Pandu's Children

A Curse on Pandu

After his triumphant march over rival kingdoms Pandu spent a lot of time hunting in forests, often in the company of his wives. Kings hunted wild animals to protect hermits who lived meditating in forests. They also hunted for game meat.

Once Pandu located a male deer in the company of does and immediately hunted it down with an arrow. At the very next instant, to his horror, he heard a human cry and realized his serious mistake. One hermit and his wife were disguising as male and female deer and enjoying each other’s company. Pandu’s arrows had found the mark and the deer were about to die. Then he heard was the terrible voice of the dying hermit with the words : “As king you are permitted to hunt deer. But, you must have been more careful and noticed that we were in each other’s company. Because of this error, you also shall die the moment you touch a woman with desire “.

Pandu was stunned, but, it was too late to undo the damage. He returned to the palace and reported the matter to his wives and his elders like Bhishma . He wanted to give up worldly life altogether and become a saint. His wives managed to change his mind and together they decided to retire to the forest and lead the life of hermits.

Kunti’s secret

Pandu started worrying about the fate of the kingdom and of his wives as he had not begotten any children. It was then Kunti told him about her long kept secret of her days before marriage. When Pandu heard about the Mantra and its power to beget children he adviced Kunti to use it immediately. After some hesitation Kunti obeyed her husband. As suggested by Pandu she thought of Dharmaraja, the presiding judge of heaven’s court . The Lord of justice appeared before her immediately and their meeting resulted in the birth of Dharmaputra.

Pandu was not comfortable with one son alone. What would be the fate of the Kurus if something happened to him ? He suggested to Kunti to beget a son from the God of wind, because such a child would be stronger than anyone else he could think of. Accordingly, Bheemasena was born out of Kunthi’s meeting with Vayu Bhagavan, the god of wind energy.

Still, Pandu was not satisfied. It was fine to have a son who was righteous and another as strong as wind. It was skill in warfare , especially in archery that mattered most to kings. That was when he thought about the King of Gods, Devendra. A son born to him would be the best warrior. Thus, Kunti was persuaded to beget a son from Devendra. That was how Arjuna was born to Kunti from Devendra.

Madri gets children

Kunti was left with just one more chance with the Mantra and there was Madri with no children of her own. So, in consultation with Pandu, Kunti advised Madri on the use of Mantra.
Madri was clever. She invoked the divine pair, Asvini Devas, with the Mantra. With their blessing Madri gave birth to the twins, Nakula and Sahadeva.

This was how the five brothers, collectively known as the Pandavas, were born to Kunti and Madri. They are our heroes, the central figures in the story of the Mahabharata.