्य चैनां । प्रह्वोऽभवद्भ्रातुरुपह्वरे सः ॥

vṛkodarasyāpi ca vandya pādau | mādrīsutābhyāmabhivāditaśca | sametya kṛṣṇāṃ parisāntvya caināṃ | prahvo'bhavadbhrāturupahvare saḥ

He honoured the feet of Vrikodara too, and was saluted by the two sons of Madri; then he went to Krishna and comforted her, and stood humbly by his brother's side.

Verse 6 (3.166.6)

बभूव तेषां परमः प्रहर्ष- । स्तेनाप्रमेयेण समेत्य तत्र । स चापि तान्प्रेक्ष्य किरीटमाली । ननन्द राजानमभिप्रशंसन् ॥

babhūva teṣāṃ paramaḥ praharṣa- | stenāprameyeṇa sametya tatra | sa cāpi tānprekṣya kirīṭamālī | nananda rājānamabhipraśaṃsan

Great was their joy at meeting that immeasurable hero there; and he too, with his diadem and garland, rejoiced to see them and praised the king.

Verse 7 (3.166.7)

यमास्थितः सप्त जघान पूगान् । दितेः सुतानां नमुचेर्निहन्ता । तमिन्द्रवाहं समुपेत्य पार्थाः । प्रदक्षिणं चक्रुरदीनसत्त्वाः ॥

yamāsthitaḥ sapta jaghāna pūgān | diteḥ sutānāṃ namucernihantā | tamindravāhaṃ samupetya pārthāḥ | pradakṣiṇaṃ cakruradīnasattvāḥ

The sons of Pritha, undaunted in spirit, went up to Indra's chariot, standing in which the slayer of Namuchi had destroyed seven hosts of the sons of Diti, and walked around it in reverence.

Note on the text: Corrected अदीनसत्वाः → अदीनसत्त्वाः (misspelling in Wikisource; the critical edition reads adīnasattvāḥ).

Verse 8 (3.166.8)

ते मातलेश्चक्रुरतीव हृष्टाः । सत्कारमग्र्यं सुरराजतुल्यम् । सर्वं यथावच्च दिवौकसङ्घं । पप्रच्छुरेनं कुरुराजपुत्राः ॥

te mātaleścakruratīva hṛṣṭāḥ | satkāramagryaṃ surarājatulyam | sarvaṃ yathāvacca divaukasaṅghaṃ | papracchurenaṃ kururājaputrāḥ

Overjoyed, the Kuru princes paid Matali the highest honour, such as they would pay the king of the gods, and duly asked him about everything concerning the host of the gods.

Note on the text: Corrected पप्रच्युः → पप्रच्छुः (misprint in Wikisource; the critical edition reads papracchur).

Verse 9 (3.166.9)

तानप्यसौ मातलिरभ्यनन्द- । त्पितेव पुत्राननुशिष्य पार्थान् । ययौ रथेनाप्रतिमप्रभेण । पुनः सकाशं त्रिदिवेश्वरस्य ॥

tānapyasau mātalirabhyananda- | tpiteva putrānanuśiṣya pārthān | yayau rathenāpratimaprabheṇa | punaḥ sakāśaṃ tridiveśvarasya

Matali in turn greeted the sons of Pritha warmly and counselled them as a father counsels his sons; then he went back in his chariot of matchless splendour to the presence of the lord of heaven.

Verse 10 (3.166.10)

गते तु तस्मिन्वरदेववाहे । शक्रात्मजः सर्वरिपुप्रमाथी । साक्षात्सहस्राक्ष इव प्रतीतः । श्रीमान्स्वदेहादवमुच्य जिष्णुः ॥

gate tu tasminvaradevavāhe | śakrātmajaḥ sarvaripupramāthī | sākṣātsahasrākṣa iva pratītaḥ | śrīmānsvadehādavamucya jiṣṇuḥ

When that chariot of the chief of the gods had gone, Indra's son Jishnu, crusher of all his foes, glorious and looking like the thousand-eyed god himself, took off from his own body

Note on the text: Removed stray wiki marks (` and ') around the last two lines. The first two lines are 3.161.26ab of the critical edition; the last two are not in its text but appear in its apparatus as 3.161.26b*0833.

Verse 11 (3.166.11)

शक्रेण दत्तानि ददौ महात्मा । महाधनान्युत्तमरूपवन्ति । दिवाकराभाणि विभूषणानि । प्रीतः प्रियायै सुतसोममात्रे ॥

śakreṇa dattāni dadau mahātmā | mahādhanānyuttamarūpavanti | divākarābhāṇi vibhūṣaṇāni | prītaḥ priyāyai sutasomamātre

the ornaments that Shakra had given him, of great value and finest form, bright as the sun; and the great-souled hero gladly gave them to his beloved, the mother of Sutasoma.

Note on the text: Restored a missing word space (दत्तानिददौ → दत्तानि ददौ). Wikisource prints the critical edition's six-line 3.161.26 as two verses; this one is 3.161.26c–f.

Verse 12 (3.166.12)

ततः स तेषां कुरुपुङ्गवानां । तेषां च सूर्याग्निसमप्रभाणाम् । विप्रर्षभाणामुपविश्य मध्ये । सर्वं यथावत्कथयांबभूव ॥

tataḥ sa teṣāṃ kurupuṅgavānāṃ | teṣāṃ ca sūryāgnisamaprabhāṇām | viprarṣabhāṇāmupaviśya madhye | sarvaṃ yathāvatkathayāṃbabhūva

Then, seated in the midst of those bulls of the Kurus and of those foremost brahmins, bright as the sun and fire, he told them everything just as it had happened.

Note on the text: Corrected ततऋः → ततः (misprint in Wikisource; the critical edition reads tataḥ).

Verse 13 (3.166.13)

एवं मयाऽस्त्राण्युपशिक्षितानि । शक्राच्च वायोश्च शिवाच्च साक्षात् । तथैव शीलेन समाधिना च । प्रीताः सुरा मे सहिताः सहेन्द्राः ॥

evaṃ mayā'strāṇyupaśikṣitāni | śakrācca vāyośca śivācca sākṣāt | tathaiva śīlena samādhinā ca | prītāḥ surā me sahitāḥ sahendrāḥ

"This is how I learned the weapons: from Shakra, from Vayu, and from Shiva himself. And the gods, together with Indra, were pleased with my conduct and my concentration."

Note on the text: No speaker heading is printed; the verse is Arjuna's own account, so the speaker is set to Arjuna.

Verse 14 (3.166.14)

संक्षेपतो वै स विशुद्धकर्मा । तेभ्यः समाख्याय दिवः प्रवेशम् । माद्रीसुताभ्यां सहितः किरीटी । सुष्वाप तामावसतिं प्रतीतः ॥

saṃkṣepato vai sa viśuddhakarmā | tebhyaḥ samākhyāya divaḥ praveśam | mādrīsutābhyāṃ sahitaḥ kirīṭī | suṣvāpa tāmāvasatiṃ pratītaḥ

Having told them briefly of his entry into heaven, the diademed hero of pure deeds lay down with the two sons of Madri and slept contentedly that night.

Note on the text: Restored a missing word space (दिवःप्रवेशम् → दिवः प्रवेशम्).