The mighty warrior Shri Ram’s valour is something which never be contended by anyone at any point of time. His bow Kodand and his arrows are representations of an energy which destroys evil with great force. The bow and arrow of Shri Ram are not only the symbols of his strength but also are the icons of his righteousness and divinity.
Although Shri Ram had all the knowledge of Astras through Rishi Vasisht, it was Rishi Vishwamitr who gave Shri Ram the advanced weaponry of arrows. When Shri Ram kills Tadaka, the great sage gets convinced that indeed Shri Ram was the apt choice for such possession of divine arrows and was the ideal man who would know when and how to use them. With this confidence in Shri Ram, Rishi Vishwamitr grants Shri Ram the greatest arrows ever known to the world. Apart from the Agenyastr, varunsastr, Mohiniastr, Shri Ram possessed few greatest arrows of all times.
Brahmashira Astr- The Brahmashira Astr has the four heads of Brahma Ji in its tip and showered meteors of fire from the sky which destroyed the enemy in a whiff of a second. This Astr was so powerful that after the usage, there would be no rains for twelve Brahma years on the earth (One brahma year equals to 3,110,400, 000,000 regular years).
Brahmastr – the most powerful Astr which contained the entire energy of the Universe. This Astr was to be used in a specific time, only when it required the annihilation of an evil force, but not for any other purpose. The Astr worked only when it was used in a righteous way. This was proved when Indrajeet used the arrow on Lakshman, it failed to harm Lakshman as Dharma was on the side of Lakshman, but not Indrajeet.
Narayanastr – In the Treta Yug, Shri Ram was the only possessor of this weapon. This arrow was the weapon of Bhagwan Vishnu himself and showered a volley of missiles on the ene,y. The only way to counter this arrow was to surrender to its power, but never counter with another astr.
Pasupatastr – The weapon of Bhagwan Shiv, this arrow was so powerful that it could be discharged by the use of mind, eyes and the bow. This astr was possessed by only two people, one being Meghnaad and the other Rishi Vishwamitr. While granting the divine arrows, Rishi Vishwamitr also gives Shri Ram the Pasupatastr and since then it came onto the possession of Shri Ram. This arrow could be used only on warriors of equal skills, but never on lesser skilled warriors.
Vaishnavastr – This was the weapon which was given by Rishi Agastya to Shri Ram. This arrow was capable of destroying the spiritual power and was made of Bhagwan Vishnu’s energy itself. When
Shri Ram broke the Shiv Dhanush, Bhagwan Parashuram was furious and he gave the Sharang bow and the Vaishnavastr and challenged Shri Ram to use them. It was only when Shri Ram yielded them that Bhagwan Parashuram realises that Shri Ram was none other than the incarnation of Bhagwan Vishnu.
It is not exaggeration that the great weaponry and arrows which Shri Ram possessed were more powerful than the Nano technology weapons that are used in the present times. It was because of the conviction of Shri Ram that they have to be used for the right purpose and in the right way and time that they served mankind in the protection of Dharma, rather than being used for name and fame and pride.