सा नियुक्ता पितुर् गेहे देवतातिथिपूजने ॥
उग्रं पर्यचरद् घोरं ब्राह्मणं संशितव्रतम् ॥
निगूढनिश्चयं धर्मे यं तं दुर्वाससं विदुः ॥
तम् उग्रं संशितात्मानं सर्वयत्नैर् अतोषयत् ॥
तस्यै स प्रददौ मन्त्रम् आपद्धर्मान्ववेक्षया ॥
अभिचाराभिसंयुक्तम् अब्रवीच् चैव तां मुनिः ॥
यं यं देवं त्वम् एतेन मन्त्रेणावाहयिष्यसि ॥
तस्य तस्य प्रसादेन पुत्रस् तव भविष्यति ॥
sā niyuktā pitur gehe devatātithipūjane ||
ugraṃ paryacarad ghoraṃ brāhmaṇaṃ saṃśitavratam ||
nigūḍhaniścayaṃ dharme yaṃ taṃ durvāsasaṃ viduḥ ||
tam ugraṃ saṃśitātmānaṃ sarvayatnair atoṣayat ||
tasyai sa pradadau mantram āpaddharmānvavekṣayā ||
abhicārābhisaṃyuktam abravīc caiva tāṃ muniḥ ||
yaṃ yaṃ devaṃ tvam etena mantreṇāvāhayiṣyasi ||
tasya tasya prasādena putras tava bhaviṣyati ||
"She, appointed in her father's house to the worship of gods and guests, waited upon a fierce, stern brahmin of strict vows — one whose resolve in dharma was hidden, known as Durvasas. That fierce one, of subdued soul, she satisfied with every effort; and he gave her a mantra — with a view to dharma in time of calamity, joined with an invoking spell — and the sage said to her: 'Whichever god you summon with this mantra, by his grace you shall have a son.'"
9d0e015baf72 · published Jul 12, 2026, 4:30:26 PM UTC
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Here Kunti wins a great gift through service — a mantra for summoning the gods. It is telling that Durvasas, known for his fierce temper and curses, here appears as a giver of grace: his sternness is a "hidden resolve in dharma," and beneath a fearsome exterior a benefactor is concealed. This repeats a lesson about saints whose outer severity conceals mercy (as with Vyasa in the chapter on the brothers' birth): one who serves an ascetic with patience and care, undaunted by his fierceness, wins his blessing. It is telling that the gift is given as apad-dharma — a means for extreme necessity, not for idle use. Here too is a warning that will be fulfilled later: a sacred means, employed not out of need but out of curiosity, brings unforeseen fruit. Thus the scripture prepares the plot of Karna's story: a great gift in the hands of an inexperienced young girl.