Kundalaharana Parva — The desertion of Karna by his mother

Vaishampayana said : Then, O lord of the earth, like the lord of the stars in the heavens, Pritha conceived a son on the first day of the lighted fortnight during the tenth month.

That fair-hipped damsel afraid of the censure of her friends concealed her pregnancy, so that no body was aware of her real state.

And as that girl lived in the apartments of maidens, no other women knew her condition except her nurse's daughter who was wellskilled in ministrations.

(And) in time that damsel of excellent complexion by the favour of that god, Surya, was delivered of a son beautiful as a celestials.

And like his father he was clad in armour, adorned with brilliant golden ear-rings, endued with leonine eyes and bovine shoulders.

And as soon as her delivery took place that girl, in consultation with her nurse, placed her child in a water-proof basket, covered all over with sheets, made of wicker work, smooth, comfortable and furnished with a beautiful pillow. And with tearful eyes she consigned it to the (waters of) the river Ashva.

O king of kings, though she knew that it was not proper for a maiden to be big with child, yet from her affection towards the child she wept bitterly.

And hear the words which Kunti uttered while she, weeping bitterly, consigned the basket to the waters of the river Ashva.

"O son, may all the creatures inhabiting the firmament, the earth, the celestials regions and the water contribute to your welfare.

May all your ways be auspicious and unobstructed. And, O son, may the minds of those that may meet with you, be not inclined to enmity towards you.

On the waters may king Varuna, the lord of waters, protect you. And similarly may Pavana (the wind-god) who ranges in the sky and wanders everywhere protect you in the sky.

O son, may your father, the foremost of those that shed heat and by whom you have been begotten on me by the ordinance of Destiny preserve you everywhere.

And may you be protected by the Adityas, the Vasus, the Rudras, the Sadhyas the Vishvadevas, the Marutas and the cardinal points together with their guardians and Indra.

And may all the gods protect you in every state whether favourable or adverse. Even in foreign countries I shall be able to recognise you on account of your coat-of-mail.

Blessed is indeed your divine father, Bhanu, having effulgence for his wealth, who by means of his celestials sight, beholds you going down the stream.

And O son of a deity, that lady is also blessed who will adopt you as her son and feed you from her breast when you are thirsty.

What a dream she has dreamed who will adopt for her son you who are resplendent as the sun, clad in a celestials armour, adorned with celestials ear-rings, endued with broad and expansive eyes like lotuses, possessed of a complexion bright as the copper-coloured lotus-leaves, graced with a beautiful forehead and beautiful hair.

They are also blessed, O son, who will behold you crawl on the ground covered with dust and who will hear your sweet inarticulate speech.

Blessed are they too, who will see you arrive at manhood like a mained lion of the Himalayan forests.

Having, O king, thus wept long and bitterly, Pritha then consigned the basket to the waters of the river Ashva.

And, O monarch, accompanied by her nurse the lotus-eyed Pritha desirous of beholding her son again and again and overpowered with grief for her son and weeping piteously, at night.

Laid the basket (on the waters of the Ashva) and entered into the palace with a heavy heart lest her father might know (the secret).

(On the other hand) the basket came from the Ashva to the river Charmavati, from the Charınavati to the Yamuna and thence to the Ganga.

And that basket containing the child, borne along the waves of the Ganga arrived at the city of Champa in the Suta territory.

And that child was kept alive on account of the celestials mail and ear-rings both made of Amrita and also on account of the ordinance of Destiny.