Drupada Announces the Svayamvara with a Bow Test
King Drupada desires to give his daughter Draupadi to Arjuna, but cannot do so openly. To engineer the outcome, he has an impossibly hard bow and a mechanical target constructed, proclaiming that only the man who can string the bow and hit the target will win her hand. His announcement draws kings and sages from across the land to Panchala.
Yajnasena—King Drupada—always desired to give his daughter Krishna (Draupadi) to Kiriti (Arjuna), the son of Pandu. But he never revealed this wish to anyone. Thinking of Kunti’s son, he had a solution crafted.
He ordered the construction of a bow of tremendous strength, one he believed no ordinary man could bend. Above it, he had an artificial machine set up, and onto this machine he fixed a golden target. Then he made his proclamation: “He who can string this bow and, after stringing, shoot the target above with these arrows, will obtain my daughter.”
With these words, King Drupada announced the svayamvara (self-choice ceremony) far and wide. The challenge was a public filter, a test of supreme skill that he privately hoped only one man could pass.
Hearing of it, the kings of the earth assembled. Many great-souled rishis (sages) also came, wishing to witness the event. The Kouravas, led by Duryodhana, arrived, accompanied by the great archer Karna. Illustrious Brahmanas came from many countries. The great-souled Drupada duly worshipped each royal guest as they arrived. Soon, all the citizens and all the kings took their seats in the arena, the resulting roar like that of an ocean full of leaping fish.