e celestial weapon."
Hearing these words of Partha desiring the boon he sought, god Siva
smilingly said unto Vasudeva and Arjuna, "Welcome to you, ye foremost of
men! I know the wish cherished by you, and the business for which you
have come here. I will give you what you wish. There is a celestial lake
full of Amrita, not far from this place, ye slayers of foes! There were
kept some time back, that celestial bow and arrow of mine. With them I
slew in battle all the enemies of the gods. Bring hither, ye Krishna,
that excellent bow with arrow fixed on it." Hearing these words of Siva,
Vasudeva with Arjuna answered, "So be it." And then accompanied by all
the attendants of Siva, those two heroes set out for that celestial lake
which possessed hundreds of heavenly wonders, that sacred lake, capable
of granting every object, which the god, having the bull for his mark,
had indicated to them. And unto that lake, the Rishis Nara and Narayana
(viz., Arjuna and Vasudeva) went fearlessly. And having reached that
lake, bright as the disc of the sun, Arjuna and Achyuta beheld within its
waters a terrible snake. And they beheld there another foremost of
snakes, that had a thousand heads. And possessed of the effulgence of
fire, that snake was vomiting fierce flames. Then Krishna and Partha
having touched water, joined their hands, and approached those snakes,
having bowed unto the god having the bull for his mark. And as they
approached the snakes, conversant as they were with the Vedas, they
uttered the hundred stanzas of the Veda, to the praise of Rudra, bowing
the while with their sincere souls unto Bhava of immeasurable power. Then
those two terrible snakes, in consequence of the power of those
adorations to Rudra, abandoned their snake-forms and assumed the forms of
a foe-killing bow and arrow. Gratified (with what they saw), Krishna and
Arjuna then seized that bow and arrow of great effulgence. And those
high-souled heroes then brought them away and gave them unto the
illustrious Mahadeva. Then from one of the sides of Siva's body there
came out a Brahmacharin of tawny eyes. And he seemed to be the refuge of
asceticism. Of blue throat and red locks, he was endued with great might.
Taking up that best of bows that Brahmacharin stood placing (both the bow
and his feet properly). And fixing the arrow on the bowstring, he began
to stretch the latter duly. Beholding the manner of his seizing the
handle of the bow and drawing the str