Bhishma is remembered as one of the most powerful and respected figures of the Mahabharata. But according to the epic’s tradition, his story did not begin with his birth as Devavrata. Before becoming the son of King Shantanu and Goddess Ganga, he was one of the eight Vasus, known as Prabhasa. A single mistake involving Sage Vashishtha’s divine cow Nandini changed his destiny forever. What makes the story even more striking is that the curse did not affect all the Vasus in the same way. For Prabhasa, it meant a much longer human life and a destiny that would eventually make him Bhishma.
