Arjuna in the Mahabharata: His Life and Story

Quick answer: Arjuna is the third of the five Pandava brothers, the son of Kunti by the god Indra, and the greatest archer of the Mahabharata. He won Draupadi at her svayamvara, gained divine weapons from Shiva and Indra, and was Krishna's closest friend. On the battlefield of Kurukshetra, when he refused to fight, Krishna taught him the Bhagavad Gita; he went on to defeat Bhishma, Jayadratha and Karna.

Arjuna is also called Partha (son of Pritha, Kunti's other name), Dhananjaya (winner of wealth), Phalguna, Kiritin (the crowned one), Savyasachin (who can shoot with either hand) and Gudakesha. This page follows his life in story order, with references to the critical edition of the Mahabharata (Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune), given as book.chapter.verse.

Birth and training

Under Pandu's curse, Kunti called the gods with the mantra Durvasa had given her, and Arjuna was born of Indra (Adi Parva). He trained under Drona with his brothers and cousins and became his best pupil. In Drona's famous test, the teacher set an artificial bird on a treetop and asked each student what he saw. Only Arjuna said he saw nothing but the bird, and he alone was allowed to shoot (1.123.46 to 47).

Draupadi and the years of wandering

Disguised as a brahmin, Arjuna strung the great bow at Draupadi's svayamvara and hit the target, and Draupadi became the wife of the five brothers. The brothers agreed that anyone who intruded on another while he was with Draupadi would go into exile for twelve years. Arjuna broke the rule to fetch weapons to help a brahmin, and he left on his travels. On the way he married the naga princess Ulupi (1.206) and Chitrangada, princess of Manipura (1.207), and at Dvaraka, with Krishna's help, he carried off and married Krishna's sister Subhadra. With Krishna he helped Agni burn the Khandava forest; for that task Varuna, at Agni's request, gave him the bow Gandiva (Adi Parva).

Divine weapons

In the forest years, Arjuna went to the Himalayas to win divine weapons. Shiva tested him in the guise of a hunter (kirata), and after a fierce fight revealed himself and gave him the Pashupata weapon (3.40 to 3.41). Arjuna then went to Indra's heaven, where he received the weapons of the gods.

Urvashi's curse. In the vulgate and in popular retellings, the apsara Urvashi curses Arjuna to live a year as a eunuch after he refuses her, and that curse lets him hide as Brihannala. In the critical edition, Urvashi appears only in a list of apsaras in this episode (3.44.29); the curse story is not in its text.

The year in disguise

At King Virata's court, Arjuna lived as Brihannala, a dance teacher to the princess Uttara, with his hair in a braid (4.2.22). When the Kauravas raided Virata's cattle, he took up Gandiva again with Prince Uttara as his charioteer, and drove off the whole Kaurava army alone (Virata Parva). Uttara later married Abhimanyu.

The Bhagavad Gita

Before the battle, Duryodhana and Arjuna both went to ask Krishna's help. Arjuna chose Krishna, unarmed, over Krishna's army, and Krishna became his charioteer. On the first day, seeing his grandfather, teachers and kinsmen across the field, Arjuna put down his bow and refused to fight. Krishna's answer is the Bhagavad Gita (6.23 to 6.40). It ends with Arjuna saying that his delusion is gone and he will act as Krishna says.

In the war

• Bhishma. On the tenth day, with Shikhandi in front of him, Arjuna struck Bhishma down (6.114). See Bhishma in the Mahabharata.
• Abhimanyu and Jayadratha. While Arjuna was drawn away on the thirteenth day, his son Abhimanyu was killed inside the chakravyuha. Arjuna vowed to kill Jayadratha, who had held the other Pandavas back, before sunset the next day or enter the fire himself, and he did so (7.121).
• Karna. On the seventeenth day Arjuna killed Karna while Karna's chariot wheel was stuck in the earth (8.66 to 8.67). See Karna in the Mahabharata.

After the war

Arjuna guarded the horse of Yudhishthira's Ashvamedha sacrifice. In Manipura, his son Babhruvahana fought and killed him; Ulupi revived him with a naga jewel (14.78 onwards). After Krishna's death, Arjuna went to Dvaraka to bring the Yadava women to safety, and found that his strength and his weapons failed him: herdsmen (Abhiras) attacked the party on the way and carried many off (16.8 to 16.9). Vyasa told him that his time, like Krishna's, had passed.

On the last journey to the Himalayas, Arjuna fell after Draupadi, Sahadeva and Nakula. Yudhishthira explained to Bhima that Arjuna had once boasted he would destroy all his enemies in a single day and had not done it, and that he had looked down on other archers (17.2.21 to 17.2.22).

What the tradition draws from him

Arjuna is the model student, the friend of God and the disciple to whom the Gita is taught. His doubt on the battlefield is the doubt every reader brings to the Gita, which is one reason the tradition loves him. The Mahabharata does not make him flawless: his pride is named at his death.

Frequently asked questions

Who was Arjuna's father?

Indra, king of the gods, called by Kunti's mantra. Pandu was his father by law and custom.

Who were Arjuna's wives?

Draupadi, Ulupi, Chitrangada and Subhadra.

What is Arjuna's bow called?

Gandiva, given to him by Varuna at Agni's request, for the burning of the Khandava forest.

Why did Arjuna stop before the war?

He could not bear to kill his grandfather, teachers and kinsmen. Krishna's teaching in reply is the Bhagavad Gita.

Is the Urvashi curse in the Mahabharata?

It is in the vulgate and popular retellings, not in the critical edition's text.

Why did Arjuna fall on the final journey?

Because of pride in his own skill as an archer (17.2.21 to 17.2.22).

Related reading

• Mahabharata: The Complete Guide
• Mahabharata story summary
• Draupadi in the Mahabharata
• Bhagavad Gita 2.47: karmanye vadhikaraste
• Krishna avatar: the Gita and the Mahabharata

Sources

1. The Mahabharata, critical edition (Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune, 1933 to 1966); electronic text BORI 1999, via Indology: indology.info/bombay/mahabharata. References are book.chapter.verse in this edition.
2. Mahabharata with Nilakantha's commentary (vulgate), for the Urvashi episode.

Last reviewed: 12 November 2026.