| Shantanu | |
|---|---|
 Shantanu and Ganga, chromolithograph by BP Banerjee | |
| In-universe information | |
| Title | Maharaja of Kuru |
| Spouses | Ganga Satyavati |
| Children |
|
| Relatives | |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Home | Hastinapura |
Shantanu (Sanskrit: शांतनु, शान्तनु, IAST: Shāṃtanu, Shāntanu)[1] was the King of Kuru Kingdom with his capital at Hastinapura, in the epic Mahabharata.[2] He was a descendant of the Bharata race, a forebear of the lineage of the Chandravamsha, the father of Bhishma and the great-grandfather of the Pandavas and the Kauravas.
The ruler was the youngest son of King Pratipa of Hastinapura and had been born during the latter's latter years. His eldest brother, Devapi, had leprosy, and had given up his inheritance to become a hermit. The middle son, Bahlika, (or Vahlika) abandoned his paternal kingdom, and had started living with his maternal uncle in Balkh, subsequently inheriting his kingdom. Shantanu, thus, ascended the throne of Hastinapura.
- ^ van Buitenen (1973), p. 231; Shastri Chitrao (1964), p. 962
- ^ Chandrakant, Kamala; Pai, Anant (1997). Bheesma- Heroes from the Mahabharat (August 2010 Reprint ed.). Mumbai: Amar Chitra Katha Pvt Ltd. p. 1. ISBN 81-8482-035-6.