Arjuna : incarnation of Vishnu
Arjuna is the name of a protagonist in the Mahabharata epic. He is known as a member of the Pandava who is charming and meek-hearted. In the Mahabharata it is narrated that he was the son of Prabu Pandu, king of Hastinapura with Kunti or Perta, daughter of Prabu Surasena, king of the Yadawa Dynasty in Mathura. The Mahabharata described Arjuna as a close friend of Krishna, referred to in the Puranas as the avatar (incarnation) of Vishnu. The relationship between Arjuna and Krishna was so close that Arjuna requested his willingness as an advisor as well as arjuna train driver during the war between Pandava and Korawa raging (Bharatayuddha). The dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna before the Bharatayuddha war was summarized in a separate book called Bhagawadgita, which broadly contained the sacred wejangan conveyed by Krishna because Arjuna was hesitant to fulfill his duty as a knight on the battlefield.
Etymology and other names
In Sanskrit, the word Arjuna literally means "shining bright", "white" , "clean". Judging by its meaning, the word Arjuna can mean "honest in the face and mind". When Arjuna went through a period of disguise (recorded in the Book of Wirataparwa), he acted as a dance coach in the palace of King Wirata, and was willing to be the coachman of the Prince of the North during the invasion of Kuru Kingdom. To convince the prince that he was Arjuna the son of Pandu in disguise, Arjuna revealed ten names:
Arjuna: the irrepaless and shining of the virginity.
Palguna : who was born when the star Uttarā Phālgunī was in zenith.
Jisnu: the great when angry.
Kiriti: the beautifully crowned (kiriti) given by Dewa Indra.
Swetawahana: which has a white ride.
Bibatsu: who never fight fraudulently.
Wijaya: who succeeded, referring to Arjuna's achievements that always won the battle he faced.
Parta : matronim of Perta, literally meaning "son of Perta" (another name Kunti).
Sawyasaci : who can use both hands to fire arrows.
Dananjaya: adept at mastering the bow (dhanu).
In addition to the other name Arjuna mentioned in Wirataparwa, there are a number of other names found in the Bhagawadgita which are part of Bhismaparwa. Some other names that can be found are as follows:
Anaga: the unworthy.
Barata : descendants of Bhārata.
Baratasresta: the best descendant of Bharata.
Baratasatama : the main descendant of Bharata.
Baratasaba : a descendant of the noble Bharata.
Gandiwi : owner of Gandiwa (magic crossbow).
Gudakesa : conqueror of drowsiness.
Kapidwaja: who wears a banner bearing the symbol of a monkey.
Kurunandana: the beloved son of the Kuru dynasty.
Kuruprawira: officer of the Kuru dynasty.
Kurusatama: the main descendant of the Kuru dynasty.
Kurusresta: the best descendant of the Kuru dynasty.
Mahabahu: the mighty arm.
Parantapa: conqueror of the enemy.
Purusaresaba : the best among humans.
Birth
In the Mahabharata it is told that Prabu Pandu could not continue the descent because it was cursed by a regiment. Kunti—his first wife—received a gift from the Durwasan Regiment so that he could summon the deity according to his wishes, and was also able to obtain a gift from the god he called. Pandu and Kunti used the gift to call Dewa Yama (Dharmaraja; Yamadipati), Bayu (Maruta), and Indra (Sakra) then gave them three sons. Arjuna was the third son, born to Indra, the leader of the gods. He was born on the slopes of Himawan mountain, in a place called Satsringa on the day when the North star Phalguna appeared in zenith.
Arjuna was educated along with his other brothers (the Pandava and Korawa) by Drona. His skills in archery have been evident since childhood. At a young age he was awarded the title of Maharathi or "eminent knight". In one test, Drona placed a wooden bird on a tree, then told his students one by one to aim at the bird, then asked what they had seen. Many disciples replied that they saw trees, branches, twigs, and everything close to the bird, including the bird itself. When it was Arjuna's turn to shoot, Drona asked what she saw. Arjuna replied that he only saw birds, did not see anything else. It amazed Drona and convinced her that Arjuna was smart.
