Vaisampayana said, "When that foremost of Brahmanas had gone away on
some other errand, the maiden began to ponder over the virtue of those
_mantras_. And she said to herself, 'Of what nature are those _mantras_
that have been bestowed on me by that high-souled one? I shall without
delay test their power.' And as she was thinking in this way, she
suddenly perceived indications of the approach of her season. And her
season having arrived, while she was yet unmarried, she blushed in
shame. And it came to pass that as she was seated in her chamber on a
rich bed, she beheld the solar orb rising in the east. And both the mind
and the eyes of that maiden of excellent waist became rivetted fast upon
the solar orb. And she gazed and gazed on that orb without being
satiated with the beauty of the morning Sun. And she suddenly became
gifted with celestial sight. And then she beheld that god of divine form
accoutred in mail and adorned with ear-rings. And at sight of the god, O
lord of men, she became curious as to the (potency of the) _mantras_.
And thereupon that maiden resolved to invoke him. And having recourse to
_Pranayama_, she invoked the Maker of day. And thus invoked by her, O
king, the Maker of day speedily presented himself. And he was of a
yellowish hue like honey, and was possessed of mighty arms, and his neck
was marked with lines like those of a conchshell. And furnished with
armlets, and decked with a diadem, he came smiling, and illumining all
the directions. And it was by _Yoga_ power that he divided himself in
twain, one of which continued to give heat, and the other appeared
before Kunti. And he addressed Kunti in words that were exceedingly
sweet, saying, 'O gentle maiden, over-powered by the _mantras_, I come
hither obedient to thee. Subject as I am to thy power, what shall I do,
O queen? Tell me, for I shall do whatever thou mayst command.' Hearing
these words of the deity, Kunti said, 'O worshipful one, go thou back to
the place thou hast come from! I invoked thee from curiosity alone.
Pardon me, O worshipful one!' Surya then said, 'O damsel of slender
waist, I will, even as thou hast said, return to the place I have come
from! Having called a celestial, it is not, however, proper to send him
away in vain. Thy intention, O blessed one, it is to have from Surya a
son furnished with a coat of mail and ear-rings, and who in point of
prowess would be beyond compare in this world! Do thou, therefore, O
damsel of elephantine gait, surrender thy person to me! Thou shall then
have, O lady, a son after thy wish! O gentle girl, O thou of sweet
smiles, I will go back after having known thee! If thou do not gratify
me to-day by obeying my word, I shall in anger curse thee, thy father
and that Brahmana also. For thy fault, I will surely consume them all,
and I shall inflict condign punishment on that foolish father of thine
that knoweth not this transgression of thine and on that Brahmana who
hath bestowed the _mantras_ on thee without knowing thy disposition and
character! Yonder are all the celestials in heaven, with Purandara at
their head, who are looking at me with derisive smiles at my being
deceived by thee, O lady! Look at those celestials, for thou art now
possessed of celestial sight! Before this I have endued thee with
celestial vision, in consequence of which thou couldst see me!'"
Vaisampayana continued, "Thereupon the princess beheld the celestials
standing in the firmament, each in his proper sphere, even as she saw
before her that highly resplendent deity furnished with rays, viz.,
Surya himself. And beholding them all, the girl became frightened and
her face was suffused with blushes of shame. And then she addressed
Surya, saying, 'O lord of rays, go thou back to thy own region. On
account of my maidenhood, this outrage of thine is fraught with woe to
me! It is only one's father, mother, and other superiors, that are
capable of giving away their daughter's body. Virtue I shall never
sacrifice, seeing that in this world the keeping of their persons
inviolate is deemed as the highest duty of Women, and is held in high
regard! O thou possessed of wealth of splendour, it is only to test the
power of my _mantras_ that I have, from mere childishness, summoned
thee. Considering that this hath been done by a girl of tender years, it
behoveth thee, O lord, to forgive her!' Then Surya said, 'It is because
I consider thee a girl that, O Kunti, I am speaking to thee so mildly.
To one that is not so I would not concede this. Do thou, O Kunti,
surrender thyself! Thou shalt surely attain happiness thereby. Since, O
timid maiden, thou hast invoked me with _mantras_, it is not proper for
me to go away without any purpose being attained, for, if I do so I
shall then, O thou of faultless limbs, be the object of laughter in the
world, and, O beauteous damsel, a bye-word with all the celestials. Do
thou, therefore, yield to me! By that thou shalt obtain a son even like
myself, and thou shalt also be much praised in all the world.'"