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BHEESHMA - SELFLESSNESS
PERSONIFIED
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Bhishma, originally named Devavrata, is one of the central
pillars in the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata, who influenced
the turn of events in the epic by his various acts of
commission and omission. The story begins to take shape with
the birth of Devavrata as a result of the union between the
river Goddess Ganga and the king of Hastinapur, Shantanu.
Ganga, who had drowned her first seven sons was about to drown
her eighth son too when Shantanu confronted her and stopped
her from doing so, thereby breaking his oath never to question
Ganga’s actions. Ganga then proceeded to heaven with her child
Devavrata after explaining to Shantanu that the child was, in
fact, a God cursed by Guru Vashishtha to be born as a human
and live a long and painful, yet illustrious life. She
promised to return Devavrata back to him once he had gained
thorough knowledge of sacred texts, martial skills as well as
other skills required to run a kingdom.
Shantanu meets his son Devavrata
Several years had passed since Ganga took Devavrata back to
heaven with her when one day, while on a hunting trip along
the banks of the river Ganges, Shantanu saw the flow of the
mighty river checked by a wall of arrows by a handsome young
man. He was surprised to see such skills and curious to know
his identity, which is when Ganga appeared in person and
introduced Shantanu to his son Devavrata. Shantanu was
extremely pleased to know that his son had grown up to be such
a skillful archer and that he had been taught all the
necessary skills by great masters like Guru Vashishtha and
Parashurama. Shantanu took him back to Hastinapur where
Devavrata soon won over the hearts of both his father and the
people of the kingdom. Shantanu doted on his son who was a
just, kind and brave prince and eventually he appointed him as
the crown prince of Hastinapur.
Devavrata takes the terrible oath – Bhishma Pratigya
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KING SHANTANU FALLING IN LOVE WITH
SATYAVATI (MATSYAGANDHA)
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Shantanu was a great king, popular among his people. And with
Devavrata showing the same promise, Shantanu left the running
of the kingdom’s affairs to him more and more. One day, while
on a hunting trip, Shantanu saw a beautiful fisherwoman named
Satyavati and wished to marry her. She left the decision to
her father, the chief of the fishermen who agreed on the
condition that the son born to his daughter sat on the throne
of Hastinapur. Shantanu, unable to meet this condition that
would be so unfair to his beloved and deserving son Devavrata,
went back to Hastinapur with a heavy heart. Though he kept his
longing for Satyavati to himself, it started taking a toll on
his health and he became ill and depressed and increasingly
reclusive.
Devavrata was pained to see his father’s condition and somehow
learnt the reason behind it. He, then, went to meet the
chieftain and implored him to allow Satyavati to marry his
father. The chief repeated his condition and Devavrata, the
devoted son, vowed never to claim right to Hastinapur’s
throne. But even this was insufficient assurance for
Satyavati’s father who wanted to ensure that there was no
other claimant to the throne ever other than the children and
grandchildren of his daughter. Understanding his concern,
Devavrata made the ultimate sacrifice for his father by taking
a lifelong vow of celibacy. This terrible oath or Bhishma
Pratigya to remain alone and lonely for the rest of his life
made the Gods appear and chant the name Bhishma and praise the
prince’s devotion for his father. From then on, Devavrata came
to be known as Bhishma.
Bhishma’s promise to serve the throne
When Shantanu came to know of Bhishma’s oath, he was
overwhelmed at his sacrifice and gave him the boon that he
would be able to choose the manner and time of his passing
away from this world. While Shantanu and Satyavati got
married, the courtiers and the people of the kingdom of
Hastinapur were unhappy at losing an extremely deserving crown
prince and they made their displeasure known to Bhishma. To
appease them, Bhishma took yet another vow that he would
always be there to serve the throne of Hastinapur and his
loyalty would always lie with whosoever was the king at any
point of time. Of course, Bhishma then had no way of knowing
that his oath will force him to side with those whose actions
he disapproved in his heart.