One day, while Drona was bathing in the Ganges, a crocodile came to bite her. Drona was able to free herself easily, but because she wanted to test her students' courage, she screamed for help. Among his disciples, only Arjuna came to help. With his arrows, he killed the crocodile that bit his teacher. For Arjuna's service, Drona gave an astra named Brahmasirsa. Drona also taught Arjuna how to call and withdraw the astra. According to the Mahabharata, Brahmasirsa can only be directed to gods, giants, evil demons, and evil magical beings, so that the impact is not dangerous.
Adiparwa's nature is told that Duryodana—one of the Korawa—encouraged pandava and her mother (Kunti) to vacation in a house outside the kingdom. Indeed, Duryodana had prepared the house to burn easily, because she hated the Pandava, especially Bima. Widura, the pandava and Korawa's wary uncle, asked the Pandava to be careful and prepare a way to deal with the worst that could happen. While the Pandavas were staying, Purocana, Duryodana's janitor set the house on fire. The Pandava and their mother managed to escape through a previously dug tunnel. They fled into the middle of the forest and hitchhiked to the homes of nearby residents.
Once upon a time, a group of brahmins gathered at the place where the Pandava escaped. They discussed a competition to be held in the Kingdom of Panchala. The Pandava came to the competition by posing as brahmins. King Drupada of Panchala held a competition to get Dropadi, his daughter. A wooden fish is placed on top of the dome of the hall, and below it is a pond that reflects the shadow of the fish above. The rule states that anyone who manages to shoot the fish by simply looking at its reflection in the pond, then he is entitled to Get Dropadi.
Various knights tried to do so, but to no avail. When Karna who was present at the time tried, he managed to shoot the fish well. However, he was rejected by Dropadi on the grounds that Karna was born in a lower caste. Arjuna and his other brother, disguised as Brahmana, participated in the competition. Arjuna manages to shoot the fish on target by only seeing the reflection of his shadow in the pond, and he deserves Dropadi. When the Pandava came home with Dropadi, they claimed to have brought alms. Kunti—the pandava's mother—who was busy, told them to evenly share what they had earned. According to Kunti's saying, the Pandava agreed to divide Dropadi as their wife. They also promised not to disturb Dropadi while making out in a room with one of the Pandava. The penalty for disturbing acts is one year's banishment.
One day, while the Pandava was reigning his kingdom in Indraprastha, a priest entered the palace and reported that his ascetic was disturbed by giants. Arjuna hurriedly took his weapon, but the weapon was kept in a room where Yudistira and Dropadi were enjoying their evening. For his part, Arjuna willingly entered the room to take a gun, regardless of Yudistira and Dropadi who were making out in the room. For this, Arjuna was sentenced to one year of exile.
Arjuna spent his exile exploring the corner of Bharatawarsha or mainland Ancient India. When he reached the Ganges, Arjuna met Ulupi, the daughter of Naga Korawya from the dragon palace or Nagaloka. Arjuna was captivated by Ulupi's beauty and married her. From his marriage, he had a son named Irawan. After that, he continued his journey to the Himalayan region. After visiting the sacred rivers that were there, he turned south. He reached a land called Manipura. The king of the land was named Citrasena. She had a very beautiful daughter named Citrānggadā. Arjuna fell in love with the princess and wanted to marry her, but Citrasena proposed a condition that if her daughter gave birth to a son, then her daughter should be the successor to the throne of Manipura because Citrasena did not have a son. Arjuna agreed to the terms. From his marriage, Arjuna and Citrānggadā had a son named Babruwahana. Because Arjuna was bound by his previous promises, he left Citrānggadā after staying for several months in Manipura. He did not take his wife to Hastinapura.
