Text 26]
The Descendants of Ajamiḍha
163
dhṛtarāṣṭram —a son named Dhṛtarāṣṭra;  ca —and;  pāṇḍum —a son named Pāṇḍu;  ca —also;  viduram —a son named Vidura;  ca —also;  api —indeed;  ajījanat —begot.
TRANSLATION
Bādarāyaṇa, Śrī Vyāsadeva, following the order of his mother, Satyavati, begot three sons, two by the womb of Ambikā and Ambālikā, the two wives of his brother Vicitravīrya, and the third by Vicitravīrya’s maidservant. These sons were Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Pāṇḍu and Vidura.
PURPORT
Vicitravīrya died of tuberculosis, and his wives, Ambikā and Ambālikā, had no issue. Therefore, after Vicitravīrya’s death, his mother, Satyavati, who was also the mother of Vyāsadeva, asked Vyāsadeva to beget children through the wives of Vicitravīrya. In those days, the brother of the husband could beget children through the womb of his sister-in-law. This was known as  devareṇa sutotpatti . If the husband was somehow unable to beget children, his brother could do so through the womb of his sister-in-law. This  devareṇa sutotpatti  and the sacrifices of  aśvamedha  and  gomedha  are forbidden in the age of Kali.
aśvamedham gavālambham sannyāsam pala-paitṛkam devareṇa sutotpattim kalau pañca vivarjayet
“In this age of Kali, five acts are forbidden: the offering of a horse in sacrifice, the offering of a cow in sacrifice, the acceptance of the order of  sannyāsa , the offering of oblations of flesh to the forefathers, and a man’s begetting children in his brother’s wife.” ( Brahma-vaivarta Purāṇa ).
TEXT 26
गान्धार्या धृतराष्ट्रस्य जज्ञे पुत्रशतं नृप ।
तत्र दुर्योधनो ज्येष्ठो दुःशला चापि कन्यका ॥२६॥