The chaste and truthful words of Shakuntala were affirmed by a celestial voice from the heavens, and the entire court bowed in reverence before her. Then King Dushyanta, stirred in heart yet bound by regal restraint, declared that in the hermitage of Sage Kaṇva, he had indeed wedded her with pure love and tender devotion. This truth was known only to the two of them, but as king, he could not be swayed by emotion; he must uphold the majesty of the moral code. Therefore, he said, he had feigned ignorance, not to dishonour her, but to shield them both from judgment. Yet her unwavering truth awakened his conscience, and though bound by royal decorum, his heart yielded to love. Embracing his son, he honoured Shakuntala with the dignity of chief queen, and, having anointed Bharata as king, withdrew himself to a life of hermitage.
Bharata, though young, bore the burden of empire with impartial justice and became famed for his fairness. He performed many yajnas, lavished gifts upon the worthy, and held grand sacrifices on the banks of Ganga and Yamuna, where Brahmins were honoured with unparalleled charity. Thus, he stood as the true founder of the Bharata dynasty, from whom future kings drew their glory. Bharata wed Sunanda, daughter of the Kekaya king, and begot Bhumanyu. His line spread wide: through his sons and their queens arose illustrious rulers who bore the names of great cities and kingdoms. Suhotra, born of Vijaya, daughter of Kekaya, begot Hasti, after whom Hastinapura flourished. Vikuntana, born of Yashodhara of Trigarta, continued the line; Ajameḍu, born of the Daśārha princess, fathered progeny through Kaikeyi, Gandhārī, and Rūkṣā, whose children multiplied into rulers of many lands. Among these kings, Saṁvaraṇa, pious and noble, excelled. He took Tapati, daughter of the Sun, as his bride, and they brought forth Kuru, founder of the Kuru dynasty, after whom Kurukṣetra took its name.
From Kuru’s line came Vidūratha, then Aṇasva, then Parīkṣit, and from him Bhīmasena. Bhīmasena’s son was Pradīpa, whose son was Śāntanu, famed for virtue. Śāntanu fathered Bhīṣma through the river-goddess Gaṅgā, and through Satyavatī, called Yojanagandhī, begot Citrāṅgada and Vicitravīrya. Citrāṅgada fell early in battle with a Gandharva, and Vicitravīrya, married to Ambikā and Ambālikā of Kāśī, fell ill and died young, leaving the dynasty imperiled. Then Satyavatī invoked the ancient custom of niyoga and called upon her son Vyāsa to beget heirs. Thus, were born Dhṛtarāṣṭra of Ambikā, Pāṇḍu of Ambālikā, and Vidura of a maidservant. Dhṛtarāṣṭra, through Gāndhārī, begot a hundred sons, foremost among them Duryodhana.
Pāṇḍu, by the divine boon granted to his queens Kuntī and Mādrī, became father to five illustrious sons: Yudhiṣṭhira by Dharma, Bhīma by Vāyu, Arjuna by Indra, Nakula and Sahadeva by the Aśvins. These five, known as the Pāṇḍavas, shared one wife, Draupadī, who bore them five sons, the Upapāṇḍavas. In addition, Arjuna begot Abhimanyu through Subhadrā, sister of Kṛṣṇa. Of all their sons, Abhimanyu alone carried forward the lineage, for from him was born Parīkṣit, through his union with Uttara, daughter of King Virāṭa.
O Janamejaya, jewel among kings! You are born of that Parīkṣit and the virtuous Madravatī, and from you and your queen Vapuṣṭā came Śatānīka and Śaṅkukarna. Śatānīka, through Vaidehī, daughter of the Videha king, begot Aśvamedhadatta. Thus stand the lineages of the Purus, Bhāratas, Kurus, and Pāṇḍavas, joined into one grand tradition.
Moved by lineage, Janamejaya inquired further of Śāntanu, Gaṅgā, and the birth of Bhīṣma, and the sage Vaiśaṁpāyana began his narration. In ancient times, there lived a king, Mahābhīṣa of the Ikṣvāku line, who, by offering a thousand Aśvamedhas and a hundred Rājasūyas, gained the favor of the gods and dwelt in Brahmā’s court. Once, when Gaṅgā appeared there in celestial beauty, the wind uncovered her thighs, and Mahābhīṣa gazed upon her with desire. Angered, Brahmā cursed him to be born on earth. The king prayed for mercy, and Brahmā decreed that he would be reborn as Śāntanu, the son of King Pratīpa. Gaṅgā, enamored of him, chose to follow into the mortal world.
Meanwhile, the Vasus, cursed by Vasiṣṭha to be born among men, sought relief from Gaṅgā. She promised to bear them as her sons, releasing each into the river at birth so they might return to the heavens, save one—Prabhāsa, who would remain in the world as Bhīṣma, mighty in strength and destined for long life.
Pratīpa, steadfast in dharma, once met Gaṅgā in human guise. She sat upon his right thigh, asking him to accept her love. But the king declared that his fidelity was bound to his queen, and that the right thigh was reserved for a daughter-in-law. Thus he destined her for his son. Later, to Pratīpa and Sunandā was born Śāntanu, radiant as the gods. Anointed king, Śāntanu encountered Gaṅgā by the riverbanks, her beauty surpassing mortals and celestials alike. When he asked her hand, she laid down her condition: he must never question her actions, nor reproach her in word or deed. If he broke this vow, she would depart. Bound by love, he consented, and thus began the union of Śāntanu and Gaṅgā—a marriage that opened the curtain to the great epic of the Mahābhārata.
