Ambalika
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Ambalika (Hindi: अम्बालिका) was the daughter of Kashya, the King of Kashi, and queen of Vichitravirya, King of Hastinapura.[1] Along with her sisters Amba and Ambika, she was taken by force by Bhishma from their Swayamvara, the latter having challenged and defeated the assembled royalty. He presented them to Satyavati for marriage to Vichitravirya. After Vichitravirya's death, his mother Satyavati sent for her first born, Rishi Veda Vyasa. She asked him to father children on the widowed queens of Vichitravirya according to the prevalent custom of Niyoga. Veda Vyasa had come from years of intense meditation and as a result, he looked tremendously unkempt. When he approached Ambalika, she turned pale in fear. Her son Pandu, the result of the niyoga, was born with a pale appearance. After the death of Pandu, Ambalika accompanied her mother-in-law Satyavati and sister Amba to the forest and spent the rest of her days in spiritual retreat.
[edit] References
- ^ Law, B.C. (1973). Tribes in Ancient India, Poona: Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, p.105
- 2. Mahabharata By Chakravarti Rajagopalachari, Dr. B.R. Kishore 160 pages
- 3. The Mahabharata Virendra Verma, Paresh Saxena - 1997 - 202 pages
- 4. Mahabharata, William Buck - 2000 - 417 pages
