Four years passed by, one day while hunting Shantanu reached the banks of river Yamuna. As soon as he reached, he could smell a wonderful perfumed filled air which are blowing from the river. He was dragged towards the smell and started going towards the river. As he went more towards Yamuna, he saw a boatyard and on a boat was this beautiful young lass named Satyavati, who is also called YojanaGandha, meaning that she will have fragrant smell for even many Yojanas distance. He was spell bound by her beauty and her fragrance. She glowed with golden hue, her body was slim and curvaceous. Her eyes resembled those of a frightened deer, her smile was so beautiful. Shantanu was just taken aback by her divine beauty. He went close to her and tried to involve her in a conversation saying " Who are you? Why are you rowing the boat alone here? I am surprised". She smiled and looked at the king and said " I am the daughter of King Dasa and to keep up with his Dharma, I work on the banks of the river helping people cross it.
Shantanu had heard of Satyavati's beauty before and now he got to see her. He went to King Dasa directly and asked for Satyavati's hand in marriage. King Das was very happy and he greeted the king with great honours and said " It’s a custom to give the girl to her groom in marriage, but I am booned to have the great king as my son in law. What else do I want? But I do have one concern in my mind, if you agree to it then I will give my daughter's hand in marriage". " If the request that you are making is worth giving then I will surely abide by it" said the king. " I request that Satyavati's son be your royal heir and become the king after you" said King Dasa. Shantanu was taken back by his request, he already had Devavrata, who had been crowned a prince. How could he agree to King Dasa's request of making Satyavati's son as the royal heir?. Shantanu said " Please ask me for something else". He tried to convince King Dasa that he has an older son who is already a prince, but King Dasa was not convinced. He said that unless his request is granted he cannot give his daughter's hand in marriage.
Dissapointed and sad Shantanu returned to Hastinapura. He could not get Satyavati out of his mind, he could not concentrate on anything, he seemed lost and stayed as a loner. Devavrata was worried about his father's behaviour. He went to his father and said " Father! We don’t have any enemies even in the dreams, our people are very happy. Kings from far of lands and kingdoms are bound by your word. We are all worried about you being drifting away from normal life". After a long pause and thought process he replied to Devavrata saying that " Having one son is never like having sons, having one eye never gives the satisfaction of complete eyesight. Having one son is like not having any sons says Dharma Shastra. You are a very good archer, a very brave knight. Anything might happen to you anytime, how can I rely on you to carry my family name? Agnihotras and Vedas and kids- the best lineages should never leave them. That is the reason I would like to have some more sons so that they can help you".
Devavrata consulted his knowledgeable ministers and realized that Shantanu had his heart stuck on Satyavati. He went to King Dasa with all his relatives and asked Satyavati's hand in marriage for Shantanu. King Dasa honoured Devavrata and said " You are an embodiment of Dharma, you know the difference between Artha and Anartha(demonic tendencies) and are very responsible. Since you have come to talk about your father's wedding I am very happy. Satyavati was born to the Chedi king Vasu (also known as Uparichara Vasu) and a fish, who was actually an Apsara, Adrika. Vasu wanted her to be married to Shantanu, that is the reason I rejected Devala who had come to ask her hand in marriage, I know I cannot get a son in law like Shantanu. But I do have a problem here, step son, i.e. you. I feel that you are their enemy as you are extra ordinarily powerful. One you knot your eyebrows, even the most powerful will succumb to you. So, now you know what my issue is, so please find a solution to this problem".