वैशंपायन उवाच
क्षुच्छ्रमाभिपरिग्लानं द्वैपायनम् उपस्थितम् ॥
तोषयाम् आस गान्धारी व्यासस् तस्यै वरं ददौ ॥
सा वव्रे सदृशं भर्तुः पुत्राणां शतम् आत्मनः ॥
ततः कालेन सा गर्भं धृतराष्ट्राद् अथाग्रहीत् ॥
संवत्सरद्वयं तं तु गान्धारी गर्भम् आहितम् ॥
अप्रजा धारयाम् आस ततस् तां दुःखम् आविशत् ॥
vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca
kṣucchramābhipariglānaṃ dvaipāyanam upasthitam ||
toṣayām āsa gāndhārī vyāsas tasyai varaṃ dadau ||
sā vavre sadṛśaṃ bhartuḥ putrāṇāṃ śatam ātmanaḥ ||
tataḥ kālena sā garbhaṃ dhṛtarāṣṭrād athāgrahīt ||
saṃvatsaradvayaṃ taṃ tu gāndhārī garbham āhitam ||
aprajā dhārayām āsa tatas tāṃ duḥkham āviśat ||
Vaishampayana said: "Gandhari gratified Dvaipayana, who had come exhausted by hunger and fatigue, and Vyasa granted her a boon. She chose for herself a hundred sons resembling her husband. Then, in time, she conceived from Dhritarashtra; but for two years she carried that conceived child, still childless, not giving birth -- and sorrow overcame her."
5d64b943c7f0 · published Jul 12, 2026, 4:30:26 PM UTC
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Here Gandhari, through service to Vyasa, wins the boon of a hundred sons. Telling is that this great gift, like the earlier gifts of Vyasa and Durvasas, is given for hospitality shown to an exhausted ascetic: the grace of a saint descends upon one who serves him without squeamishness. Yet telling too is how the desired gift turns into torment: two years of fruitless bearing pass. Here is a lesson that even the fulfillment of a wish carries its own burden: a hundred sons, asked for out of the pride of motherhood, are born unnaturally and with difficulty, as though nature itself resists this excessive, willful gift. Thus scripture quietly hints: a boon taken out of ambition rather than humble need is fraught with sorrow -- which will be confirmed in the sons themselves.