Bhishma's Vow

On the banks of the river Yamuna, an old fisherman looked at the young prince standing in front of him and shook his head.

"You are a good man," he said. "But one day you will have sons of your own. And your sons might take the throne from my daughter's sons."

The prince was quiet for a moment. Then he raised his hand and made a promise that would shape the whole of the Mahabharata.

The son of the river

The prince's name was Devavrata. He was the son of King Shantanu of Hastinapura and of Ganga, the goddess of the river. Ganga had left the king long ago, but she had raised their son herself and then returned him to his father, grown up, learned and brave.

Shantanu was overjoyed. He made Devavrata the crown prince, and the people loved him. For four years, father and son lived happily together.

The king's secret

One day, King Shantanu was wandering by the Yamuna when he noticed a sweet fragrance in the air. Following it, he found a young woman of great beauty, who ferried travellers across the river in her boat. Her name was Satyavati, and she was the daughter of the chief of the fishermen.

The king fell in love with her at once, and went to her father to ask for her hand.

The fisherman chief agreed, on one condition. The son born to Satyavati must become king after Shantanu.

Shantanu could not agree. He already had a son, the crown prince, whom he loved and who had done nothing wrong. So he went home without a word.

But he could not forget Satyavati. He grew thin and silent, and sat alone, lost in thought.

Devavrata finds out

Devavrata saw that his father was unhappy. He asked him why, but the king would not say. So the prince went to an old minister who had been with the king, and the minister told him the truth.

Devavrata did not hesitate. He gathered some of the old warriors of the court and went straight to the fisherman's house by the river.

There, he asked for Satyavati's hand on his father's behalf. And he made the first promise. The son born to Satyavati would be king. He, Devavrata, gave up his right to the throne.

A promise without end

The fisherman chief was impressed, but he was still worried. He pointed out that Devavrata's promise covered only Devavrata. What about Devavrata's own children, one day? They might be strong, and they might want the throne.

So Devavrata made a second promise, in front of everyone there. He would never marry. He would have no children at all, for as long as he lived.

At that moment, the story says, flowers fell from the sky, and the gods and sages cried out a new name for him: Bhishma. It means "the one of the terrible vow", because the promise was so hard.

Devavrata then turned to Satyavati and invited her, respectfully, to come with him to his father.

The father's gift

When King Shantanu learned what his son had given up for him, he was deeply moved. As a blessing, he gave Bhishma a rare gift: death would not come to him until he himself chose to let it.

Shantanu married Satyavati, and they had sons. Bhishma served them, and later their children and grandchildren, as a guardian of the kingdom.

He never broke his vow. Not when the throne stood empty, and not when Satyavati herself, many years later, asked him to set it aside for the good of the family. He would not.

A long shadow

The vow made Bhishma the most respected man in Hastinapura. But it also bound him to the throne for the rest of his long life. When the great quarrel between the Kauravas and the Pandavas came, he loved the Pandava brothers dearly, yet he stood with the court he had sworn to serve.

That is why people remember his story in two ways. Some see a son who gave up everything out of love for his father. Others see how one great promise can tie a person's hands for generations. Both are true, and that is why the story is still told.

About this story

This story comes from the Adi Parva, the Book of the Beginning, of the Mahabharata. Even today, in India, a "Bhishma pratigya", a vow like Bhishma's, means a promise that a person will keep no matter what it costs. This version is a shortened, simplified retelling.