After leaving Manipura, he continued his journey to the south. He reached the sea flanking Bharatawarsha to the south, after which he turned north. He walked along the western Bharatawarsha coast. In his journey, Arjuna reached the beach of Prabasa (Prabasatirta) located near Dwaraka, now known as Gujarat. There he disguised himself as a recluse to approach Krishna's younger brother, Subadra, unnoticed by anyone. With the attention of Baladewa, Arjuna received a proper resting place in Subadra park. Although the plan to let the two young men live together was opposed by Krishna, Baladewa assured that bad events would not happen. Arjuna stayed for several months in Dwaraka, and Subadra had served all his needs during that time. When the right time comes, Arjuna expresses his love for Subadra. The statement was welcomed by Subadra. With the train that had been prepared by Krishna, they went to Indraprastha to hold a wedding.
Baladewa is angry after hearing the news that Subadra has escaped with Arjuna. Krishna assured that Subadra left of his own accord, and that Subadra himself was driving the train to Indraprastha, not Arjuna. Krishna also reminded Baladewa that he had refused to let the two couples live together, but his proposal was opposed by Baladewa. After Baladewa realized, he made the decision to hold a lavish wedding ceremony for Arjuna and Subadra in Indraprastha. He also invited the Yadawas to attend Arjuna-Subadra's wedding. After the wedding, the Yadawas stayed in Indraprastha for a few days, then returned to Dwaraka, but Krishna did not participate.
In the final part of Adiparwa is narrated the events of kandawa forest burning and Arjuna's meeting with an architect named Mayasura. The story begins with Arjuna and Krishna's odyssey on the banks of the Yamuna river. At the edge of the forest is a dense forest called Kandawa. There they met Agni, the god of fire. Agni said that kandawa forest should have been destroyed by fire, but Indra always rained it down to protect his friend Taksaka, who lived in the forest. Thus, Agni begged Krishna and Arjuna to help him destroy the Kandawa forest. Krishna and Arjuna were willing to help Agni, but first they requested that Agni provide them with powerful weapons to prevent any disturbances from appearing. Then Agni called Baruna, the god of the sea. Baruna gave a sacred bow named Gandiwa, a chariot with four horses decorated with a monkey-bearing flag, as well as a tube containing an unlimited number of arrows to Arjuna. For Krishna, Baruna gave Cakra Sudarsana. With these weapons, they both kept Agni able to sleep in kandawa forest until it was exhausted.
In the process of burning the Kandawa forest, Arjuna rescues an asura who is adept at designing buildings, his name is Mayasura. In return for the favor, Mayasura promised that he would build a palace for Yudistira, Arjuna's brother. Since Mayasura was a deft architect, it was easy for him to build a grand hall as well as a magnificent palace for the Pandava in Indraprastha. The construction of the magnificent palace began the second volume of the Mahabharata entitled Sabhaparwa. In the book, it is said that in order to seize the wealth of the Pandava, Duryodana challenged them to play dice with their respective treasure bets. In the end the Pandavas lost, and their subsequent history is told in Wanaparwa.
Wanaparwa is narrated after the Pandava—led by Yudistira—lost a dice game against the Korawa led by Duryodana. According to the terms of the game, the Pandava and Dropadi were exiled to the forest (wana in bhs. Sanskrit). This opportunity was used by Arjuna to visit in order to gain power in the war against his cousins. Arjuna chose the location of the bertapa on Mount Indrakila. In his efforts, he was tested by seven angels led by Supraba, but Arjuna's steadfastness was able to resist the temptations given by the angels. The annoyed angels returned to heaven, and reported their failure to Indra. Indra descended on Arjuna's place of worship while posing as a priest. He asked arjuna why he was doing tapa on Indrakila mountain. Arjuna replied that he had come to gain strength to reduce people's suffering, as well as to conquer his enemies, especially the Korawa who always behaved evilly towards the Pandava. After hearing Arjuna's explanation, Indra revealed his true form. He gave Arjuna a gift in the form of a powerful weapon.