Rishi Durvasa changes: Becomes a giver in the Mahabharata

This Sage played a decisive role in the Ramayana. He continues to be a significant character in the Mahabharata. Popular for his short-tempered nature, the raging Sage Durvasa luckily does not curse anyone in the Mahabharata. He turns out to be a giver. To be fair, without him the Pandavas would not be born in the first place. Let us find out how.

Kunti serving the great sage Durvasa. Image Source: Wikipedia.

Rishi Durvasa was a guest in the kingdom of great king Kuntibhoja. A young princess Kunti was given the enormous task of catering to his daily needs. Popular for his sudden anger and curses, Kunti was determined not to annoy him. She patiently served him even when he summoned her foe petty works in the midnights. Satisfied by her hospitality, Durvasa wanted to give her a gift before leaving.

He gave her a divine mantra from the Atharva Veda. According to it, she could think of any Gods from whom she would like to bear a child and chant those mantras. She will be able to bear a child from that God. Also, the mantra could be used only five times.

Eager to try her gift out, Kunti summons the Sun God while chanting the mantra. Soon enough she is gifted with Karna. Now the young princess gets scared. No one will believe her, or worse, later on, marry her if the word goes out that she already has a child out of wedlock. She, therefore, sends the baby away adrift in the Ganges.

Years later Kunti is married to King Pandu. She becomes the queen of Hastinapura. But, darkness fell upon the couple when King Pandu was cursed by another Brahman, Maharishi Kindama. Whenever Pandu tried to touch someone out of love, he will burn into ashes. This made Pandu so depressed that he decided to give up his kingdom and live in exile. His wives Kunti and Madri followed him.

One day, Kunti finally told Pandu about the boon she had received from Sage Durvasa. This excited the king. On finding hope that his lineage can continue even when he has been cursed, Pandu did not hesitate once. He asked Kunti to chant those mantras.

Although they are commonly known to be the Pandavas, i.e. the sons of Pandu, they have been fathered by different deities. The eldest, Yudhisthira was sired by the God of death and dharma “Yama”, Bhima by the God of wind and strength “Vayu”. The Lord of the heavens “Indra” fathered Arjuna.

After the birth of Arjuna, Kunti remembered that she could use the mantra for one last time. She saw Madri and felt bad that she could not give birth to anyone. Therefore Kunti turned generous here. She taught Madri the mantra. Madri thought about the Ashvin twins and thus Nakul and Sahadeva were born.

King Pandu could not father a child. If Durvasa would not have granted the mantra to Kunti, the key characters of the epic would not have been born. This makes Durvasa a key role player in the Mahabharata. Also, the curious act of Kunti to validate the boon and then end up with giving birth to Karna, further twists the plot of Mahabharata.

The epic might be the longest in the world and the number of times Durvasa has been mentioned in it might be less than the minimum. But the role played by Durvasa is indeed a significant one.

Kunti sends little Karna away. Image Source: BeeParenting