1. Santanu married a beautiful woman whose only condition was that he could not question anything she did. She was pregnant eight times and each time she tossed her baby in the river and drowned it. On the eighth child, Santanu finally tried to put a stop to it. She explained that she was Ganga and the children were the eight vasus who stole a cow and so they were being punished. I didn't realize that the reason the last one was spared was because he was the one who organized the crime. He had to live longer on earth than the others and his name was Devavratha. Santanu named him as his heir.
2. Kunti marries Santanu after Devavratha promises that their son will inherit the throne and that he will be celibate. He changes his name to Bhishma.
3. Vichitravirya inherits the throne after his brother Chitrangada dies and he marries Ambika and Ambalika. Amba, their sister, says she is already in love with Salwa. She leaves to go be with him, but he rejects her. Bhishma refuses to marry her because he is celibate and she swears she will kill him. Vichitravirya died and so Satyavathi begged Bhishma to have children with his wives. He refused due to his vow of celibacy.
4. Satyavathi admits that she has another child and tells the story of her birth. She was born form a fish and so she always smelled of fish. A sage got rid of her fishy odor and gave her a fresh fragrance so she had a child with him. She stayed on an island to give birth and so her virginity was not lost. The child was named Vyasa.
5. Vyasa agreed to have children with Ambalika and Ambika, but he asked for a year to prepare. He had been in penance and so he was not in a state to be seen. Satyavathi would not allow this and sent the wives to him. Ambika was disgusted by his appearance and kept her eyes shut. Their child, Dhritarashtra, was born blind. Ambalika grew pale when she saw him and so their child, Pandu, was born very pale. Ambalika was asked to have another child with him, but she sent her servant in instead. Their child was born normal and his name was Vidura.
6. Dhritarashtra married Gandhari. She wore a blindfold to live like her husband. Pandu married married Kunthi and Dhritarashtra allowed him to rule due to his handicap.
7. Pandu was cursed to die the next time he 'attempted to unite' with his wife.
8. Kunthi had a mantra which she had already used to have a child with Surya. His name was Karna. In able to continue their line, she offered to use it again. First, she had a child with Yama, the god of death and justice. This child was a leader named Yudhistira. Next, she had a child with Vayu, the god of wind. This child was strong and his name was Bhima. Finally, she had a child with Indra. This child was wise and knowledgeable and could use every weapon with ease. His name was Arjuna. Madri wanted children as well, so Kunthi gave her her mantra. She used it to call upon the Aswins and had the twins Nakula and Sahadeva. These five children were the Pandavas.
9. Gandhari had one hundred sons with Dhritarashtra. The oldest one was Duryodhana.
10. Pandu died with his wife Madri.
11. Drona trained the Pandavas and the Kauravas together. Duryodhana resented the Pandavas and the special attention they received because of their great skills. Drona was caught in the jaws of a crocodile and Arjuna shot him into pieces. For his reward, Drona gave him a weapon that was too powerful to use against a normal opponent. The only way he could use it, was against a supernatural foe or the world would burn up.
12. Karna enters in a competition and matches Arjuna's talents. He is contested by the Pandavas. The Kauravas and Pandavas begin forming their sides, with Karna on one side and Arjuna on the other. Duryodhana makes Karna King of Anga, but he is humiliated anyway by his lack of a prestigious family.
13. Drona asked his students to attack Panchala and capture King Drupada, who used to be his friend but rejected him due to his own status. They captured the kingdom and Drona took half so they would be equals.
14. Dhritarashtra said Yudhistira was his heir because he loved him so much, but he regretted it. The Pandavas were all being talked about but his own sons were ignored. Dhritarashtra began plotting ways to get the Pandavas out of the way for a while. He told Yudhistira to go to Varanavata for the festival of Shiva and to take his mother and the rest of the Pandavas with him.
15. Their home in Varanavata was a trap. Yudhistira noticed the smell of oil and resin in the home when they arrived and knew it was meant to kill them. They dug a hole underground as a means of escape. The Pandavas escaped during a big feast and the house was set on fire. The Pandavas were thought to have died in the blaze, but they escaped and left. Dhritarashtra had not expected the plan to be taken so far and his conscience was troubled.
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| Photo of a house fire found on Wikimedia Commons |
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