Gandhari gives birth to a hundred sons

Even before Kunti and Madri gave birth to their sons Veda Vyasa happened to visit Hastinapura, the palace of the Kurus. Gandhari took very good care of the sage during his stay there. Vyasa was very pleased and offered her any boon of her choice. There was a prophesy when Gandhari was a child that she would get hundred sons. That had been in the mind of Bhishma when he won her hands for Dhritarashtra. Gandhari had been thinking about that all those years and that was her wish . Accordingly, Vyasa gave his blessing to her.

The queen of Dhritarashtra, soon, became an expectant mother.A year passed and Gandhari did not deliver any child. Then she heard that Kunti was blessed with a son. In the royal family such news has a lot of significance because the eldest son would inherit the vast kingdom of the Kurus.

Another year passed and yet Gandhari was unable to deliver a child. She was so desperate that she forced a delivery in extreme secrecy. To her horror she delivered a chunk of meat in place of a child ! With his divine intuition Vyasa could see what happened . He appeared before Gandhari and admonished her for her impatience. He, still, had a way out of the hopeless situation. He cut the chunk of meat into one hundred and one pieces. He ordered for an equal number of pitchers and placed one piece in each of them. He wanted them to be topped up with ghee and closed firmly with a lid on each. Further, he wanted them to be preserved in a secure place not to be opened under any circumstance. All this was done in extreme secrecy.

After one year a baby boy came out of one of the pitchers. He was named Duryodhana, the eldest son of Gandhari . He was born just a day ahead of Bhimasena, the second son of Kunti. When he was born many ill omens were heard and seen around the palace of the Kurus. Many wise men including Vidura pointed these out to Dhritarashtra and prophesied that this son of his would be the cause for the total destruction of the family. They advised him that the baby be immediately abandoned for the sake of the kingdom.
(Refer to http://kunjunny.blogspot.com/ for details)

But, the king was too fond of his first born and did not heed the well intended words of the wise men.

Gandhari gave birth to ninety nine more sons and a daughter as the last.

In the meantime Dhritarashtra begot a son in a wife of his in the merchant class.

Vidura’s Marriage

There was a king named Devaka who had a daughter born in a maid. Bhishma found the girl suitable for Vidura and got him married to her. Vidura and his wife lived happily and begot a few children in due course.