Amba () is a princess featured in the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the K ...

. She is the eldest and most beautiful daughter of Kashya, the King of

Kashi Kashi or Kaashi may refer to: Places * Varanasi (historically known as "Kashi"), a holy city in India ** Kingdom of Kashi, an ancient kingdom in the same place, one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas ** Kashi Vishwanath Temple, Varanasi * Kashgar, a c ...

, and the sister of

Ambika Ambika may refer to: Mythology * Ambika (goddess), an avatar of the Hindu goddesses Durga, Parvati, and Shakti * Ambika (Jainism), a Jain Yakshini goddess * Ambika (Mahabharata), the wife of Vichitravirya was also the mother of Dhritarashtra, th ...

and

Ambalika Ambalika () is a princess featured in the Mahabharata. The youngest daughter of Kashya, the King of Kashi, and Kausalya, she is abducted by Bhishma during her svayamvara ceremony, and becomes the wife of Vichitravirya, the King of Hastinap ...

. Amba, along with her sisters, were abducted by Bhishma during their

svayamvara Svayamvara ( sa, स्वयंवर, svayaṃvara, translit-std=IAST), in ancient India, was a method of marriage in which a woman chose a man as her husband from a group of suitors. In this context, in Sanskrit means 'self' and means ' ...

ceremony, as brides to marry Vichitravirya, the King of

Hastinapura Hastinapur is a city in the Meerut district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. ''Hastinapura'', described in Hindu texts such as the ''Mahabharata'' and the Puranas as the capital of the Kuru Kingdom, is also mentioned in ancient Jain text ...

. Before the wedding ceremony, the princess approaches Bhishma, and informs him of her love for King Salva, upon which she is allowed to go to the latter and urge him to accept her as his wife. To her dismay, Salva rejects her, regarding her to have been customarily accepted by Bhishma as his wife. Despite her efforts, as well as those of

Parashurama Parashurama (), also referred to as Rama Jamadagnya, Rama Bhargava and Veerarama, is the sixth avatar among the Dashavatara of the preserver god Vishnu in Hinduism. He is believed to be one of the ''Chiranjeevis'' (Immortals), who will app ...

, Bhishma refuses to marry her. Amba holds Bhishma responsible for her misfortune, undertaking a penance, and is granted a boon by

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one o ...

. She is reborn as

Shikhandi Shikhandi ( sa, शिखण्डी, translit=Śikhaṇḍī) is a character in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. Born as the daughter of Drupada, the King of Panchala, Shikhandi becomes a biological male after agreeing to a sex exchange with a y ...

, the child of King

Drupada Drupada (Sanskrit: द्रुपद, lit. ''firm-footed'' or ''pillar''), also known as Yajnasena (Sanskrit: यज्ञसेन, lit. ''he whose army is sacrificial''), is a character in the Mahābhārata. The son of King Prishata, he was ...

, and the sibling of the epic's female protagonist,

Draupadi Draupadi ( sa, द्रौपदी, draupadī, Daughter of Drupada), also referred to as Krishnaa, Panchali, and Yagyaseni, is the main female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata,'' and the common consort of the five Pandava brothe ...

Etymology

Amba is a commonly used word in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

meaning mother, also with

Vedic upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute th ...

linkage as the mother of the

Vedas upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute th ...

Legend

Svayamvara

The ''

Adi Parva The ''Adi Parva'' or ''The Book of the Beginning'' is the first of eighteen books of the Mahabharata. "Adi" ( आदि, Ādi) is a Sanskrit word that means "first". Adi Parva traditionally has 19 parts and 236 adhyayas (chapters). The critical edi ...

'' of the ''Mahabharata'' narrates the events of Amba's

at the Kingdom of Kashi. Amba and Salva, the King of Salva, were secretly in love and Amba had promised to place the ''

varmala A varamala () or a jayamala () is a South Asian garland that is most commonly associated with its eponymous ritual during a Hindu wedding ceremony. Traditionally, a varamala is made of roses and other flowers, though modern variations exist, su ...

