Kunti
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In Hinduism, Princess Kunti is the mother of the Pandavas.
Kunti has been described as a very pious woman of great strength. She was born to King Shoorsen of the Yadu Clan. This is the same clan of Shri Krishna. Kunti's childhood name was Pritha and she was given to King Shoorsen's best friend, King Kuntibhoj due to his faliure to produce children. After her arrival, King Kuntibhoj produced children. He considered Pritha his lucky charm and took care of her until her marriage. He renamed her Kunti.
King Shoorsen's other son was Vasudev, who was the father of Shri Krishna, therefore, Kunti was the paternal aunt of Krishna.
When she was young, the rishi Durvasa told her a mantra with which Kunti could summon any god and have a child by him. When Kunti asked why he gave her this mantra, he told her that it would be useful to her later in life.
Kunti could not believe the mantra, so she tried to use it. The Sun God, Surya, appeared. She asked him to go back, but Surya said he was compelled to fulfill the mantra before returning. Surya magically caused Kunti to bear a child immediately so that she, a princess, would not be subject to questions from the King or his court. Kunti then discarded the child, Karna, in a basket in a river. Karna was later found by a charioteer of Kunti's future brother-in-law. The ambiguous emotions Karna felt about Kunti play an important role in the Mahabharata.
Later on, Kunti married Prince Pandu of Hastinapur. Pandu had a blind elder brother, Dhritrashtra. When Pandu's father died, Pandu, and not Dhrithrashtra, became King. According to the laws of the time, a blind man could not rule unless he was the only heir to the dead king. Thus Pandu, a younger son, came to the throne. Pandu, as was the custom of the time, took a second wife, Madri.
One day, Pandu, Madri, and Kunti were hunting for sport in a forest. Pandu used a magical arrow intended to kill a stag. The arrow would mystically strike whatever the shooter last heard before releasing the arrow. As Pandu was preparing to use the arrow, he heard the stag's roar, so he let go of the arrow. But before the arrow actually left the bow, Pandu heard the voice of a man. The stag had been mating with a doe at the time it was struck down, but as the stag lay dying both he and his doe tranformed into their true forms: man and woman.
Pandu could not stop the arrow, which struck the man and killed him. Before dying, the rishi, cursed Pandu that the latter would die the moment he tried to make love to his wife.
Pandu, grief-stricken that he could not have any children, abdicated the throne and left in self-imposed exile. While in the forest, Pandu yearned for the children he could not have. Then, Kunti revealed her secret mantra. She used it thrice, first receiving a son Yudishtira from god Yama, next for Bhima from god Vayu, and third for Arjuna, from god Indra. Kunti revealed the mantra to Madri, who bore two twin sons, Nakula and Sahadeva, from the twin gods the Asvins. The five together are known as "Pandavas".
One day, Pandu could not control himself and attempted to make love to Madri as she emerged from bathing in a river. Immediately, he burnt to ashes. Madri, feeling herself responsible, immolated herself. Kunti was left to tend for all five sons, whose story forms an integral part of the Mahabharata.
Kunti is a pious woman who, while recognizing her sons are right, does not neglect her family duties towards Dhritharashtra, Pandu's younger brother who becomes King of Hastinapur after Pandu. She keeps a good relationship with her sister-in-law Gandhari and both women recognize, Gandhari eventually, recognize the Pandavas are right.