Kadru was the daughter of Daksha Prajapati. She was one of the
wives of Sage Kashyapa. She gave birth to a thousand nagas or snakes including
Shesha and Vasuki. The snakes she gave birth are considered to be the ancestors
of the Snakes on earth.
How Kadru became the mother of Thousand Serpents?
Legend has it that pleased with her service, Sage Kashyapa
asked her what boon she wanted. She asked for a thousand sons. Sage Kashyapa
blessed her. After some time Kadru delivered a thousand eggs. She kept them in
a warm pot for 500 years and the the thousand eggs Kadru burst letting out a
thousand serpents.
Kadru Causing Eternal Rivalry between Garuda and Snakes
Sage Kashyapa had another wife named Vinita. She gave birth
to the powerful Garuda – the vehicle or vahana of Vishnu.
Once Kadru and Vinita put a bet on the color of the tail of
the horse Uchaishravas – a seven-headed flying horse that was obtained during
the churning of ocean or Samudra Manthan.
Kadru claimed the color was black and Vinita claimed it was
white. The stake was whoever lost the bet will serve the other.
Kadru cheated by asking her sons, the Nagas, to hang on to
the tail of Uchaishravas. Thus the white tail of the divine horse turned black
as the nagas hung on to them.
Vinita and Garuda were thus forced to serve Kadru. They were
treated badly by Kadru and her sons.
Later the nagas agreed to free Garuda and his mother if he
brought the Amrit, or Elixer of life, which is in the possession of Indra, the
king of Devas or demi gods. Garuda got Amrit from heaven and freed himself and
his mother from servitude.
But the cheating and the insult suffered made Garuda the
arch rival of Nagas. Thus Kadru was responsible for many of her sons getting
killed.
Kadru Cursing Some of
Her Sons
When Kadru asked her sons to hang on to the tail of horse
Uchaishravas, some of them did not obey her orders as they found it was against
Dharma. For disobeying her, Kadru cursed them saying that they would all be
burnt in the Sarpasattra of Janamejaya.