Vaisampayana continued, "When _Sakra_ had gone to his proper place,
_Vibhatsu_ together with his brothers and Krishna, paid homage unto the
son of Dharma. Then smelling the crown of the head of that Pandava, who
was thus paying homage, (Yudhishthira) in accents faltering on account
of joy, addressed Arjuna, saying, 'O Arjuna, how didst thou pass this
period in heaven? And how has thou obtained the weapons, and how also
hast thou gratified the lord of the celestials? And, O Pandava, has thou
adequately secured the weapons? Have the lord of the celestials and
_Rudra_ gladly granted thee the weapons? And how hast thou beheld the
divine _Sakra_, and the wielder of _Pinaka_? And how has thou obtained
the weapons? And in what manner didst thou worship (them)? And what
service hadst thou done unto that repressor of foes, the worshipful one
of a hundred sacrifices, that he said unto thee, "By thee have I been
gratified?" All this, O highly effulgent one, I wish to hear in detail.
And, O sinless one, the manner in which thou didst please Mahadeva and
the king of the celestials and, O repressor of foes, the service thou
hadst done to the wielder of the thunder-bolt,--do thou, O Dhananjaya,
relate all this in detail.'
"Arjuna said, 'O mighty monarch, listen how I duly beheld him of a
hundred sacrifice and the divine _Sankara_ also. O grinder of foes, O
king, having acquired that science which thou hadst directed me (to
learn), I at thy command went to the forest, for practising penances.
From _Kamyaka_ repairing to the _Bhrigutunga_, I spent there one night,
being engaged in austerities. And it came to pass that on the next I saw
a certain _Brahmana_. And he asked me, saying, "O son of Kunti, whither
wilt thou go?" Thereupon, O descendant of the Kurus, I truly related
unto him everything. And, O best of kings, having heard the true
account, the _Brahmana_ became well-pleased with me, and, O king,
praised me. Then the _Brahmana_, pleased with me, said, "O Bharata, be
thou engaged in austerities. By performing penances, thou wilt in a
short time behold the lord of the celestials." And according to his
advice I ascended the _Himavan_, and, O mighty king, began to practise
penances, (the first) month subsisting on fruit and roots. I spent the
second month, subsisting on water. And, O Pandava, in the third month I
totally abstained from food. And in the fourth month I remained with
upraised arms. And a wonder it is that I did not lose any strength. And
it came to pass that when the first day of the fifth month had been
spent, there appeared before me a being wearing the form of a boar,
turning up the earth with his mouth, stamping the ground with his feet,
rubbing the earth with his breast, and momentarily going about in a
frightful manner. And him followed a great being in the guise of a
hunter furnished with the bow, arrows, and the sword, and surrounded by
females. Thereupon, taking my bow and the two inexhaustible quivers, I
pierced with shafts that terrible and frightful creature. And
simultaneously (with me) that hunter also drawing a strong bow, more
severely struck at (the animal), as if shaking my mind. And, O king, he
also said unto me, "Why hast thou, transgressing the rules of hunting,
hit the animal first hit at by me? With these sharpened shafts will I
destroy thy pride. Stay!" Then that mighty-bodied one holding the bow
rushed at me. And with volleys of mighty shafts, he covered me entirely,
even as a cloud covereth a mountain with showers. Then, on my part, I
covered him with a mighty discharge of arrows. Thereupon, with steady
arrows having their points aflame, and inspired with _mantras_, I
pierced him even as (Indra) riveth a mountain with a thunderbolt. Then
his person began to be multiplied a hundredfold and a thousandfold. At
this, I pierced all his bodies with shafts. Then again all those forms
became one, O Bharata. Thereat I struck at it. Next, he now assumed a
small body with a huge head, and now a huge body with a small head. And,
O king, he then assumed his former person and approached me for fight.
And, O foremost of the Bharata race, when in the encounter I failed to
overwhelm him with arrows, I fixed the mighty weapon of the Wind-god.
But I failed to discharge it at him, and this was a wonder. And when
that weapon thus failed of effect, I was struck with amazement. However,
O king, exerting myself more vigorously, I again covered that being with
a mighty multitude of shafts. Then taking _Sthuna-karna_, and _Varuna_
and _Salava_, and _Asmavarsha_ weapons, I assailed him, profusely
showering shafts. But, O king, he instantly swallowed up even all these
weapons of mine. And when all those (weapons) had been swallowed up, I
discharged the weapon presided over by Brahma. And when the blazing
arrows issuing from that weapon were heaped upon him all around, and
being thus heaped over by that mighty weapon discharged by me, he
increased (in bulk). Then all the world became oppressed with the energy
begotten of the weapon hurled by me, and the firmament and all the
points of the sky became illumined. But that one of mighty energy
instantly baffled even that weapon. And, O monarch, when that weapon
presided over by _Brahma_ had been baffled I was possessed with terrible
fear. Thereupon immediately holding even my bow and the two
inexhaustible quivers, I shot at that being, but he swallowed up all
those weapons. And when all the weapons had been baffled and swallowed
up, there ensued a wrestling between him and myself. And we encountered
each other first with blows and then with slaps. But incapable of
overcoming that being, I fell down stupefied on the ground. Thereupon, O
mighty king, with a laugh, that wonderful being at my sight vanished at
that spot together with the women. Having accomplished this, O
illustrious monarch, that divine one assumed another and unearthly form
(clad in) wonderful raiment. And renouncing the form of a hunter, that
divine lord of the gods, resumed his own unearthly appearance and that
mighty god stood (there). Then appeared before me with _Uma_ that
manifest divine one, having the bull for his mark, wielding the
_Pinaka_, bearing serpents and capable of assuming many forms. And, O
repressor of foes, advancing towards me, standing even then in the field
ready for conflict, that wielder of the trident addressed me saying, "I
am well-pleased with thee." Then that divine one held up my bows and the
couple of quivers furnished with inexhaustible shafts and returned them
unto me saying, "Do thou ask some boon, O Kunti's son. I am well-pleased
with thee. Tell me, what I shall do for thee. And, O hero, express the
desire that dwelleth in thy heart. I will grant it. Except immortality
alone, tell me as to the desire that is in thy heart." Thereat with my
mind intent on the acquisition of arms, I only bowed down unto Siva and
said, "O divine one, if thou beest favourably disposed towards me, then
I wish to have this boon,--I wish to learn all the weapons that are with
thy god-head." Then the god _Tryamvaka_ said unto me, "I will give. O
Pandava, my own weapon _Raudra_ shall attend upon thee." Thereupon
_Mahadeva_, well-pleased, granted to me the mighty weapon, _Pasupata_.
And, having granted that eternal weapon, he also said unto me, "This
must never be hurled at mortals. If discharged at any person of small
energy, it would consume the universe. Shouldst thou (at any time) be
hard pressed, thou mayst discharge it. And when all thy weapons have
been completely baffled, thou mayst hurl it." Then when he having the
bull for his mark, had been thus gratified, there stood manifest by my
side that celestial weapon, of resistless force capable of baffling all
weapons and destructive of foes and the hewer of hostile forces and
unrivalled and difficult to be borne even by the celestials, the demons
and the _Rakshasas_. Then at the command of that god, I sat me down
there. And in my very sight the god vanished from the spot.'"