Dhananjaya is one among the ten names of Arjuna in the
Mahabharata. Arjuna narrates the meaning of his names to Uttara, son of Virata.
Kaurava army had stolen the cows of Virata. To get them back, the son of Virata
went to battlefield with Arjuna, who was disguised as Brihannala, as his
charioteer.
On seeing the Kuru army, the prince is frightened and attempts
to escape from the battleground. Brihannada stops him and reveals that he is
Arjuna and he will fight against the Kauravas.
But the prince is not ready to believe Brihannada. He then
wants to know the various names of Arjuna. To convince the frightened prince, Arjuna
narrates all his ten names and how he got them.
Arjuna in the Mahabharata is known as Dhananjaya because he
conquered various kingdoms and obtained their wealth. As he stood amidst the
riches that he conquered, he was named Dhananjaya.
This incident is mentioned in the Go – Grahana Parva in the
Mahabharata.
The ten names of Arjuna given in the Go – Grahana Parva in
the Mahabharata are Arjuna, Phalguna, Jishnu, Kiriti, Shvetavahana, Bibhatasu,
Vijaya, Krishna , Savyasachi and Dhananjaya.