Arjuna is the third of the five Pandava brothers in the Mahabharata. The text identifies him as the son of Indra, born to Kunti through the mantra she had received from the sage Durvasa. He is the archer of the family, the husband of Draupadi (and three others), and the recipient of the Bhagavad Gita.
His training
The Adi Parva describes Arjuna's training in the household of the Kuru court, alongside his brothers and cousins. The teacher was Drona, a brahmin who taught the princes archery, mace combat, swordsmanship, and the management of various divine weapons. Among Drona's students, the text places Arjuna first in archery and adds two specific incidents to establish his place: the bird's eye exercise, in which only Arjuna answered Drona's question "What do you see?" with "Only the eye"; and the river crocodile incident, in which he rescued Drona alone among the students.
The four wives
The Mahabharata records four marriages for Arjuna. Draupadi, won at the swayamvara, was shared among the five brothers. During his twelve-year exile — a penalty he accepted under the rules the brothers had set among themselves for their time with Draupadi — he married Ulupi, the Naga princess, at a river bank; Chitrangada, a princess of Manipur; and Subhadra, Krishna's sister, after a long courtship that involved her brother Balarama's initial disapproval and Krishna's quiet support.
His sons by these marriages include Iravan (Ulupi), Babhruvahana (Chitrangada), Abhimanyu (Subhadra), and Shrutakarman (Draupadi).
Gandiva
The bow Gandiva was given to Arjuna by the deva Agni. The Mahabharata describes the gift as part of an episode in which Agni, weakened by overconsumption of clarified butter, sought help in burning the Khandava forest. Arjuna and Krishna agreed. Agni gave Arjuna the bow Gandiva, two inexhaustible quivers, and a chariot drawn by white horses. Krishna received the discus Sudarshana and the mace Kaumodaki.
Gandiva remained Arjuna's weapon through the rest of his life. The bow is mentioned dozens of times in the epic. At the end of the Pandavas' lives, when they began their final journey to the Himalaya, Arjuna threw Gandiva and the two quivers into the sea on Krishna's instruction.
The visit to Indraloka
The Vana Parva describes Arjuna's journey to the realm of his father Indra to obtain divine weapons for the coming war. He performs tapasya in the Himalaya. Shiva appears in the form of a Kirata, a forest hunter, and tests him. Arjuna fights him and is defeated; on recognising Shiva, he bows. Shiva grants him the pashupata, his most powerful weapon. Indra then takes Arjuna to Indraloka, where he stays for five years and learns the use of further divine weapons from the celestial beings.
The year in Virata's court
During the thirteenth year of the Pandavas' exile, which had to be spent in disguise, Arjuna lived at the court of King Virata under the name Brihannala. He worked as a dance teacher to the king's daughter Uttara. At the end of the year, when the Kauravas attacked Virata's cattle, Arjuna single-handedly defeated the Kuru army that included Bhishma, Drona, Karna and Duryodhana. The episode — the Virata Parva — is one of the most theatrical in the epic.
The Bhagavad Gita
On the first morning of the Kurukshetra war, Arjuna asked Krishna to drive him into the gap between the armies. What he saw — his teachers, his grandfather, his cousins — collapsed his will to fight. The conversation that followed is the Bhagavad Gita: 700 verses across 18 chapters, in which Krishna's responses move from arguments about the immortal self, to the doctrine of action without attachment, to the vision of his own cosmic form. At the end of chapter 18, Arjuna says his doubt is destroyed and picks up Gandiva.
The eighteen days at Kurukshetra
Across the eighteen days of the war, Arjuna killed many of the major Kaurava warriors, including Bhishma (with Shikhandi in front), Jayadratha (in a deadline-bound single combat), and Karna (his lifelong rival, in a duel on the seventeenth day). The death of his son Abhimanyu on the thirteenth day, killed by a group of Kaurava warriors after being trapped inside the Chakravyuha, is one of the bleakest passages in the epic.
How the Anahat Arjuna design represents him
The Anahat Arjuna t-shirt is illustrated with the figure of the archer holding Gandiva. The composition references traditional Indian devotional painting in palette and detail. It is part of Anahat's Originals collection.
Wear Arjuna
The archer of the Mahabharata, hand-illustrated on premium organic cotton. Designed in India by Anahat.
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FAQ
Who is Arjuna?
The third of the five Pandava brothers in the Mahabharata. He is the son of Kunti and the deva Indra.
What is Gandiva?
Arjuna's bow, gifted to him by Agni during the burning of the Khandava forest, along with two inexhaustible quivers and a divine chariot.
Who were Arjuna's wives?
Draupadi (shared with his brothers), Ulupi the Naga princess, Chitrangada of Manipur, and Subhadra, the sister of Krishna.
What is the Bhagavad Gita?
The conversation between Krishna and Arjuna on the first morning of the Kurukshetra war, recorded in the Bhishma Parva across 18 chapters and 700 verses.
What does the Arjuna design depict?
The Anahat Arjuna t-shirt features the archer holding Gandiva. It is part of Anahat's Originals collection.