The burning down of Khandava

Krishna and Arjuna stood guard right outside the Khandava forest . They were fully prepared with their newly acquired weapons to help Agni, the god of fire. Arjuna had tied the string to his Gandiva bow and had a new stock of limitless arrows in his quiver. Krishna was ready with the Sudarsana disc. Then, Agni started burning down the forest.

Krishna and Arjuna made quick circles around the forest making sure that no animals escaped. Huge trees were up in flames and reduced to ashes. Birds, animals and serpents of all types were consumed by the fire.

The heat from the fire rose skywards. Even the gods couldn't bear the heat. They went and complained to Indra. The god of kings was angry fearing that his protégé, the serpent Takshama, might be in peril. So, he collected thick dark clouds and started heavy downpour.
Arjuna was ready for that. From his Gandiva he launched arrows in quick succession and framed an umbrella above the burning forest. The roaring fire then engulfed the forest with fury.
The gods refused to tolerate his insolence. They made a battle formation in the sky and dispatched divine weapons targeting Krishna and Arjuna. Arjuna’s arrows first cleared the sky of the thick clouds and then found the targets in the divine foes. They could not stand the onslaught much longer and took shelter behind Indra.

That made Indra feel proud of his son, Arjuna. At the same time, he wouldn't accept defeat. He climbed on his white elephant and faced Arjuna and Krishna. He was about to hurl his weapon Vajra (the thunder bolt) at Arjuna. Then, all the gods heard a voice from above saying that the pair of Krishna and Arjuna would be invincible even by gods in war. There was no need to fear for the life of Takshaka, said the voice, because he was not in the forest at that time.
Indra was pleased with that news. By then Agni had consumed most of the forest by his flames and was satisfied.

A friend of Takshaka, by name Maya, who was the chief architect builder of the demons was living as guest in his abode in Khandava. Maya could not stand the fire any more and tried to flee. Krishna was about to send his disc at him. Maya cried for Arjuna’s help. It was the duty of a Kshatriya (a warrior) to protect those who sought refuge. So, Arjuna prevented Krishna from harming Maya. Thus, the demon was saved. Also saved were the children of Takshaka who hid themselves in a deep furrow and waited for the fire to die down. The rest of the forest was burnt down completely.

With this ends the Chapter on the Burning down of the Khandava forest (“Khandava Dava Parvam”)