Gandhari conceived. She bore the burden in her womb for two long years without being delivered. And she was greatly afflicted at this. It was then that she heard that Kunti had brought forth a son whose splendour was like unto the morning sun. Anxious that in her own case the period of gestation had been so long, and deprived of reason by grief, with great violence she struck her womb without the knowledge of her husband. And thereupon came out of her womb, after two years' growth, a hard mass of flesh like unto an iron ball. When she was about to throw it away, Dwaipayana learning everything by his spiritual powers, promptly came there, and that first of ascetics beholding that ball of flesh addressed the daughter of Suvala and said, 'What hast thou done? Gandhari without endeavouring to disguise her feelings, addressed the Rishi and said, 'Having heard that Kunti had brought forth a son like unto Suryā himself in splendour, I struck in grief at my womb. Thou hadst, O Rishi, granted me the boon that I should have an hundred sons. But here is only a ball of flesh for those hundred sons.' Vyasa then said, 'Daughter of Suvala, it is even so. But my words can never be futile. I have not spoken an untruth even in jest. I need not speak of other occasions. Let an hundred pots full of clarified butter be brought instantly, and let them be placed at a concealed spot. In the meantime, let cool water be sprinkled upon this ball of flesh.'"
Vaisampayana continued, "That ball of flesh then, sprinkled over with water, became, in time, divided into an hundred and one parts, each about the size of the thumb. These were then put into those pots full of clarified butter that had been "placed at a concealed spot, and were watched with care. The illustrious Vyasa then said unto the daughter of Suvala that she should open the covers of the pots after full two years. And having said this, and made those arrangements, the wise Dwaipayana went to the Himavat mountains for devoting himself to asceticism.
"Then, in time, king Duryodhana was born from among those pieces of the ball of flesh that had been deposited in those pots. According to the order of birth, king Yudhish-
