The Murderous Mother

Ganga and Shantanu

Traditionally rivers are considered to be consorts of the ocean. Therefore Ganga, the river, is the wife of Varuna, the Lord of the Oceans.

A story goes that when the ocean sprayed a few drops of its water on the person of Bramha, he cursed Varuna to be born twice on earth. In his latter birth he was to be Shantanu, the forefather of the Pandavas and the Kauravas.

As Ganga was his consort, she became his wife in his birth as Shantanu too. But Ganga was in her celestial form whereas Shantanu was a human being. So when Ganga wanted to carry out a task on behalf of the Vasus, she approached Shantanu’s father and by sitting on his right lap (reserved for progeny) she compelled King Prateepa to declare that she was to become his daughter-in-law.
Ganga announced that she would only marry his third son, Shantanu, and laid the conditions that neither could Shantanu question her actions nor try to stop her.

The Vasus

A group of demi-gods called Vasus are eight in number. They are a part of the triad, the other two being the eleven Rudras and the twelve Adityas.

Once, Varangi the consort of a Vasu named Dyu, wanted to procure the divine cow Nandini from sage Vasishta. Dyu, roped in his seven brothers to become accomplices, and stole the cow and tied her up. An angered sage Vasishta, with special presence of Bramha within him, cursed all of them to be born as humans. But knowing that Dyu was the one responsible for the act, he granted the boon of quick deaths to the seven Vasus while he pronounced a harsh curse for the eighth Vasu. He declared that Dyu would not only be born as a human but would have the total lifespan of the eight Vasus. Dyu was to experience the misery of eight stays in the womb and suffer the pain of eight deaths. The seven Vasus implored to Bramha to also grant that they would not be born of a human mother, and that Dyu would become learned and famous and possess the combined strength of the eight Vasus.

As for Varangi, the instigator, she was cursed to be born as an adversary of Dyu, ultimately becoming the cause of his death.

The Vasus then approached Ganga and requested that they should be immediately killed once they were born as her sons.

The Eighth Child

As Ganga gave birth to one son after another, she quickly ended their lives by drowning them in her own waters. Shantanu bound by his vow, watched helpless and horrified. When the turn of the eighth child came, Shantanu objected to Ganga’s actions and questioned her. In reality, this was a part of the divine plan for Dyu had to live for 800 long years, and it was time for Ganga to leave the mortal world.

Ganga explained the Vasus’ plight and as her mission on earth was accomplished she left with the baby and returned him to Shantanu, years later as an accomplished young man named Devavrata, who would go on to become the famed Bheeshmacharya.