by Lord Parshuram: The protector of righteousness
Lord Parshuram : Lord Vishnu’s sixth re-incarnation was Parshuram. The descriptions of Parshuram can be traced in the Hindu scriptures such as Mahabharata, Ramayana, Kalki Puranas and Bhagvad Gita. Born in treta yuga, Parshuram was the son of Renuka and sage Jamadagni. Scholars believe that he was born to remove the evil from the earth. Lord Parshuram was known for his warrior traits, which made him a perfect Kshatriya by nature.
Legends of Shri Parshuram
It is believed that Parshuram left home to meditate in order to please Lord Shiva. Acknowledging his devotion and unmoved dedication, Lord Shiva decided to gift him something. Thus, Shiva presented Parshuram with his divine unconquerable weapon – Parashu or axe. Also, he asked Bhagwan Parshuram to free mother Earth from the shackles of the felons.
After this incident, Lord Shiva, in order to test the skills of Parshuram, challenged him for a battle. Thus, began the fierce battle between the master and the disciple. Shiva and Parshuram fought with each other boisterously, which continued for another twenty one days. Shiva, the destroyer was infuriated. In order to counter Shiva’s outrage, Parshuram started attacking him with his Parashu, the divine axe. It hit Shiva’s forehead. Shiva was very pleased with his disciple’s unfathomable war winning qualities. The blow on Shiva’s forehead by Bhagwan Parshuram developed into a wound. Hence, Shiva’s is also known by the name of Khanda-parshu.
Legends also label Lord Parshuram as the one, who grants prosperity and knowledge. It is believed when the planet was filled with the catastrophe of greedy rulers, he was the one to introduce divine weapons to save Mother Earth.
The famous vow of killing Kshatriyas 21 times
Parshuram was known for his vow to kill the Kshatriyas twenty one times to take revenge of his father’s killing. The story behind this is once King Sahasrarjuna and their entire clan of Kshatriyas warriors arrived at Sage Jamadgani ashram. The residents of ashram welcomed and fed them with food from the magical Kaamdhenu cow. The Kshatriyas were so amused to see that the cow fulfilled every demand that was put in front of her. So, they proposed to buy the cow for their king Sahasrarjuna. On refusal by Sage Jamadgani, they forcefully took away the cow. This made Parshuram furious and he killed the army of the king and brought back the Kaamdhenu cow. King Sahasrarjuna’s son in order to take revenge of this massacre killed father of Parshuram. Noticing the twenty one scars on his father’s dead body, Bhagwan Parshuram pledged to kill all the corrupt Kshatriyas the same number of times.
Lord Parshuram as the teacher
Parshuram, himself was known as the disciple of Shiva, but he was also a magnificent teacher to famous personalities. Drona, Bhimsa and Karna were well known disciples of Parshuram. The knowledge of the celestial weapon or Brahmastra was imparted to Karna by Parshuram with a curse. The curse was that this knowledge will be useless to Karna as he predicted well in advance that in Kurukshetra war, he will join unrighteous Duryodhana.
