Kunti was the mother of Yudhishthira, Bhima, and Arjuna. She was the first wife of King Pandu and one of the Mahabharata’s most important political and maternal figures.
Because Pandu was cursed and could not father children safely, Kunti used a divine mantra given to her by the sage Durvasa. At Pandu’s request, she invoked Dharma to conceive Yudhishthira, Vayu to conceive Bhima, and Indra to conceive Arjuna. In the epic’s tradition, these births explain the brothers’ exceptional qualities: Yudhishthira’s righteousness, Bhima’s strength, and Arjuna’s martial brilliance.
Kunti later shared the mantra with Madri, Pandu’s second wife, who became the mother of the twins Nakula and Sahadeva. Thus Kunti was the biological mother of the three eldest Pandavas and the senior mother who raised all five. She is also connected to Karna, whom she bore before marriage after invoking the sun god Surya, making him the Pandavas’ elder half-brother.