'' on his neck, thereby choosing him as her bridegroom.

Bhishma Bhishma ( Sanskrit: भीष्‍म, , ), also known as Pitamaha, Gangaputra, and Devavrata, played an integral role in Mahabharata. He was the supreme commander of the Kaurava forces during the Kurukshetra War mentioned in the Hindu epi ...

learned of the ceremony of the three virtuous princesses, and went to the

to win the princesses for his step-brother Vichitravirya. Upon arrival, Bhishma announced his intention to abduct the brides, challenging the assembled suitors to stop him. Bhishma then forced the princesses into his chariot and rode away. The kings followed and showered Bhishma with arrows; however, Bhishma returned the attack and defeated them. Salva challenged Bhishma for a duel; Bhishma overpowered and wounded Salva, but spared his life. Unaware of Amba's feelings, Bhishma proceeded to

and presented them to

Satyavati Satyavati ( sa, सत्यवती, ; also spelled Satyawati) was the queen of the Kuru. She is the wife of king Shantanu of Hastinapura, and the great-grandmother of the Pandava and Kaurava princes (The principal characters of the Hin ...

, who made arrangements for their marriage to Vichitravirya. Amba approached Bhishma and the council of

Brahmins Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests ( purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...

and revealed that she and Salva were in love with each other and that she had been going to choose him as her husband in the svayamvara. Bhishma conceded that she should make her own decision regarding the matter and sent her to Salva with honours, while Ambika and Ambalika were married to Vichitravirya.

Salva's rejection

In the ''Ambopakhyanaparvan'' chapter of the book '' Udyoga Parva'' of the ''Mahabharata'', the rest of Amba's tale is narrated by Bhishma when

Duryodhana Duryodhana ( sa, दुर्योधन, ) also known as Suyodhana, is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata.'' He was the eldest of the Kauravas, the hundred sons of the blind king Dhritarashtra and his queen Gandhari. Bei ...

questions him as to why he did not kill

, an ally of the

Pandavas The Pandavas (Sanskrit: पाण्डव, IAST: Pāṇḍava) refers to the five legendary brothers— Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva—who are the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. They are acknowledge ...

, the cousins and foes of the

Kauravas ''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a legendary king of India who is the ancestor of many of the characters of the epic ''Mahabharata''. Usually, the term is used for the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra and his w ...

. Bhishma ensured that Amba was escorted safely to Salva's kingdom. Amba informed Salva that she had come for him. Salva retorted that he no longer desired her, as she was to be wed to another man. He declared that she had been rightfully won by Bhishma, who had defeated and insulted him and the other kings. He accused her of leaving with him of her own free will. Amba pleaded with Salva, whom she considered her true love, to accept her. But Salva reiterated his

Kshatriya Kshatriya ( hi, क्षत्रिय) (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of Hindu society, associated with warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the co ...

dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

and refused to accept her. Rejected, the heart-broken Amba left the Salva Kingdom and retired to the forest. In another version, Amba stung by this rejection went to

and accosted him, stating that he was responsible for all her problems. Bhishma tried to convince Vichitravirya to marry Amba, but he rejected her stating that she was in love with someone else. She then approached Bhishma to marry her. He also refused due to his vow of

celibacy Celibacy (from Latin ''caelibatus'') is the state of voluntarily being unmarried, sexually abstinent, or both, usually for religious reasons. It is often in association with the role of a religious official or devotee. In its narrow sense, th ...

. This further infuriated Amba, as she had now been spurned by three bachelors. She appealed to various kings to defeat Bhishma and bring her justice, but all of them refused, knowing Bhishma's capabilities. Finally, the furious Amba went to the forest to please the devas so that she may have her revenge on Bhishma.