Bhishma’s status within the royal family
The various oaths that Bhishma took to bring about the
marriage of his father with Satyavati put him in a peculiar,
yet revered position within the royal family. He was loved by
his father and respected by his step mother who realized the
enormity of Bhishma’s sacrifice and the fact that he was a
popular and powerful figure who would be a great ally and
advisor in ruling the kingdom once the King passed away.
Satyavati herself was initially rejected by people as a
fisherman’s daughter, but soon, with the help of her husband
and her stepson and her own conduct, she carved out a place in
the heart of her people.
Shantanu and Satyavati had two children: Chitrangad and
Vichitravirya. They had an aging father and looked upon
Bhishma, their older step brother as a father figure, who in
turn, loved them and brought them up as his own sons and
ensured that they learned everything required to become future
kings. When Shantanu passed away, Chitrangad was crowned as
the king and he ran the affairs of the kingdom under the
guidance of Bhishma and Satyavati. During this period, Bhishma
had an elevated status in the palace and was the king for all
intents and purposes, except in name. However, he never even
once forgot his vow and misused his position as the one
running the show. Satyavati and her children, in turn, had a
lot of respect and affection for Bhishma.
Chitrangad grew up to be a great king; however, he was killed
by an angry Gandharva king who was his namesake (celestial
musician cum warrior) in a duel while Bhishma was away on
state affairs. Bhishma was inconsolable when he heard of the
death of his beloved brave brother but Satyavati showed grit
and resilience and asked Bhishma to crown her younger son as
the king as Chitrangad had no children. Bhishma did as advised
by Satyavati and put Vichitravirya on the throne of Hastinapur
and started running the state affairs in his name, while at
the same time teaching him the ropes of ruling a kingdom.
Vichitravirya’s marriage and Amba’s oath
Satyavati, who was looking for a good match for her son
Vichitravirya, was pleased to hear about the swayamvara of
three beautiful daughters of the King of Kashi: Amba, Ambika,
and Ambalika. She asked Bhishma to go to Kashi and bring
the three princesses to Hastinapur for marriage with her son.
Bhishma did as asked, abducting the three while issuing a
challenge to all other kings and princes present to stop him
at their own peril. Salva, the king of Saubala, and Amba were
in love and the brave king fought with Bhishma, but was
defeated badly. However, when Bhishma came to know of Amba’s
love for Salva, he sent her to him who, in turn, rejected her
as he was still smarting from his defeat. Now, Amba asked
Bhishma to marry her but he could not as he was under oath.
This unfortunate turn of events enraged the princess and she
went to Parashurama and requested him to kill Bhishma and
avenge her. However, even Parashurama was unable to kill
Bhishma who was an invincible warrior. This is when Amba vowed
to please the Gods and take rebirth, if required, to take her
revenge and kill Bhishma. Eventually, Amba was given a boon by
Lord Shiva that she will be reborn as a great warrior and will
be responsible for Bhishma’s death.
Birth of the next generation
Satyavati, despite having the assurance of her children
inheriting the throne, was an unfortunate woman as both her
sons died young without leaving an heir. Soon after his
marriage, Vichitravirya fell ill and died childless. A
grieving, yet ambitious Satyavati requested Bhishma to do
niyog (sexual intercourse without lust to beget a child) with
her daughters-in-law to give the kingdom an heir to the
throne. Bhishma expressed his inability to do so citing his
oath. This is when Satyavati called for a favor from his son
Vyasa, author of this epic, who was Satyavati’s child born out
of wedlock. Vyasa performed niyog with her sisters-in-law
Ambika and Ambalika and a maid of Ambika and out of their
union were born Dhritarashtra, Pandu, and Vidur, respectively.
The eldest of the three, Dhritarashtra, was blind and as such,
Pandu was declared the heir to Hastinapur’s throne. Once
again, Bhishma, the king’s uncle played the role of the show
runner in his nephew’s name while at the same time training
him to take over the reins when he grew up.
Bhishma Pitamah, the grand old man of Kuru
Throughout his youth, Bhishma had run the kingdom by proxy but
now, Dhritarashtra and Pandu were grown up princes and Pandu
took over the duties of running Hastinapur while an aging
Bhishma played the role of an advisor. As time passed,
Dhritarastra was married to Gandhari and Pandu to Kunti and
later, Madri. Unfortunately, both the princes were childless
and thus, unhappy. While Gandhari was helped by Vyasa in
begetting a hundred sons and a daughter, Kunti and Madri
performed niyog with various Gods of heavens and had a total
of five sons.
