N. of a king of the lunar race, descendant of Puru, husband of Śakuntalā and father of Bharata. [Once upon a time Duṣyanta, while hunting in the forest, went to the her- mitage of the sage Kaṇva, while pur- suing a deer. There he was hospitably received by Śakuntalā, the adopted daughter of the sage, and her transcend- ent beauty made so great an impres- sion on his mind that he prevailed on her to become his queen,...