Another year passed by;
King Kuntiboja decided to arrange a swayamvara, sending the invitations to several kingdoms, including Hastinapura.
But it took almost five years to heal her wounds, and by the time Kunti reached 22, she was able to swallow the pain and shut it inside her heart.
While she left her home and reached Hastinapura to get ready to live a new life with King Pandu, at Suryaloka, 4-and-a-half-year-old Karna was playing hide and seek with his two mothers.
Chhaya, the goddess of shadow and a consort of Lord Surya, had a look as if she was annoyed by the situation while helping out Sangya. She didn't like Karna from the moment he was brought into the palace.
Of course, it wasn't without reason either.
The first reason was that Karna had the radiance of the Sun god. It's just as powerful as the one she sees on Yama, the god of death and dharma.
The second reason was that Saranyu/Sangya loves him dearly, partly due to the absence of her children, who were busy doing their jobs out there, serving the universe. Chhaya also misses her children, but only Sangya gets to fulfill the hole in her heart? That's very unfair.
The third reason was that Lord Surya had given Karna, his divine armor and divine earrings when he was born, but when Shani was born, the same god cursed him.
The fourth reason, and probably the biggest reason, was that her favorite child of all, Shani, was exiled from Suryaloka due to the bitter relationship between the father and son. And she couldn't leave the palace without the permission of Lord Surya, who would never allow her to meet Shani.
The only consolation for her is that the other gods don't approve of a mortal living in Suryaloka. But what can they do? It is Lord Surya's decision, and even the King of Gods, Indra, doesn't have the right to kick out Karna from Devaloka without any strong reasons.
As Sangya tried to find him, little Karna reached the mandir located within the palace and took a look at the Shivalinga. He held his palms together and spoke, "Lord Shiva, please help me, will you? Om Namah Shivaya."
"Son, where are you?" A voice was heard nearby.
"It's mother." He hurriedly scurried forward and hid behind Shivalinga with a grin on his face. "Mother won't find me here, hehe..."
In a hurry, he didn't see the flower falling from the top of Lingam onto Yoni by itself. Some believe that this kind of situation generally means god listened to one's prayers, and some think it's just the air. However, that's for mortal human beings. If it happens in a place like Suryaloka, it isn't something that can be ignored. Too bad that no one witnessed it.
Karna quietly hid himself and his mother passed away the mandir and went to other places in the palace.
Two hours passed, but neither Sangya nor Chhaya failed to find him.
"Sister, how about you use divine sense to find him?" Goddess Chhaya suggested her, as she was tired of roaming here and there. She realized that these days, the little brat had gotten better at hiding.
Goddess Sangya also felt that she had had enough fun for today. She closed her eyes and tried to find Little Karna.
In an instant, her facial expression changed as she couldn't find him. She tried once again. The result was the same, and she started to panic. "My son..."
She started to run.
"What happened?" Chhaya asked her as she followed from behind. In her mind, she was only having bad thoughts, "Did that little brat fall into trouble? Would be nice if it happens for real."
In the courtroom, Lord Surya is in the middle of having an important talk with the Gandharva King, Chitrasena.
Sangya rushed into the hall and disturbed their meeting.
"Dear?" Lord Surya was surprised. Chitrasena also seemed to be confused by her sudden entry without any prior notice.
"Suryadev, Karna is nowhere to be found. He's missing." A look of worry was clear on her face.
"What do you mean?" Lord Surya stood on his feet.
"We're playing hide and seek. I've been searching for him for two hours. He has yet to be found. Even my divine senses can't find him anywhere in the palace." Goddess Sangya didn't hide anything and informed him of everything that happened.
"Karna is just a kid, Goddess Saranyu," The Gandharva King tried to calm her down. "If he's not in the palace, he probably was playing with the other kids."
Of course, in Suryaloka, only Lord Surya and his family don't live. There are soldiers, servants, and their families who also reside in the realm. And their families also might have similar-age children. Chitrasen thought the little kid might have gone out in secret. Kids do mischief. It's common.
However, Sangya dismissed his words with her reply, "But my son never stepped out of the palace in his life. What if he had gone to the forest and gotten lost?"
"Calm down, dear. Give me a moment. I'll tell you where your son is hiding." He closed his eyes and scanned the entire Suryaloka within a second using his divine sense, but obtained no results. A look of shock appeared on his face as he said, "He isn't in Suryaloka."
"What does it mean, Lord Surya?" Chitrasena suddenly became worried too. Just a moment ago, he was actually in talks about a future marriage proposal between his youngest daughter and Karna, which was initiated by Lord Surya.
And he was prepared to accept the proposal as he believed having an alliance with the sun god's family would only elevate his status. Karna's mortal status is never an issue. It's not like the Gandharvas were immortal like the gods. They can only prolong their lives with the resurrection performed by Lord Indra.
But, in the next moment, he found his potential son-in-law was missing? Was he kidnapped? Or was he dead? King Chitrasena doesn't have any idea how to respond to the situation.
Now, even Lord Surya and Sangya started to have the same thoughts.
Goddess Sangya started to tear up. Lord Surya caught her shoulders and said, "There's no place that my light can't reach. I'll search from Bhramaloka to Patal if I have to. I'll promise to bring Karna to you."
Within a few hours, a commotion rose in Heaven, and the soldiers were sent to every realm in search of a mortal human kid. The reason for this is the blatant threat of Goddess Sangya, who outrightly demanded that Lord Surya bring back her son or else, she would remove the protection for the earth.
Lord Surya knew that without clouds, the day would get hotter and the night would get cooler. The sudden changes in the temperature will harm humans for sure.
And without clouds, no natural rains can occur. So, Lord Indra might have to work 24/7. There was his worry.
Meanwhile, in Vaikunta, Lord Vishnu, who was sleeping, let out a smile.
Looking at it, Goddess Lakshmi, who was massaging his feet as usual, asked her husband, "What happened, My Lord? Is there a reason for your smile?"
Lord Vishnu opened his eyes and replied, "It's Goddess Sangya, my dear. She developed a worldly attachment to Karna. It will have to end, or else, Karna will deviate from his destined path."
"Karna?" Goddess Lakshmi is hearing the name for the first time. But considering the rest of Lord Surya's children were all in important positions, she wondered whether this boy was also destined for something great.
Back at Suryaloka, the main culprit of the situation, little Karna, got tired and eventually fell asleep behind Shivalinga, which was blocking all the divine senses to go past it, all because the kid asked for help.