Parshurama's mediation

Amba reflected on her plight and considered all the people responsible for it, including herself (as she did not escape Bhishma's chariot when Bhishma was fighting Salva), Bhishma (who abducted her), Salva (who rejected her) and her father (who arranged her svayamvara). She finally arrived at the conclusion that Bhishma was the main culprit and swore to destroy him by austerities or battle. She sought shelter with a group of ascetics that night and narrated her tale to them. There the learned sage Shaikhavatya consoled Amba and promised to guide her in her austerities. Other sages discussed amongst themselves Amba's situation and contemplated her alternatives and advised her to return to her father as there are only two true protectors of a woman: a father and a husband. However, Amba declined, deciding to practice austerities. The next day, the sage Hotravahana (of the Srinjaya race), a former king and Amba's maternal grandfather, passed by the place. Upon listening to Amba's woe, the sage advised her not to return to her father and instead approach the sage

. Akritavrana, one of Parashurama's disciples, also arrived at the place. Hotravahana introduced Amba to Akritavrana and both of them explained Amba's ordeal to him. Akritavrana gave Amba two options: either Parashurama should approach Salva to marry her or Bhishma should be defeated by Parashurama. Amba asked Akritavrana to decide who was her culprit. Akritavrana agreed with Amba that Bhishma was the root cause of her plight and should be the target of her revenge. Akritavrana and Hotravahana explained Amba's predicament to Parashurama, whom Amba herself prayed to for help. Parashurama gave his word to Amba that he would slay Bhishma, who was his disciple in the past, and destroy his pride. When Parashurama arrived with his retinue at

Kurukshetra Kurukshetra (, ) is a city and administrative headquarter of Kurukshetra district in the Indian state of Haryana. It is also known as Dharmakshetra ("Realm of duty ") and as the "Land of the Bhagavad Gita". Legends According to the Pura ...

and sent a message to Bhishma of his arrival, Bhishma came to see his guru, offering him the traditional respects. A pleased Parashurama commanded Bhishma to accept Amba. Bhishma refused, restating that he had taken a vow of celibacy. An infuriated Parashurama threatened Bhishma with death. Bhishma tried to calm the sage, but in vain, and he finally agreed to battle his guru to safeguard his

duty.

Ganga The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...

tried stopping the battle by beseeching her son as well as the great sage, but failed. The great battle lasted for 23 days, without any result. On the 24th day when

chose to use a deadly weapon, at the behest of the divine sage

Narada Narada ( sa, नारद, ), or Narada Muni, is a sage divinity, famous in Hindu traditions as a travelling musician and storyteller, who carries news and enlightening wisdom. He is one of mind-created children of Brahma, the creator god. He ...

and the devas, Parashurama ended the conflict and the battle was declared a draw. Parashurama narrated the events to Amba and told her to seek Bhishma's protection. However, Amba refused to listen to Parashurama's advice and left angrily declaring that she would achieve her objective by asceticism.

Austerities

Amba gave up food and sleep, and practised asceticism standing still for six months in the

Yamuna The Yamuna ( Hindustani: ), also spelt Jumna, is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a height of about on the southwestern slopes of B ...

river valley, surviving only on air. She became emaciated and developed matted locks. After that, she stood in the waters of the

, without food and practised austerities. After that, she spent time standing on her tip toes, having eaten only one fallen leaf of a tree. Her penance for twelve years started burning the heavens and the earth. She then went to

Vatsa Vatsa or Vamsa (Pali and Ardhamagadhi: , literally "calf") was one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas (great kingdoms) of Uttarapatha of ancient India mentioned in the Aṅguttara Nikāya. Location The territory of Vatsa was located to the south of ...

kingdom, in which many renowned sages lived. She roamed the kingdom, bathing in the

sacred waters Sacred waters are sacred natural sites characterized by tangible topographical land formations such as rivers, lakes, springs, reservoirs, and oceans, as opposed to holy water which is water elevated with the sacramental blessing of a cleric ...

of the

Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...

