Every day, Dhritrashtra gave only a handful of rice to each of the imprisoned Gandhara family. As the days passed, they started dying of hunger one by one. One day, King Subala said to his sons, “This is not how the Gandhara family is going to end. Every one of us will sacrifice our share of a handful of rice and hand it over to one person. That person will become strong and be responsible for the downfall of Dhritrashtra and the Kauravas.” Shakuni was King Subala’s youngest and wittiest son. So, the Gandhara family started offering their food to him. When King Subala realised he had no more energy to survive, he called Dhritrashtra and requested, “Please be considerate to Shakuni and allow him to be free. I promise that he will always be like a guardian to your children.” Meanwhile, Dhritrashtra had a hundred sons and a daughter named Dushala. He agreed to his father-in-law’s request.
The Gandhara Family
