After the marriage of Satyavati with King Shantanu, the kingdom of Hastinapura resounded with joy. Bhishma, resplendent as the sun, received homage from all assembled, while felicitations poured upon the king and his new queen. Shantanu, rejoicing at the favourable turn of destiny, embraced Satyavati with affection and praised his son’s noble sacrifice, though he himself was well aware of the fate of his lineage, long ago foretold by Goddess Ganga. In gratitude, he conferred upon Bhishma the boon of voluntary death, a gift unparalleled.
From the union of Shantanu and Satyavati were born two sons, Chitrangada and Vichitraveerya. But while still in their youth, their father ascended to heaven. Bhishma performed the last rites and enthroned Chitrangada. Yet the young prince, reckless and intoxicated with pride, defied gods, demons, sages, and men alike, provoking duels for no cause. His arrogance led him to combat the Gandharva prince, also named Chitrangada, on the banks of the Hiranvati. Skilled in magical warfare, the Gandharva slew the Kuru prince. Bhishma then crowned Vichitraveerya, who, bold and simple, ruled with the strength of Vasus.
When the time came for marriage, Bhishma resolved to seek brides for his brother. Learning that the king of Kashi was holding a Svetambara for his three daughters, he set forth alone. At the court of Varanasi, where kings and princes had gathered in hope, Bhishma strode in like destiny itself, seized all three maidens, and placed them in his chariot. Declaring his intent, he proclaimed that for kshatriyas, the Gandharva and Rakshasa forms of marriage were held supreme. Princes, outraged, marshalled their forces against him, yet Bhishma, like Yama himself, scattered them. At last, King Salva, proud and valiant, challenged him with a storm of arrows. The contest drew admiration, yet Bhishma shattered Salva’s chariot, steeds, and pride, leaving him humbled.
Returning triumphantly, Bhishma presented the maidens. But the eldest, Amba, confessed that in her heart she had chosen Salva, to whom her father had also promised her hand. With honour, Bhishma released her, sending her to Salva’s kingdom. The younger two, Ambika and Ambalika, he gave in marriage to Vichitraveerya. The young king, enamoured of his queens, neglected statecraft, revelling with them in forests, rivers, and mountains. His excesses weakened his body, and in youth he perished.
The throne stood vacant, and Satyavati, heavy with grief, turned to Bhishma. “O son of Shantanu, inheritor of his virtues, sole pillar of this dynasty,” she said, “the Bharata line must not perish. You alone can sustain it. Take wives and bear children, that the lineage from Brahma himself be not broken.” But Bhishma, steadfast in his vow, replied: “Mother, the sun may part from his heat, the moon from his coolness, the elements from their nature, but I shall not part from my vow of celibacy, taken for my father’s sake. Yet I know the path of dharma. Let us seek another way.”
Satyavati, recalling the precedents of old, resolved upon Niyoga. She summoned her son Vyasa, born of sage Parashara, the island-born seer of blazing austerity. Embracing him, she spoke: “You must preserve this dynasty. Grace the widows of your brother and give heirs to the Kuru throne.” Vyasa assented, but prescribed that the queens must undergo a year of penance before the union.
Yet Ambika, upon beholding the dark and austere sage, closed her eyes in fear. Thus, her son, though destined to be mighty, was born blind—Dhritarashtra. Ambalika, stricken pale at his presence, bore a son strong yet bloodless in complexion—Pandu. A second attempt with Ambika failed, for she recoiled again; instead, her maid, humble and reverent, went to Vyasa and conceived Vidura, born as an incarnation of Dharma himself, owing to a curse upon Yama by sage Mandavya.
Thus, were born the three pillars of the Kuru destiny—Dhritarashtra, Pandu, and Vidura—through whom the line of Bharata would continue. Bhishma, true to his vow, ruled as guardian until the princes came of age, upholding the kingdom with wisdom and strength. By Vyasa’s grace and Satyavati’s determination, the foundation was laid for the mighty houses of Kauravas and Pandavas, whose tale would stand unshaken for generations, a beacon of dharma and destiny