(Ganga) and the

. Then, she visited the

ashram An ashram ( sa, आश्रम, ) is a spiritual hermitage or a monastery in Indian religions. Etymology The Sanskrit noun is a thematic nominal derivative from the root 'toil' (<

, Uluka, Chyavana,

Vishwamitra Vishvamitra ( sa, विश्वामित्र, ) is one of the most venerated rishis or sages of ancient India. According to Hindu tradition, he is stated to have written most of the Mandala 3 of the Rigveda, including the Gayatri Ma ...

, Mandavya, and Garga, as well as sacred sites like Prayaga, Bhogavati, and holy groves. During her journey, she observed difficult vows and performed ablutions in the holy waters. The

goddess Ganga Ganga ( sa, गङ्गा or गंगा, Gaṅgā) is the personification of the river Ganges, who is worshipped by Hindus as the goddess of purification and forgiveness. Known by many names, Ganga is often depicted as a fair, beautiful ...

appeared before Amba and listened to Amba's tale that her austerities were aimed to destroy

's son. The angry

replied that since Amba's mind was crooked, she would become a crooked and tortuous river, which will remain dry for eight months and flow in the four months of the rainy season.

declared that the bathing places along the river's course would be in difficult terrain, and it will be infested with crocodiles and other fierce creatures. Amba wandered practising severe vows and forgoing food and water for months. She visited many tirthas in this time and finally returned to

, where

's curse materialized. Though half of her became the river Amba, the other half remained human, due to her ascetic merit.

Shiva's boon and Amba's death

The ascetics of Vatsa dissuaded her from the austerities, but Amba maintained her resolve and told them her desire was to be born a man and slay Bhishma to avenge her misery. The god

appeared to her and blessed her that she would become a man in her next birth and destroy Bhishma. Amba would be born to the king

of Panchala and become a great warrior. Amba would remember her previous birth and hatred of Bhishma. Pleased with the boon, Amba created a funeral pyre of wood on the banks of the Yamuna and jumped in the fire saying "for Bhishma's destruction!".

Garland of ever-fresh lotuses

Another variant narrates that Amba performed austerities and pleased

Kartikeya Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Ganesh ...

, the god of war and Shiva's son. He granted her a

garland A garland is a decorative braid, knot or wreath of flowers, leaves, or other material. Garlands can be worn on the head or around the neck, hung on an inanimate object, or laid in a place of cultural or religious importance. Etymology From the ...

of ever-fresh lotuses and declared that whoever wore it will destroy Bhishma. With this garland, Amba made one more attempt to seek help of many kings and princes to support her in her just cause. However, there was no response from anyone of them to help her as they did not want to be on the wrong side of Bhishma. In a final effort she approached Drupada but even he declined; in frustration she cast the garland off on a pillar outside Drupada's palace and went for austerities in the forest again. While Amba kills herself, no one dares to touch the garland.

Rebirth as Shikhandi

Drupada had no children, and so he engaged himself in austerities in the forest, seeking the blessings of Shiva for begetting a son. Shiva granted him the boon that a girl would be born to him, but would transform into a boy later. As prophesied, Amba was reborn as Shikhandi, whose true sex was not disclosed, and she was brought up as a boy. When Drupada got his daughter in the garb of a son married to the daughter of Hiranyavarna, the King of

Dasharna Dasharna (Sanskrit:दशार्ण ) was an ancient Indian janapada (realm) in eastern Malwa region between the Dhasan River and the Betwa River. The name of the janapada was derived from the , the ancient name of the Dhasan River. The janap ...

, her true identity was revealed, not only to the chagrin of the girl, her father, but also to Shikhandi herself. The agitated Hiranyavarna declared war on Panchala. Distressed by the turn of events, Shikhandi went into the forest to meet a

yaksha The yakshas ( sa, यक्ष ; pi, yakkha, i=yes) are a broad class of nature-spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in ...

