Bhishma

Bhishma or Devavrata, was the son of Ganga and Shantanu. He was originally crown prince of Hastinapura until his father remarried to Satyavati and made their first son Chitrangada the heir. He took a vow of celibacy to ensure his children never competed with Satyvavati's for the throne. He also took a vow to serve the ruler of Hasatinapura and one to never attack a woman. For renouncing his birthright, Shantanu gave him the ability to choose the time of his death and he chose to die when Hastinapura was safe on all sides.

Birth
Bhsishma was the incarnation of the eight and last Vasu, attendants of Indra, who were cursed to be reborn as humans. They requested Ganga to be their mother and, after her marriage to Shantanu, she drowned the first seven. However, as Shantanu took a vow to never question her actions, he did not understand. When she sought to drown Bhishma and release him frm human form, he stopped her and she left him forever.



Amba's Vow
He tried to find wives for his brothers so he abducted the princesses Amba, Ambika and Ambalika from their suitors. Amba told him she wanted to marry her suitor, so he sent her back to her palace. However, Amba's suitor rejected her because Bhishma defeated him in battle. Amba then asked to marry Bhsishma, however, due to his oath he could not. She then vowed she would kill him. She was reborn as a man and mortally wounded him during the Kurukshetra War. However, he could not die due to his vow. He eventually died when his grandnephew, Yudhisthira became king. He subdued many lands for the king of Hastinapura, amongst them, Gandhara, earning his family the ire of Shakuni (son of King Subala) and arranging the marriage of Dhritarashtra and Gandhari, Shakuni's sister.

Death
He fought for the Kauravas during the war due to his vow to support the ruler of his homelands, but advised Duryodhana to sue for peace. During the war, he was paralysed and lay dying on a bed of arrows. He imparted his last words of wisdom on statecraft and warfare on Yudhisthira before he died.