Shiva said: You were in your former life Nara, the friend of Narayana, You passed many thousands of years in fearful and austere asceticism.

Great prowess exists in you and in Vishnu, that foremost of Purushas. You two by your prowess hold the Universe.

O lord, taking up that fearful bow whose twang resembled the deep roars of clouds, you as well as Krishna chastised the Danavas at the coronation of Indra.

O Partha this Gandiva which is fit for (only) your hands is that very bow (with which you chastised the Danavas). O foremost of men. I snatched it from you by means of my power of illusion.

O Partha, these two quivers which is fit only for you, will again be inexhaustible. O descendant of Kuru, your body will be free from pain and disease.

O Partha, your prowess will be incapable of being ever baffled. I have been pleased with you. O foremost of men, ask from me, what you desire to get.

O giver of proper respect (to all men), O chastiser of foes, there is no man either here on earth or in heaven who is cqual to you (in prowess). Nor there is any Kshatriya who is superior to you.

Arjuna said : O exalted one, O Vrishabdhvaja. O lord, if you will grant me what I desire to possess, I ask from you that fearful weapon which is wielded by you and which is called Brahmashira, that weapon of fearful prowess, which destroys at the end of Yuga the entire universe.

That weapon, with the help of which, O great god, I may through your grace obtain victory in the great battle that will be fought by me with Karna, Bhishma, Kripa and Drona,

The weapon by which I may destroy in battle the Danavas, the Rakshasas, the evil spirits, the Pishachas, the Gandharvas and the Nagas. The weapon which when hurled with Mantras produces thousands of darts, maces and virulently poisonous snake-like arrows.

The weapon by the help of which I may fight with Bhishma, Drona, Kripa and the ever abusive son of Suta (Karna).

O exalted destroyer of Vaga's eyes, my chief desire is that I may be able to fight with them and finally obtain victory.

Shiva said: O exalted Pandava, I shall give you my favourite weapon called Pashupata. You are capable of holding, hurling and withdrawing it.

Neither Indra, nor Yama, nor the king of the Yakshas, nor Varuna, nor Vayu knows it, how could it (then) be known to human beings?

O Partha, this weapon should not be discharged without proper reason, for if discharged at a weak enemy, it would destroy the whole universe.

There is none in the three worlds of mobile and immobile creatures who is incapable of being killed by this weapon. It might be discharged by the mind, by the eyes, by words or by the bow.

Vaishampayana said : Having heard this, the son of Pritha (Arjuna) purified himself. Coming to the lord of the universe with rapt attention, he said, "Instruct me.”

He (Shiva) then imparted to that best of Pandavas the knowledge of that weapon which looked like the embodiment of Yama and (also) all the mysteries as regards its method of discharging and withdrawing. That weapon then waited upon Partha as it did before upon Traksha, the lord of Uma. Arjuna with cheerful heart accepted it.

Thereupon the whole earth with its mountains, forests, trees, seas, woods, villages, towns and mines, began to tremble.

Sounds of thousands of conchs, drums and trumpets were heard. Hurricanes and whirlwinds began to blow.

The celestials and the Danavas saw that fearful weapon in its embodied from standing at the side of the immeasurably energetic and heroic Pandava.

Whatever evil there was in the body of the immeasuraely energetic Falguni (Arjuna) was all dispelled by his touch with the three-eyed deity.

Then Arjuna was commanded by the threeeyed deity to "Go to heaven." O king, bowing down his head, he gazed at him with joined hands.

Then the lord of all the dwellers of heaven, the deity of blazing splendour, the dweller of mountain, the husband of Uma, Shiva, the source of all blessings. Bhava, gave to Arjuna, that foremost of men, the great bow called Gandharva, capable of destroying the Danavas and the Pishachas.

The god of gods, accompanied by Uma then leaving that blessed mountain of snowy plateaus and valleys and caves, the favourite resort of the sky-ranging Rishis, went up to the skies in the very sight of that foremost of men (Arjuna).