Sages Deliver Pandu's Family to Hastinapura and Announce Their Lineage
After Pandu and Madri's deaths, the forest sages must decide the fate of the newborn princes and their mother. They carry the two bodies and the five young Pandavas to the gates of Hastinapura, where they present them to the stunned Kuru court and reveal the divine origins of each child before vanishing into the air.
The maharshis (great sages), equals of the gods, performed Pandu’s last rites on the slopes of Shatashringa. Then they gathered to consult. The great-souled king had come to the forest to live among ascetics, but now he was gone, leaving behind a treasure they were bound to protect: his newborn sons and his widow. For the welfare of the kingdom and the country, they decided they must deliver this treasure to the Kurus. They resolved to go to Nagasahvya — the city of the Nagas, also known as Hastinapura — to give the Pandavas to Bhishma and Dhritarashtra.
They set out immediately. Kunti, who had always known a life of comfort, now walked the long road out of affection for her sons, and the distance felt short. They reached Kurujangala and arrived at the chief gate of the city at sunrise.
The citizens were astounded. Thousands of charanas (celestial bards) and sages had descended upon their city. The inhabitants, their minds fixed on dharma, poured out to see them: masses of women, Kshatriyas in vehicles, Brahmanas with their wives, Vaishyas and Shudras. From the royal gate emerged Shantanu’s son Bhishma, Somadatta’s son Bahlika, the wise rajarshi (royal sage), the kshatta (charioteer and minister) Vidura, and the queens — Satyavati, Kousalya, and Gandhari, surrounded by maids. Dhritarashtra’s one hundred sons, led by Duryodhana and adorned in ornaments, came out as well.
The Kouravas and their priests bowed their heads and sat below the sages. The citizens bowed their heads to the ground. Seeing the crowd quiet and reverent, Bhishma offered the kingdom and the country to the maharshis.
Then, with the concurrence of the others, the eldest maharshi — his hair matted, a deerskin his only garment — spoke.
“King Pandu of the Kuru lineage gave up a life of desire and pleasure and came to Shatashringa,” he began. “He lived the life of a brahmachari (celibate student) there. But to accomplish the purposes of the gods, this son Yudhishthira was born there from Dharma himself.”
He pointed to the children. “Then that great-souled king was given another son named Bhima by Matarishva (the wind god, Vayu). He is immensely powerful, best among the strong. Puruhuta (Indra, the wielder of the thunderbolt) gave Kunti this son.” He indicated Arjuna. “Truth is his strength and his exploits will shadow those of all other great archers.”
He turned to the youngest two. “These two sons of Madri are great archers and supreme among those of the Kuru lineage. They were born from the Ashvins (the divine twin physicians) and are tigers among men.”
The sage summarized Pandu’s life. “The illustrious Pandu always lived a life of dharma in the forest and in this way he revived his ancestral lineage. As he witnessed the birth, growth, and study of the Vedas of his sons, he derived great pleasure. He never deviated from the righteous path.”
Then he delivered the news. “Having left these sons, Pandu has departed for the land of the ancestors seventeen days ago. On seeing him on the funeral pyre and about to be consumed by the face of the fire, Madri entered the fire and gave up her own life. She has followed to the world of her husband.”
His instructions were clear. “Now perform those rites that should be performed for them. These are the two bodies and here are the supreme sons. Let these scorchers of enemies and their mother be respectfully received with rites of welcome. After the performance of the funeral rites, let Pandu, the upholder of the Kuru lineage, extremely famous and knowledgeable in all aspects of dharma, gain the right to ancestral offerings.”
Having addressed the Kurus, all the charanas, guhyakas (celestial treasure-keepers), rishis, and siddhas (perfected beings) vanished in an instant before their eyes — like a city of the gandharvas (celestial musicians) disappearing — leaving behind only amazement, two bodies, one widow, and five fatherless princes who were now the heirs of the Kuru house.