Goddess Ganga stood before King Santanu, in human form,

As the very embodiment of divine beauty and loveliness.

The king was so deeply infatuated with her graceful form

That he then and there requested her to be his wife for which

He offered her his kingdom, wealth and his very life, though

He did not even know who she was and whence she came.

She replied “Oh king, I shall be your wife; but there are

Some inviolable conditions: Neither you nor anyone else

Shall ask me who I am and whence I come. You shall not

Question any action of mine, good or bad, nor become angry

With me for any reason. You shall not also say anything

To displease me. If any of these conditions are violated

I shall leave you. Do you agree?” The king agreed. They

Lived as husband and wife in great happiness, and even

Forgot the passage of time. Ganga gave birth to many

Children. She carried each newborn child to the Ganges,

Cast it into the river and returned to the king with a smile!

Santanu was no doubt, horrified by her fiendish behavior but

He could not utter a word for fear of breaking the promise

And losing her. When the eighth newborn child was about

To be thrown into the river, the king lost control, burst out

In anger and restrained her. She told the king “O king, you

Have broken your promise. Your heart is now set on the

Child and you don’t need my presence any more. So, I go.

But before going I must tell you why I behaved as I did.

The eight Vasus were once cursed by sage Vasishta to be

Born as human beings and moved by their request and

Prayer, I had to agree to be their mother. I bore them to you.

For the service rendered by you to the Vasus, you have

Earned great merit. I shall not kill this child. But I shall

Bring it up for a time and then return it to you as a gift.

Saying thus, Ganga disappeared with the child. It was

This child who was later to became famous as Bhishma,

(Also as Devavrata), in the great epic of Mahabharata.

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Note: Vasus are a class of eight vedic deities.

 

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