Dear Readers,

­­­­­In the series of stories that Vaishampayana narrated to King Janmejaya, he stressed the role of karma in an individual’s life. The actions we commit and the choices behind those actions have the potential to change the entire course of our lives. The kings, queens, princes, and princesses of the Chandra Dynasty experienced the cyclical effects of karma through the ages. Their actions decided the course of this illustrious dynasty which culminated in the Great War of Kurukshetra.

The previous episode discussed the story of Dushyanta and Shakuntala who were responsible for setting a new precedence for couples. Their son was King Bharat who became the greatest king to rule over India and united the Indian subcontinent. It was in his name that the Indian subcontinent came to be called ‘Bharatvarsha’. Through Bharat, the chandravamshis1 also came to be known as ‘bharatvanshis’. After Bharat, seventeen generations later, King Kuru ascended the throne. Kuru transcended the popularity of his ancestor. The reason for this popularity is a story that I will save for later because it deserves to be told at a very special point in the epic. King Kuru needs a mention here because it was after him that the Bharatvanshis came to be known as Kuruvanshis. In this Kuru Vansh, eighteen generations after, Shantanu was born.

Most of you might have heard or read about King Shantanu because the recent versions of the epic usually begin with Shantanu’s tryst with Ganga and then his marriage with Satyawati. But this character’s original story remains largely untold. This is the beauty of the epic. Every incident which happens carries with it a causality that makes for a legend itself. Similar is the case with Shantanu. Whatever he experiences throughout his life is a result of his own actions. In this episode, I will tell you the story of Shantanu as Vaishampayana told it to King Janmejaya.

The story begins from another point in time. Apart from the Chandra Dynasty, the other reigning dynasty in Bharatvarsha was the Ikshvaku Dynasty2 to which the great Ram belonged. In this Ikshvaku dynasty, there was a king called Mahabhisha. Mahabhisha was devoted to his people and extremely devout. Through his actions and spiritual penances, Mahabhisha, like Yayati earned a place in Indra’s court. He reached the celestial city of Amravati, where resided Indra and the other Devas. Ganga3 was also a resident of Amravati and frequented Indra’s court.

One day, in the court of Indra the wind was extremely strong. Ganga’s upper garment came off due to the strong gusts. The devas, rishis, and other men in the court lowered their eyes. Everyone, except Mahabhisha, lowered their eyes. He kept staring at Ganga unabashedly. At such shamelessness, Brahma, the creator lost his temper. He cursed Mahabhisha to be born again as a mortal. Ganga was also cursed to be born as a mortal since she enjoyed Mahabhisha’s attention. When Mahabhisha realized his mistake, he accepted the curse but requested to be born as Kuru King Pratipa’s son. Brahma granted this wish of his.

Slated to be born as a mortal, Ganga promised Mahabhisha that she would meet him on earth again.

As destined, Mahabhisha took birth as Kuru King Pratipa’s youngest son, Shantanu. Pratipa’s eldest son suffered from leprosy. His second son ruled over the kingdom of his maternal grandfather. So, Pratipa crowned Shantanu the heir to the throne of Hastinapura. Shantanu was a good king but he lacked companionship. One day, while walking on the banks of the Ganges, he came across Ganga in her human form. The two felt an instant attraction. Shantanu expressed his desire to marry Ganga and make her his queen. Ganga agreed on one condition. She told Shantanu that he should never ask her any questions. The moment he questions her actions, she will leave for her celestial abode and never return. Shantanu agreed to her condition and promised to never question her actions. Happily, the two got married.

Soon, Ganga gave birth to a son. But before Shantanu could meet his newborn, Ganga drowned the baby in the waters of the river Ganges. Shantanu was horrified but he remembered his promise and didn’t ask any questions from Ganga.

The same thing happened with their second son, the third, and the fourth, and continued to happen seven times. Shantanu witnessed the death of his babies. His heart wrenched but he couldn’t ask a single question from his wife for fear of losing her.

Soon Ganga conceived for the eighth time. This time Shantanu decided that he would not let Ganga drown the child. When the baby was born, Ganga took the little one to the banks of the river. But this time, Shantanu intervened and asked Ganga to stop. He asked Ganga why she was drowning her own children. What was the reason behind this heinous act?

Ganga smiled and told Shantanu that since he had broken the promise he gave to her, Ganga will now have to leave. But before departing she told Shantanu that the eight babies born to her were the eight Vasus4. The Vasus had been cursed by the great Sage Vashisth to take birth and suffer as a mortal. To ease their suffering, they requested Ganga to be their mother on earth and drown them in her holy waters to minimalize their lives and sufferings.

Since Shantanu stopped Ganga from drowning the eighth child, Ganga understood his need for a son and promised him that she would raise the baby to be a strapping young man who will one day become the strongest pillar of Shantanu’s kingdom. Promising thus, Ganga left for Amravati and took the baby boy with her.

Ganga’s separation left Shantanu shattered and he cursed himself for not having trusted his wife.

Several years later, while strolling on the banks of the Ganga, Shantanu came across a young boy who had made a dam on the gushing waters of the river with his arrows. Shantanu was impressed by the young boy’s skill and asked for an introduction. The boy bowed to him and introduced himself as Devrutt, son of Ganga and Shantanu.

Shantanu was overjoyed to have finally met his son. At that moment, Ganga appeared in her human form and told Shantanu that Devrutt is his responsibility now. Shantanu couldn’t be happier. He took his son to Hastinapura and declared him the crown prince.

And that, dear readers, is the beginning of The Mahabharata according to most versions today.

In the first look, this story doesn’t seem to carry any important moral values. But if one looks closely, there is an extremely important life lesson that this story contains. It teaches one the power of expression. What our mouth speaks matters, but what our eyes say matters more.

It was the longing gaze of Mahabhisha that Ganga enjoyed. She didn’t feel ashamed of enjoying sexual attention, instead took the onus of it underlining the fact that for women too physical attraction has equal importance as emotional attraction.

Furthermore, the story reveals the undeniable importance of trust in a relationship. Ganga asked Shantanu for unflinching faith. There was a larger plan at work behind her actions. Had Shantanu not interfered in her work, the suffering that Devrutt will endure in his life could have been avoided. It is this kind of faith that a marriage demands. When we question our partners, we display the underlying mistrust we have over them. What a beautiful world it would be if all of our relationships have such unshakeable faith as their foundation! Right?

Dear Readers,

This was my take on this story. Were you able to read something else between the lines? Let me know in the comments below. Would love to know your take on the story.