Vijaya (bow)

Vijaya or Vijaya Dhanush was the divine bow of Karna, one of the greatest hero of the Hindu epic, Mahabharata.As the Sanskrit name Vijaya means Victory, this bow is said to give sure victory to the possessor.The bow was created by Vishvakarman, the royal architect of gods or deva's as per the order of Lord Shiva for the purpose of killing demons called Tripurasuras. Lord Shiva defeated demons by using arrows fired from Vijaya bow.Later Lord Shiva gifted this bow to Lord Indra, the ruler of heaven.Lord Indra gifted this bow to Parasurama as per the order of Lord Siva for eliminating all Kshatriya's of the world and later Parasuram gave Vijaya to his student Karna,who already had terriffic skill, making him virtually invincible. Lord Krishna devised a plan to kill karna, and asked Arjuna to kill Karna when he was weaponless trying to lift his sunken chariot wheel, even though it was highly prohibited or against the rules of engagements in war, to kill an unarmed warrior.

Creation

The bow Vijaya was specially made by Vishvakarman for Lord Shiva to destroy the city of Tripura built by sons of Tarakasura. Lord Shiva destroyed Tripura by firing Pashupatastra from Vijaya.Later Lord Siva gave this bow for safekeeping with Lord Indra.Lord Indra used the bow to fight against the Asuras and killed many of them. The Asuras feared the bow due to the destruction it caused whenever it was used. The bow is said to be respected by all beings in the universe.

Parshurama receives Vijaya from Indra

Lord Shiva gifted Vijaya bow which was in possession of lord Indra, along with all celestial weapons and the science of warfare (dhanurveda) to Parasurama for the task of killing all kshatriyas in the world. With this bow Parasurama killed all kshatriyas in the world 21 time.The Kshatriya's feared the bow due to the destruction it caused whenever it was used. The bow is said to be respected by all beings in the universe.Later Parashurama gave the bow to his disciple Karna when he was pleased with Karna's intense devotion towards him.^[1]

Karna and Vijaya bow

Since Parshurama only taught Brahmins the art of warfare, Karna disguised himself as a Brahmin to become his student. One day towards the end of his training Karna offered his lap to his guru to rest his head for taking a nap. While Parshurama was sleeping a bee stung Karna's thigh. Despite the great pain, Karna did not move so as to not disturb his guru's sleep. When blood oozed from his wound and reached Parshurama, the latter woke up and at once deduced that Karna was not a Brahmin but a Kshatriya. He cursed Karna to forget the mantra to invoke Brahmanda astra at the time of his greatest need. But when Karna told him he was a Sūta putra and not a Kshatriya and pleaded for forgiveness, Parshurama relented. Since Karna was a diligent and worthy student Parashurama blessed Karna and gifted him a powerful celestial weapon, called Bhargavastra and his personal bow called Vijaya. The Bhargavastra along with Vijaya and Karna's own divine armor and earrings made Karna one of the most fearsome warriors in the Mahabharata. Karna used the Vijaya bow only once in his life during the Kurukshetra war on the 17th day when he fought against Arjuna who was using the Gandiva Dhanusha. Karna was known by the name 'Vijaydhari' meaning 'wielder of the Vijaya bow'.

Knowing Karna's might, Krishna on the 17th day warned Arjuna not to underestimate Karna:

With this bow Karna overpowered Arjuna on the 17th day of the Kurukshetra war. Realising that Karna with the Vijaya bow is invincible, on the 17th day Krishna advised Arjuna to kill Karna,who had relinquished his bow and was busy trying to lift his sunken chariot wheel (which was the result of an earlier curse given by a Brahmin that he would become helpless during his end time like the cow he had mistakenly killed).

Features of Vijaya bow

The string of this bow cannot be broken by any kind of astra or any divine weapon. Every time an arrow is released from this bow,it created a terrible twang, which is said to be loud as the thunder causing terrible fear on enemies and produces flashes of light, brilliant as lightning, which blinds the enemy. This bow cannot be broken by any weapons or anyone and it is so heavy that a normal person cannot even lift it.Every time an arrow is aimed, the energy of the arrow is amplified by multiple times as this bow is charged with sacred mantras. Vijaya Dhanush is unparalleled and except Lord Parasurama, Karna or an equally or more powerful warrior, nobody can even lift it. No weapon, not even the mighty Pashupatastra, can harm a warrior who has Vijaya Dhanush in his hand, as the name Vijaya implies victory to the wielder. ^[2][3]

References