'The World-conquering Bharata, who is victorious wherever he goes, whose chariot wheels are always turning, who rules over Kings'; Sanskrit pronunciation: [d̪ɪg.ʋɪ.dʑɐˈjɐ tɕɐk.ɾɐ.ʋɐɾˈt̪ɪn̪ s̪ɐmˈɾɑːdʑ s̪ɐɾ.ʋɐ.d̪ɐ.mɐˈn̪ɐ bʰɐ.ɾɐˈt̪ɐ]).

[citation needed] The Mahabharata states that King Dushyanta was once hunting in the forests, when he arrived at the ashrama of Sage Kanva.

In due course, Shakuntala gave birth to Dushyanta's son and named him Sarvadamana, who had the sign of a Chakra on his right hand (indicating that he was destined to be an emperor).

Sarvadamana was born with the strength of 10,000 elephants, and even as a child, he was capable of subduing and taming wild beasts.

Dushyanta admitted that he was aware of Bharata being his son, but did not acknowledge out of fear that people would doubt his paternity.

Bharata propitiated the devas for a son, and they gave him a boy, whom he named Vitatha, also called Bharadvaja.

[10] Bharata ruled for twenty-seven thousand years, and therefore, the kingdom that he inherited and expanded came to be known as Bhārata, named after him.

[11] According to a dramatised version of the events by the poet Kalidasa, the king Dushyanta married Shakuntala on his hunting expeditions in forests.

Surrounded only by wild animals, Sarvadamana grew to be a strong child and made a sport of opening the mouths of tigers and lions and counting their teeth.

The first story says that Bharata married Sunanda, the daughter of Sarvasena, the King of the Kashi kingdom and begot upon her the son named Bhumanyu.