Parashurama: Maharshis of Ancient India

By M.N. Lakshminarasimha Bhatta

Parashurama, considered to be the sixth incarnation of Lord Vishnu, was born in the Bhrigu clan to Jamadagni and Renuka. Born as Rama, he came to be known as Parashurama,'Parashu' meaning 'axe'. This is because he destroyed the Kshatriya clan with his divine axe in revenge for the death of his father at the hands of a kshathriya king's sons. He received a number of divine weapons after performing tapas to Lord Shankara. He was obliged to kill his own mother and brothers in deference to his father's wishes but using the boon that he received from his father, he brought all of them back to life. He went round the world 21 times killing all the bad kshatriya kings and princes but repented the bloodshed he had caused. So he went deep into the forests to perform tapas. He gifted away all the land that he had conquered to sage Kashyapa and lived a solitary life in "Shoopanaraka'.  Parashurama challenged Lord Rama to use MahaVishnu's bow and was shocked that the latter could do it with great ease. He then realized that Rama was none other than Lord Vishnu himself. So he went round him once and then proceeded to Mt. Mahendra for tapas.  Drona sought him as a guru which he obliged but with Karna, it was a different story. When he came to know that Karna had not revealed his lineage, he cursed him and blessed him as well. He fought a long drawn war with Bhisma, one of his best students, in an attempt to make him accept Amba. All the devas had to intervene and dissuade him from wielding the Praswapanastra against Bhisma. He was not only impressed with Bhisma's prowess but acknowledged it openly as well. It was only when Mother Ganga asked to stop the fight that he relented. Parashurama, the great tapasvi, the best among brahmanas, most feared and respected, saved the world from evil forces and established the rule of law in it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bharatha Samskruthi Prakashana
• Release date: May 23, 2019
• ISBN: 9789389020267

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MAHARSHIS OF ANCIENT INDIA

Parashurama

Written by

M.N. Lakshminarasimha Bhatta

Translated by

Prof. G. S. Mudambadithaya

© Bharatha Samskruthi Prakashana, Bengaluru. All rights reserved.

Published by:

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Sri Ranga Sadguruve Namah

Bharatha Samskruti Prakashana, which has the major objective of acquainting our children with Bharathiya culture in its true form has brought out a number of books based on two of our great epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharatha. The chief among them are the Epic Characters of the Mahabharatha and the Ramayana. These beautiful books have come out in a number of languages and have been welcomed by educational institutions, the government and the public wholeheartedly. We are delighted to learn that the Bharatha Samskruti Prakashana has brought out another set of ten books on Great Maharshis of Bharatha.

These books acquaint the society with the great sages who built our great culture. They are great souls who have found out truth and devoted their life, energy and experience for the welfare of the people of this planet. They were extraordinary human beings having great wisdom, vast experience and character worthy of imitation. They gifted everything to the world without seeking fame or any kind of gain. Welfare of the world was their sole object. (Lokassamastah Sukhino Bhavantu). A few among such great men are introduced to us through these books. By a study of these books let our young boys and girls develop qualities such as faith in truth and good character and become vibrant individuals and useful citizens of this great land of Bharatha.

Let Bharatha Samskrithi Prakashana bring out many such useful books and help people become better citizens and make our country great among the nations of the world. May God bless the scholars who have written these books and those who edited them and brought them out in attractive forms. We pray to God for the good of all.

Ashtanga Yoga Vijnana Mandiram

Shravana Sukla Dwitiya

With Narayanasmaranas

Sri Sri Srirangapriya Sripadasrisrih

Bangalore

Dated 22-7-2001

PARASHURAMA

Shri Gurubhyo Namaha

‘Whenever righteousness is on the wane, and wickedness gets the upper hand in the world, I take birth in this world to protect and re-establish dharma,’ said Sri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita. Accordingly Bhagavan Vishnu took a number of incarnations on his own accord and we read about these incarnations in our epics and books on history. The following incarnations are well-known Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Narasimha, Vamana, Parashurama, Sri Rama, Krishna, Buddha and Kalki. These are called the ten incarnations of the