(a nature spirit), Sthunakarna, who helped her by offering to exchange their sexes for a period of time. Thus, Shikhandi became biologically male. After Hiranyavarna's death, Shikhandi returned to swap sexes with the yaksha, but learnt that the yaksha had been cursed by

Kubera Kubera ( sa, कुबेर, translit=Kuberā) also known as Kuvera, Kuber and Kuberan, is the god of wealth, and the god-king of the semi-divine yakshas in Hinduism. He is regarded as the regent of the north (''Dikpala''), and a protecto ...

to remain female until Shikhandi's death. In the variant where the garland of ever-fresh lotuses is mentioned, Shikhandi wears the garland once, and Drupada realises that she would slay Bhishma. Meanwhile, over the course of time, Ambika and Ambalika had grandchildren: the

and the

, who became arch-enemies.

, the daughter of Drupada, was married to the Pandavas. When a great

Kurukshetra war The Kurukshetra War ( sa, कुरुक्षेत्र युद्ध ), also called the Mahabharata War, is a war described in the ''Mahabharata ( sa, महाभारत )''. The conflict arose from a dynastic succession struggle be ...

between the Pandavas and the Kauravas ensued, Shikhandi sided with his brothers-in-law, while Bhishma stood with the Kauravas. Bhishma had vowed "not to shoot at a woman, anyone who used to be a woman or has a woman's name or appears to be a woman", and so he narrated the tale of Amba to

, and refused to fight Shikhandi. When Bhishma led the Kaurava army, Shikhandi rode as the charioteer of

Arjuna Arjuna (Sanskrit: अर्जुन, ), also known as Partha and Dhananjaya, is a character in several ancient Hindu texts, and specifically one of the major characters of the Indian epic Mahabharata. In the epic, he is the third among Panda ...

, the third of the Pandava brothers. On seeing Shikhandi, Bhishma lowered his weapons. Shikhandi and Arjuna pierced Bhishma's body, though all Shikhandi's arrows were not effective in wounding Bhishma. At this stage, it was also the desire of Bhishma to die. Before collapsing, he cried out that it was Arjuna's arrow that had killed him, and not of Shikhandi. Bhishma lay on a bed of arrows for days, and died on the holy day of

Uttarayana The term Uttarāyaṇa (commonly Uttarayan) is derived from two different Sanskrit words – "uttara" (North) and "ayana" (movement) – thus indicating a semantic of the northward movement of the Sun on the celestial sphere. This movement begin ...

. Thus, Amba's vengeance was fulfilled, when Shikhandi became the cause of Bhishma's death. Shikhandi is killed in a sword fight with

Ashwatthama In the Hindu epic the ''Mahabharata'', Ashwatthama ( sa, अश्वत्थामा, Aśvatthāmā) or Drauni was the son of guru Drona and Kripi (sister of Kripacharya). He was the grandson of the sage Bharadwaja. Ashwatthama ruled th ...

when he,

Kripacharya Kripa ( sa, कृप, Kṛpa, pity), also known as Kripacharya ( sa, कृपाचार्य, Kṛpācārya, Kripa the master), is a figure in Hindu mythology. According to the epic ''Mahabharata'', he was a council member of Kuru Kingdo ...

, and

Kritavarma Kritavarma ( sa, कृतवर्मा, translit=Kṛtavarmā) is a Yadava warrior in Hinduism. He appears as a minor character in the Mahabharata, fighting in the Kurukshetra war for the Kauravas. According to F.E. Pargiter, he was the son ...

attacked the

Pandava The Pandavas (Sanskrit: पाण्डव, IAST: Pāṇḍava) refers to the five legendary brothers— Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva—who are the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. They are acknowledge ...

camp on the night of the final day of the war.K M Ganguly (1883-1896)
The Mahabharatha Book 10: Sauptika Parva section 8
Ashwatthama killing Shikindin, October 2003, Retrieved 2015-10-2

References

External links

Rajaji Mahabharata Summary/Amba and Bhishma
{{HinduMythology Characters in the Mahabharata