भीष्म प्रतिज्ञा

Bhishma Pratigya ki katha Mahabharata ke Aadiparva mein varnit hai. Yah katha pitrubhakti, tyaag aur aatmbalidaan ka sabse mahaan udaaharan hai. Devavrata — jo baad mein Bhishma kahlaye — ki yah pratigya hi Kuruvansh ki samast katha ka aadhaar bani.

Hastinapur ke Maharaj Shantanu ek atyant dharmatma aur prataapi raja the. Ek din Ganga nadi ke tat par unki bhent ek apoorv sundari se hui. Yah Devi Ganga swayam manav roop mein theen. Shantanu Ganga par mohit ho gaye aur unse vivah ka prastaav rakha. Ganga ne ek shart rakhi — "Main jo bhi karun, aap kabhi prashna nahi karenge. Jis din aapne prashna kiya, main chali jaaungi." Shantanu ne yah shart sweekar kar li.

Vivah ke baad Ganga ne ek-ek karke saat putron ko janm diya aur pratyek ko nadi mein baha diya. Shantanu ne apni shart ke kaaran kuchh nahi kaha, parantu unka hriday videern hota raha. Aathvein putra ke janm par jab Ganga use bhi nadi mein bahane lagin, tab Shantanu ne rokkar poocha — "Tum yah kya kar rahi ho?" Shart toot gayi. Ganga ne bataya ki ye aath Vasu the jinhe shaap mila tha manav yoni mein janm lene ka, aur unhe mukt karne ke liye hi Ganga ne unhe nadi mein bahaya. Aathvaan putra — Devavrata — shaap ke anusaar lambe samay tak prithvi par rahega. Ganga ne Devavrata ko apne saath le jaakar uski shiksha-diksha karayi.

Ganga ne Devavrata ko samast shastra vidya, Ved, Shastra aur rajniti ki shiksha dilvayi. Parshuram se shastra vidya, Brihaspati se rajniti aur Vashishth se Vedon ka gyaan prapt kar Devavrata sansaar ke sarvashreshth yoddha aur vidwaan bane. Varshon baad Ganga ne Devavrata ko Shantanu ke paas lauta diya. Shantanu ne prasannatapoorvak Devavrata ko Yuvraj ghoshit kiya.

Kuchh varshon baad Shantanu ne Yamuna nadi ke tat par ek atyant sundar kanya Satyavati ko dekha aur us par mohit ho gaye. Satyavati machhuaaron ke sardaar Dashraj ki putri thi. Shantanu ne Dashraj se Satyavati ka haath maanga. Dashraj ne shart rakhi ki Satyavati ka putra hi Hastinapur ka raja banega, Devavrata nahi. Shantanu is shart ko sweekar nahi kar sake — ve apne yogya putra Devavrata ke adhikaar kaise chheen sakte the? Shantanu niraash hokar laut aaye aur dukhi rehne lage.

Jab Devavrata ko pita ke dukh ka kaaran gyaat hua, to ve swayam Dashraj ke paas gaye. Devavrata ne ghoshna ki ki ve Hastinapur ke sinhaasan par kabhi nahi baithenge aur Satyavati ke putra hi raja honge. Parantu Dashraj ko santosh nahi hua — unhone kaha, "Yadi aapke putra ne sinhaasan ka daava kiya to?" Tab Devavrata ne woh bheeshan pratigya li jisne prithvi aur swarg dono ko kampit kar diya — "Main aajeevan brahmcharya ka paalan karunga. Main kabhi vivah nahi karunga aur na hi meri koi santaan hogi."

Yah pratigya sunkar aakaash se devtaaon ne pushpvarsha ki aur "Bhishma! Bhishma!" ki dhwani goonji — arthat 'bhayankar pratigya karne wala'. Usi din se Devavrata 'Bhishma' kahlaye. Unke pita Shantanu ne prasann hokar Bhishma ko 'Ichchhamrityu' ka vardaan diya — arthat Bhishma ki mrityu tabhi hogi jab ve swayam ichchha karein.

Bhishma ne apni pratigya ka jeevan bhar paalan kiya. Unhone Hastinapur ki raksha ke liye samast jeevan samarpit kiya. Unhone Satyavati ke putron — Chitrangad aur Vichitravirya — ki dekhbhal ki, aur phir unke pautron — Dhritarashtra, Pandu aur Vidur — tatha prapautron — Kauravon aur Pandavon — ki bhi. Kurukshetra ke yuddh mein Bhishma Kauravon ke paksh se lade kyunki ve Hastinapur ke sinhaasan ki raksha ke prati pratibaddh the.

Yuddh ke dasvein din Shikhandi ko aage karke Arjun ne Bhishma par baanon ki varsha ki. Bhishma ne Shikhandi par baan nahi chalaya kyunki woh poorvjanm mein stree (Amba) tha. Arjun ke baanon se bindha shareer bhoomi par gira parantu baanon ki shayya par tika raha. Bhishma ne Ichchhamrityu ke vardaan se Uttarayan tak praan dhaaran kiye aur Surya ke Uttarayan hone par hi praan tyage.

Bhishma Pratigya ki katha humein sikhaati hai ki pitrubhakti aur tyaag sarvochch dharm hai. Bhishma ka jeevan is baat ka pramaan hai ki sachcha bal pratigya ke paalan aur aatmsanyam mein nihit hai.