Amba, Ambika and Ambalika were the daughters of Kashya – the king of Kashi. They became a part of the powerful Hastinapur kingdom by way of marriage. Their destinies took a horrible turn with this union and all three suffered throughout their lives. Today we will read about them and how events unfolded which took them to their ill fated life journey.
King of Kashi holds a ‘Swayamvar’ for his daughters
Amba, Ambika and Ambalika had grown into fine princesses and were now ready for marraige. The King of Kashi arranged a ‘Swayamvar’ for his three daughters wherein whoever won the competition would win the sisters hand in marraige.
Bhishma’s arrival at the Swayamvar
Bhishma arrived uninvited, with his troops at the Swayamvar organized by the King of Kashi. He had come to seek the hand of the three princesses in marriage for his brother – Vichitravirya. Bhishma defeated all the prince’s and kings in the Swayamvar and took the princesses to Hastinapur.
Amba’s love for King Shalya
Amba, the eldest daughter of the King of Kashi was in love with King Shalya of Madra. She was going to accept him as her husband in the ‘Swayamvar’. She confessed her feelings for King Shalya in the Swayamvar and then asked Bhishma to do whatever he feels was appropriate since he had won them in the Swayamvar.
Bhishma decided to let go Amba as she was in love with King Shalya. He also asked the other two daughters if they had accepted anyone for their husband. When the other two sisters declined, he took them to Hastinapur.
Shalya rejects Amba
Amba went to meet Shalya immediately after her sisters left for Hastinapur. Shalya rejected Amba saying that Bhishma had won her. So he couldn’t now stake claim on her. Hearing this Amba was deeply pained. She was immensely angry with Bhishma and she burnt with fury in the fire of revenge. She resorted to intense penance in the hope of acquiring a boon from Shiva. Her penance bore fruit and Shiva blessed her to be reborn as daughter of King Drupad. She would eventually convert into a man and be responsible for Bhishma’s death in a great battle of dharma. After receiving this boon, Amba ended her life.
Ambika and Ambalika’s tragic fate
Ambika and Ambalika’s fate was not very different from Amba’s. They both married Vichitravirya in Hastinapur. The young prince died of tuberculosis after his marriage. So Ambika and Ambalika were left married and widowed in a very short span of time. They faced and endured the horrors of ‘Niyog’ whereby they bore sons from a physical relationship with Ved Vyas, as there was no heir to the throne after Vichitravirya’s sudden demise. Dhritarashtra was born to Ambika and Pandu was born to Ambalika. Since Ambika closed her eyes in fear during her ‘Niyog’, Dhritarashtra was born blind. Ambalika had turned pale in fear during her ‘Niyog’ which resulted in Pandu being born with a pale complexion. After Pandu’s death, Ambalika and Ambika retired to the forest with their mother in law, Satyavati to perform penance.
The three sisters were unfortunately a victim of circumstances which were beyond their control. The situations in their lives were simply tragic and kept changing for the worse all along. Their lives are a reminder that for all good things to happen, one needs divine grace and blessings. Without it, even a seemingly royal life can bring misery, pain and sorrow.
