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THE STORY OF BHISHMA 311 out her life. For she could not bear to enjoy the light from which her husband was shut out.

The wife of Pandu the Pale was known as Pritha or Kunti; and she became the mother of the five Pandavas, as they were called, Yudisthira, Bhima, Arjuna, and the twins Nakula and Sahadeva. Every one loved these boys, for they were full of great qualities, and the heart of Bhishma was glad, for he saw that Yudisthira, the eldest of all the princes, had in him the making of a perfect king. Prince Pandu, the father, died suddenly in the forest, and Dritarashtra declared that the young Yudisthira should be regarded henceforth as the heir to both kingdoms.

But, alas, amongst the two families of Pandavas and Kurus, that called Bhishma Grandsire, there was one false heart — that of Duryodhana, head oi the Kurus and eldest of the hundred and one children of Dritarashtra the King I

All the princely cousins had grown up side by side ; they had had the same lessons ; they had played together. But the strength of Bhima, second of the Pandavas, was so great that, un- aided, he could hold any ten of the Kurus under water at the same time. This of itself angered Duryodhana, and he could obtain no redress, for Bhima always won the victory again. But it was not only Bhima. The young Yudisthira was specially beloved for his gentleness and heroic