Sermishtha was the daughter of Vrishaperva, king of the Daityas, and
Devayani, the daughter of Sukra, regent of the planet Venus and the
spiritual preceptor of the Daitya race. Devayani having incurred the
displeasure of Sermishtha the latter threw the former into a well, where
she was found by king Yayati, the son of Nahusha. Devayani, on returning
to her father, excited his anger against Vrishaperva, who, to appease
Sukra, consented to give his daughter to Devayani as her servant, with a
thousand other female attendants. Devayani was married to Yayati. At the
time of her marriage, Sukra obtained the king's promise that he would
never associate with Sermishtha; but after some interval, the king
meeting her, fell in love with, and espoused, her privately. The
intrigue continued secret, until Yayati had two sons by Devayani and
three by Sermishtha, when it was discovered by the former, and excited
her resentment as well as that of her father. The violation of the
king's promise was punished by premature decay, as denounced upon him by
Sukra, with permission, however, to transfer his infirmities to anyone
who would acccept them. Yayati appealed to his sons; of whom the
youngest alone, Puru, consented to assume the burden. After a sufficient
period, Yayati took his decrepitude back again, and left the
sovereignty to Puru in reward of his filial piety.
All the sons of Yayati were the founders of distinguished families. The
Pauravas were the descendants of Puru in whose line the Kaurava and the
Pandava families were comprised.