Chapter 1, Verse 15
पाञ्चजन्यं हृषीकेशो देवदत्तं धनञ्जयः। पौण्ड्रं दध्मौ महाशङ्खं भीमकर्मा वृकोदरः।।
pāñcajanyaṁ hṛṣīkeśo devadattaṁ dhanañjayaḥ pauṇḍraṁ dadhmau mahā-śaṅkhaṁ bhīma-karmā vṛkodaraḥ
Meaning
Hrishikesha (Krishna) blew the Panchajanya, Dhananjaya (Arjuna) blew the Devadatta, and Vrikodara (Bhima), the doer of terrible deeds, blew his great conch Paundra.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Each conch-shell has a name and each warrior a divine epithet. Krishna is 'Hrishikesha' — master of the senses, the one whose senses are fully controlled and whose perception is undistorted. This title is significant because it is precisely such undistorted perception that Arjuna will need in the chapters ahead. Krishna's very name in this moment describes the quality of wisdom he embodies.
Arjuna is 'Dhananjaya' — winner of wealth — a name that here carries a spiritual undertone: the wealth of dharmic action. Bhima is 'Vrikodara' and 'bhīma-karmā' — belly of the wolf and doer of terrible deeds — epithets that honour his ferocious power but also hint at the raw, sometimes uncontrolled energy he represents, in contrast to the measured mastery of Krishna.
Naming things is an act of recognition and power. In our own lives, how we name our resources — our strengths, our practices, our relationships — shapes how we relate to them. Naming with reverence and accuracy is itself a form of preparation.
💡 Key Takeaway
Name your inner resources with reverence and precision; clarity about what you bring to a challenge is itself a form of strength.
Related Verses
धृतराष्ट्र उवाच | धर्मक्षेत्रे कुरुक्षेत्रे समवेता युयुत्सवः | मामकाः पाण्डवाश्चैव किमकुर्वत सञ्जय ॥१॥
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca | dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre samavetā yuyutsavaḥ | māmakāḥ pāṇḍavāś caiva kim akurvata sañjaya ||1||
Dhritarashtra said: O Sanjaya, after assembling in the place of pilgrimage at Kurukshetra, what did my sons and the sons of Pandu do, being desirous to fight?
सञ्जय उवाच दृष्ट्वा तु पाण्डवानीकं व्यूढं दुर्योधनस्तदा। आचार्यमुपसङ्गम्य राजा वचनमब्रवीत्।।
sañjaya uvāca dṛṣṭvā tu pāṇḍavānīkaṁ vyūḍhaṁ duryodhanas tadā ācāryam upasaṅgamya rājā vacanam abravīt
Sanjaya said: Having seen the army of the Pandavas arrayed in battle formation, King Duryodhana then approached his teacher Drona and spoke these words.
पश्यैतां पाण्डुपुत्राणामाचार्य महतीं चमूम्। व्यूढां द्रुपदपुत्रेण तव शिष्येण धीमता।।
paśyaitāṁ pāṇḍu-putrāṇām ācārya mahatīṁ camūm vyūḍhāṁ drupada-putreṇa tava śiṣyeṇa dhīmatā
O teacher, behold this mighty army of the sons of Pandu, so skilfully arrayed by the son of Drupada — your own talented student.