Puranic Encyclopaedia: A Comprehensive Dictionary with Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature c4.3096

c4.3096

2) Citraratha and Arjuna. The greatest event in the life of Citraratha alias Aṅgāraparṇa was the defeat he suffered at the hands of Arjuna. The Pāṇḍavas after their escape from the lac palace (Lākṣagṛha) through a tunnel arrived in a forest and there they killed the demons Hiḍimba and Baka. One night they were walking along the shores of the river Gaṅgā when they heard a sound of somebody bathing in the river. Arjuna who was walking ahead waving a country torch went to see who was bathing at that time of the night. Arjuna then saw Citraratha enjoying a bath with his wife Kumbhīnasī. That period of the night was allotted to the gandharvas, and human beings were not expected to be out walking at that time. Citraratha felt it impertinent that Arjuna a human being should be out walking at night and peep into the privacy of the gandharvas. The gandharva and Arjuna so entered into a combat. Citraratha who was a great fighter was, after a grim battle, subdued, bound hand and foot, and brought before his brothers by Arjuna. Kumbhīnasī followed her exhausted, powerless and spiritless husband and pleaded to Dharmaputra to release him. Dharmaputra advised Arjuna to do so and on getting his release he taught Arjuna the famous Cākṣuṣividyā—the magic art of seeing by one's own eyes and everything in the three worlds: Heaven, Earth and the netherworld. Manu was the author of this magic art and from him Soma learnt it and from Soma Viśvāvasu, from Viśvāvasu, Citraratha and from Citraratha, Arjuna. Besides this Citraratha gave Arjuna many chariots and horses.