Indian mythosophy: The wrath of Shikhandi
This story spans three generations, and like many other such stories, asks several key questions about identity, retribution and fate. This begins when Bhishma, the hero of the first part of the Mahabharata, went looking for suitable brides for his (much younger) stepbrother, Vichitraveerya.
Wait. What about Bhishma himself? Bhishma was an avowed celibate, a promise he made to his stepmother, Satyavati, thus clearing the path to the throne for his two stepbrothers, Vichitraveerya and Chitrangada. This selfless act earned him the blessing of (almost) immortality from his father, Shantanu. Bhishma was bestowed the ability to choose his time of death (which is kind of immortality, you reckon). Bhishma then went on to serve the throne in the capacity of a minister, ambassador and general, all in one.
So when it was time for Vichitravirya to get married, Satyavati turned to Bhishma to do the running around. Bhishma took on a journey from his own land, Kuru (present day Uttarakhand and western Uttar Pradesh) to Kashi / Varanasi(same as present day), where the three princesses were to select grooms from a Swayamvara¹.
Now, as per the rule of Swayamvaras, one has to be physically present to participate, and cannot delegate a proxy. However, Vichitravirya wasn’t there, and everybody assumed that Bhishma was looking for a bride for himself. A battle broke out, Bhishma won without breaking much sweat, and seized all three princesses (Amba, Ambika & Ambalika) to the dismay of other kings. Warfare was a valid means of marriage, especially for the warrior clan (Kshastriya) — so none dare object to the proceedings. However, one king, Shalwa, chased Bhishma for a while before he was beaten in battle and had to give up. It is interesting to note that throughout this entire time, Bhishma does not reveal his true intentions to anyone; thus even the three princesses were under the impression that Bhishma, a middle aged man by then, was their to-be husband.
Once in his capital Hastinapur, Bhishma made all arrangements for the marriage of Vichitraveerya. The two younger princesses, Ambika and Ambalika, resigned to their fate and married without a fuss. However, the elder Amba revealed that she was romantically involved with the king Shalwa (that very king who gave a chase to Bhishma). It was still a time when agency of women was unquestioned, and Bhishma dropped Amba to the kingdom of Shalwa.
This is where the story turns sour; Shalwa refused Amba with disdain. One can argue that being beaten by Bhishma in battle, that too in front of his amour, hurt Shalwa’s ego more than Amba could have imagined. It is not rare to spot such brittle machismo even to this day; in fact, it is all too common. Being averse, or even hostile, to a woman simply because she was abducted (or, as per the prevailing culture of those days, ‘won over’) by some other man — is everywhere to see.
But it was now Amba’s turn to become neurotic: all her pent up anger on Shalwa was redirected towards Bhishma — as if Bhishma was responsible for the entire fiasco. In a way, he was; but marriage by competetive warfare was an accepted custom back in those days — so technically Bhishma was never wrong in seizing the three princesses after battling every other king. In fact, Bhishma followed the custom to the letter — that’s womens’ agency is supreme — when he returned Amba to Shalwa. The soup that Amba found herself in, was more due to the fragile-Y Shalwa than anyone else. However, Amba’s wrath turned to Bhishma, not Shalwa. Why? Can’t tell. Maybe when Bhishma beat everybody else at the Swayamvara, Amba had developed a secret appreciation, or even fondness, for Bhishma. And that when at the very mention of Shalwa, Bhishma let her go — she was hurt just a wee bit, as if ‘Won’t he miss me even a little?’ And that turned to rage when she was turned down by Shalwa.² Amba vowed to kill Bhishma, the quasi immortal.
There was a slight glitch in the plan. Apart from being practically immortal, Bhishma was also the greatest warrior of his time, and Amba had no weapon-training. In what can only be said to be the greatest revenge story, Amba seeked refuge in a neighouring state, Panchala, and began training. She dressed up in military fatigues, went through thousands of hours of intense battle drills, and developed a taste for archery, until she was a war machine. In fact, the writer of the Mahabharata describes this as her transition to become a ‘man’, or more precisely, a transgender. Whatever maybe the case, sex-change or not, she changed her name to (or, as per some versions of Mahabharata, was reborn as) Shikhandi.
A lot of time had passed while she was busy training. Vichitraveerya had died, his grandchildren — the Pandavas and Kauravas were now engaged in battle over the throne; Bhishma, now certainly quite old, had to overlook this sad turn of events. As always, Bhishma served the throne with unwavering loyalty, and was thus bound to fight for the Kauravas, but his heart remained with the Pandavas (who were the rightful owners to the throne). After 10 days of intense war, the Pandavas could find no way around Bhishma, and had to ask him straightforward — how do we kill you?
Mind that Bhishma must have been at the twilights of a normal lifetime by now; he had seen a lot, mostly bad things, happen to the kingdom of Kuru. He has seen the throne being taken over by the evil Kauravas, and was serving under those very princes whom he despised. He must have been seeking a way out of this misery, and thus told Pandavas his secret. Bhishma was willing to surrender before Shikhandi (who was now appointed a general under the Pandavas).
Was it because Shikhandi was a transgender? Was it Bhishma’s ego that prohibited him to fight anyone else other than a ‘real man’? More likely, Bhishma was looking to give Amba a chance, and fate a clear passage. It was an unspoken statement between two star crossed people, Bhishma and Amba; a muted languish kindled over generations. In any case, the Pandavas brought Shikhandi to the forefront of war, and Bhishma promptly surrendered. A shower of arrows immediately grounded Bhishma.³
Did Shikhandi shed a tear? We’ll never know.
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- A kind of trial for wannabe husbands where only one was selected on the basis of tests; the tests usually included princely duties such as administration, warfare, physical proficiency etc
- Bhaduri, Nrisingha Prasad. Bhishma. In Mahabharataer Chhay Praveen
- Bhishma, the quasi immortal, did not die immediately though; he waited in the battlefield, on his bed of arrows (Shara-shajya) till the battle was over
