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STORIES · THE MAHĀBHĀRATA · Ādi

Why Dhritarashtra was born blind: Ambika shut her eyes

Classical

The epic blames a mother's fear, not karma - the karma explanation is a later add-on.

Satyavati asks Vyasa to father heirs on Vichitravirya's widows. Vyasa's fierce look and burning eyes frighten Ambika, who closes her eyes throughout the union. Her son Dhritarashtra is therefore born blind. This is the epic's own explanation.

Who: Dhritarashtra, Ambika, Vyasa, Satyavati

Bound to

Dhritarashtra and the 100 burned baby birds same-story-other-version

Vichitravīrya's death and the niyoga: Vyāsa fathers Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Pāṇḍu and Vidura origin

Places: Hastinapur

Where this comes from

• vulgate (Ganguli) · Ganguli translation of the Mahabharata (read via Ibiblio SriPedia mirror) Ganguli, Adi Parva, Section CVI
• commentary · MahabharataOnline.com, The story of Dhritarashtra (Ganguli-based)
• commentary · Wikipedia: Dhritarashtra

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