Pandu’s sons were born in the forest while he was serving
penance for killing a sage and his consort. Kunti gave birth
to Yudhishthira, Bheem, and Arjuna while Madri gave birth to
male twins Nakul and Sahdev. These five were together called
Pandavas while Dhritarashtra’s hundred sons came to be known
as Kauravas with the eldest one being named Duryodhana.
While Pandu was in forest, Dhritarashtra was made the care
taker king of Hastinapur. However, once Pandu and Madri died
in the forest, he declared himself the king of Hastinapur.
Satyavati, an old woman now who had seen many untimely deaths
was grief stricken and left the palace to live in the forest
with her daughters-in law. Kunti, in the meantime, returned to
live in the palace with her five sons. Bhishma, the pitamah or
grandfather to Kaurava and Pandava brothers gave his silent
support to Kunti and loved the fatherless Pandava brothers,
especially Arjuna, more than the Kauravas due to their
humility and unquestionably good conduct.
However, when war was declared between Kauravas and Pandavas,
despite an attempt by the palace elders and Sri Krishna to
avert it by asking Duryodhana to give Pandavas their fair
share of the kingdom, Bhishma chose to fight on the Kaurava
side who then were the occupants of the throne of Hastinapur.
Bhishma and Krishna
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KRISHNA AS KING OF DWARKA
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Krishna arrives in the epic of Mahabharata a lot later than
Bhishma and yet, plays an all important role in the story.
Though both the characters are central to the story, they
influence it in totally different ways. While Devavrata’s
Bhishma Pratigya lays the foundation of the story and the
events that unfold, Krishna’s wisdom and vision leads the
story to its violent, yet justifiable end.
Bhishma is bound by a narrow interpretation of his vows as
well as a rigid orthodox thinking, and as such, forced to
ignore the many faults of the subsequent kings that rule
Hastinapur, Krishna had no such compulsions. He was
forever ready to call a spade, a spade and help out the
righteous Pandava brothers, his cousins, whenever they needed
him. Even when Bhishma kept silent and looked away despite
being present at Draupadi’s disrobing, it was Krishna who
answered Draupadi’s prayers and saved her from a great insult
with his divine powers.
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GITA UPDESH BY KRISHNA TO ARJUNA
IN THE BATTLE OF KURUKSHETRA
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Bhishma, forever the protector of the throne, led the war from
the Kaurava side and caused huge damage to the Pandava forces,
even though in his heart, he knew it wasn’t right. On the
other hand, Krishna left no stone unturned to ensure Pandavas
win the war at Kurukshetra and was their chief counselor and
strategist without whom it would have been impossible for them
to defeat the mighty Kaurava army and their allies. Krishna
even gave Arjuna the moral support and motivation, Gitopadesh,
in the battle field when Arjuna lost his nerve seeing his
elders, family members and Guru in the enemy line up.
In spite of playing completely different roles in the events
that shaped the destiny of Hastinapur, indeed the whole
Bharata, both these mighty personalities had great respect and
love for each other. Bhishma was much older than Krishna and
an extremely learned and brave man enjoying reverence by all
around him. Bhishma was also well aware of Krishna’s divinity
and was his great devotee. Krishna, in turn, loved Bhishma for
his complete devotion to him and understood that his actions
were guided by his understanding of the Vedas and Vedic
traditions and the fact that this understanding was too
deeply rooted for him to accept and support the changing moral
standards and world view that Krishna wanted to establish. For
Bhishma, it was important to do his duty as he saw it, all the
while knowing that ultimately, Krishna’s wish would be
supreme.
