2. The birth of Satyavati

The chronological Mahabharatha series

Satyavati is one of the most significant characters of the Mahabharata. She is known as the daughter of the fisherman chief who asked for her sons to be kings instead of Devavrata. However, there is more to this story, which goes back to Uparichara Vasu.

Uparichara Vasu was so named becasue of the vimana that Indra had given him. Vasu roamed the skies in this flying vimana, hence earning the prefix Uparichara. Vasu had great powers from penance and Indra had asked him to rule the prosperous land of Chedi.

Vasu ruled for a long time, a strong, powerful, just king. Then he made his sons kings of different lands. An apsara named Adrika, who lived in the Yamuna in the form of a fish, bore the twin children of Vasu.

A fisherman chief, Dasharaja, caught the fish and cut it open to find the twins. When he took it to King Vasu, he adopted the boy, whom he named Matsya, and gave the girl, who was called Satyavati, to Dasharaja to bring up as his own.

When Satyavati grew into a beautiful young woman, one day the Sage Parasara came that way. He wished to cross the Yamuna. Satyavati used to ferry people across the river and she took the sage on her boat.

In the middle of the river, the sage announced that he wished to unite with her. He knew that the child who would be born of them would go on to play a critical role in the events that were to unfold. This child was born on an island (dveepa) in the Yamuna and he was dark complexioned (Krishna varna), hence he was called Krishna Dvaipayana. Later, he would divide the vedas into four and gain the name Veda Vyasa too.

Krishna Dvaipayana Veda Vyasa grew into a young man as soon as he was born. He gave a boon to his mother Satyavati that he would appear whenever she thought of him and then he went his way. Years later, Satyavati would summon him to ensure that the line of the Kurus did not die out. And generations after that, Krishna Dvaipayana would compose the Mahabharatha- a tale of the Bharathas.