The divine contest between Śiva and Viṣṇu’s bows

The divine contest between Śiva and Vishṇu is a trial staged to determine whether Vishṇu’s might merits the praise given to it. The Gods ask Brahmá for an unerring proof, and he brings the two deities together as opponents. Their battle tests the claim in action: Śiva’s bow fails before Vishṇu’s assault, after which the rivals meet in peace.

The Need for a Test

The episode follows a boast about the power of a bow to bring down a fortified enemy’s towers and walls. The passage does not identify the speaker in the supplied lines, but it turns from that claim to the Gods’ request for proof: they ask the highest creator to establish whether praise for Vishṇu’s might is justified. The contest therefore arises not merely from hostility between two deities, but from a question of divine power that the Gods want settled by an unmistakable demonstration.

The Duel and Its Resolution

Brahmá answers by causing the two Gods to meet as foes. Their encounter becomes a fierce battle, with the poem marking its violence through the image of hair bristling in dread. The decisive result is expressed through Śiva’s bow: it fails and is unnerved when confronted by Vishṇu’s might. The test thus yields a visible answer to the Gods’ question rather than leaving the competing claims unresolved.

The battle does not end in lasting enmity. The Gods and heavenly sages pray for the strife to cease, and the great rivals meet in peace. The ending joins a demonstration of superiority to reconciliation: Vishṇu’s strength is shown, while the conflict between the two deities is brought to a close.

Significance of the Contest

The episode gives divine praise the form of a trial. The Gods’ request, Brahmá’s intervention, and the failure of Śiva’s bow create a clear sequence from doubt to proof; the outcome confirms Vishṇu’s might through the contest itself. Peace afterward prevents that hierarchy of strength from becoming an endless feud. The relation presented is therefore both competitive and reconciliatory: the two Gods meet as adversaries, but the result of their encounter allows them to part in peace.