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KRISHNA LIFTS THE WHEEL OF THE
CHARIOT TO KILL PITAMAHA BHISHMA DURING KURUKSHETRA
WAR
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During the war, an invincible Bhishma wreaked havoc on the
Pandava army for ten days but he had vowed not to kill
Pandavas, his grandchildren. When provoked by Duryodhana, he
relented and said that either he will kill Arjuna the next day
or make Krishna pick up a weapon and force him to break his
vow. In the battle that ensued the next day, Bhishma was very
near killing Arjuna when Krishna broke his vow and picked up a
wheel against Bhishma. This incident is significant in that it
shows that Krishna was prepared on one hand to break his own
vow to defend his beloved Arjuna, on the other he helped his
devotee Bhishma to keep his vow of either killing Arjuna or
forcing Krishna to pick up a weapon. And here lies the
difference in the characters of the two men – one ready to
sacrifice all to keep his vows, the other ready to do all it
takes to establish dharma.
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BHISHMA - THE GRANDMAN OF
MAHABHARATA
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Krishna then asked Arjuna to go to Bhishma and understand how
he could be killed and Bhishma obliged by telling them he
would not raise his weapons against a woman or a transgender.
Arjuna then fatally injured Bhishma when he laid down his
weapons seeing Shikhandi, or Amba reborn.
Bhishma had the boon of deciding the manner and time of his
death and even though he was in great pain, he did not yet
wish to leave this world. And this is when Krishna gave a boon
to Bhishma that he would not feel any pain from his wounds and
encouraged him to share his immense knowledge of statesmanship
with Yudhishthira, the future king of Hastinapur, thereby
ensuring that his name would forever be etched in history not
only for his vows and valiance, but also as a great scholar
and statesman.
Bhishma: A character sketch
Devavrata, a gentle, learned, kind and righteous young man and
a loving and devoted son was aptly named Bhishma once he had
taken the terrible oaths of celibacy and renunciation of the
throne of Hastinapur. To add to these two oaths, he also
promised his father and the people of the state that he would
be subservient to the throne and the king of Hastinapur. These
impulsively taken oaths, for an unworthy cause, colored his
judgment and decisions throughout his life.
Despite being a great warrior and possessing all the qualities
of a great king, Bhishma was reduced to playing the role of an
administrator and advisor without any actual powers. Had he
not taken the vows so literally, he could have won other
kingdoms completely on his own strength and lived a more
fulfilling life and exerted greater influence on the events
that unfolded in his old age. From the very beginning, Bhishma
realized that the Kaurava brothers were not only jealous of
their cousins and rude to them, but also arrogant and
dangerous. Even when they tried a number of times to get the
Pandavas killed, Bhishma did nothing to stop them though he
had a lot of clout with their parents.
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COMPLETE SURRENDER TO KRISHNA -
VASTRAHARAN OF DRAUPADI
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Bhishma was a man who lived his life by the book. He was
orthodox in his thinking and took every written word in the
Vedas at their face value. This was apparent in the way he
chose to be a silent spectator when Draupadi was being
disrobed in Dhritarashtra’s court. Vedas considered women as
property and once Yudhishthira gambled away his wife Draupadi
to Duryodhana, he did not think it right to protest the
ghastly act even on humanitarian grounds.
Bhishma’s inaction at crucial junctures in the story is a blot
on his otherwise righteous conduct and goes against him when a
final evaluation of his character is done. His great strength
and bravery is wasted, indeed misused, by the Kauravas and
their maternal uncle Shakuni both before and during the war
who understood Bhishma’s inability to shrug off his misplaced
loyalty to the throne and used it to their advantage. Had
Bhishma understood and interpreted his vow of loyalty to the
throne better and taken a broader view of his duties, he would
have realized that he was doing a great disservice to the
kingdom and its people, not to mention the Kuru clan which was
hell bent on self destruction, by not taking action against
the injustice being meted out to the Pandavas.
However, he did try at the end to do the right thing by
sharing with Arjuna how he could be killed. Lying on his death
bed, having finally done his duty, he showed his true love for
his grandson Arjuna by asking him to arrange for a pillow for
him and satisfying his thirst, ignoring the efforts made by
others including Duryodhana to serve him.
Bhishma was cursed and born to live a painful life and he did
so without any complaints. A warrior sans peers, he ensured
Hastinapur was protected from any and all external threats and
died in the process, finally satisfied in his heart that the
throne now belonged to a righteous king.
