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Gandhari

GANDHARI. [Source: Dowson's Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology] Princess of Gandhara. The daughter of Subala, king of Gandhara, wife of Dhritarashtra, and mother of his hundred sons.

Her husband was blind, so she always wore a bandage over her eyes to be like him.

Her husband and she, in their old age, both perished in a forest fire.

She is also called by the patronymics Saubali and Saubaleyi.

She is said to have owed her hundred sons to the blessing of Vyasa, who, in acknowledgment of her kind hospitability, offered her a boon. She asked for a hundred sons. Then she became pregnant, and continued so for two years, at the end of which time she was delivered of a lump of flesh.

Vyasa took the shapeless mass and divided it into 101 pieces, which he placed in as many jars. In due time Duryodhana was produced, but with such accompanying fearful portents that Dhritarashtra was besought, though in vain, to abandon him. A month afterwards ninety-nine other sons came forth, and an only daughter, Duhsala.

Modern Languages MLLL-4993. Indian Epics. Laura Gibbs, Ph.D. The textual material made available at this website is licensed under a Creative Commons License. You must give the original author credit. You may not use this work for commercial purposes. If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under a license identical to this one. No claims are made regarding the status of images used at this website; if you own the copyright privileges to any of these images and believe your copyright privileges have been violated, please contact the webmaster. Page last updated: October 16, 2007 12:22 PM