Prahlada and Indra

Hiranyakasipu and Hiranyaksha were asuras born to Diti and Kashyap. Hiranyayaksha and Hiranyakasipu hated Lord Vishnu and wanted to make sure nobody ever worshiped the Lord. Hiranyaksha went so far as to even throw the earth off its axis, so that none of the people on earth would ever worship the Dark Lord. Lord Vishnu incarnated as Varaha [the boar] to protect the earth and killed Hiranyaksha.

After the death of Hiranyaksha, Hiranyakasipu was so furious with Lord Vishnu that he went on a rampage destroying all the people on the earth. However Hiranyakasipu was stopped by the Devas led by Indra.

Determined to defeat Lord Vishnu, Hiranyakasipu performed severe penance and obtained a boon from Lord Brahma which almost made him invincible. After Hiranyakasipu obtained the boon, the Devas were unable to stop him and Hiranyakasipu went on another reign of terror.

Hiranyakasipu and his wife Kayadu had a son named Prahlada. Prahlada was the perfect antithesis to his father. Where his father hurt people, Prahlada believed in loving and respecting his people. Prahlada was also a very staunch devotee of Lord Vishnu. His devotion irked his father very much. In a fit of anger, Hiranyaksipu ordered the death of his son. The asura guards tried different methods to kill Prahlada, but every time Prahlada escaped without any harm.

Finally out of utter desperation and anger, Hiranyaksipu himself tried to kill Prahlada. Lord Vishnu incarnated as Narasimha and killed Hiranyaksipu to protect Prahlada.

After the death of Hiranyakasipu, Prahlada was made the king of the asuras, in the netherworld. Prahlada led his people well and the asuras soon were able to ignore their natural fighting tendencies and were able to focus their mind of devotion and be happy. 

Later Prahlada extended his rule over the earth. His rule was a golden rule where peace and prosperity reigned. The people on earth were satisfied, happy and virtuous. The Devas in the heavens saw the earth in such peace and prosperity that Indra, the king of the Devas began to have jitters. Indra realized that no matter what he did, he could not match up to the statesmanship of Prahlada. Feeling inadequate, Indra himself relinquished his throne in favour of Prahlada.

Prahlada now ruled over the heavens, earth and the nether world and as usual peace and prosperity followed him in all the three regions.

Indra was however ashamed. He could not accept the fact that an asura was such a brilliant ruler and had made him feel so inconsequential. Wondering why he was not a good leader like Prahlada, Indra approached his teacher Brihaspati.

‘Sir! I…’ Indra sobbed. ‘I cannot believe it that that son of Hiranyakasipu overthrew me from my throne so easily!’

Brihaspati looked at him kindly, ‘Did he overthrow you, my son?’

Indra looked at Brihaspati sadly as he shook his head. ‘But….but…what could I do? He…he looked so powerful…he looked so…much…so much in control of himself. Just looking at him I knew, I could never stand up to him…So I gave my throne up to him!’

Brihaspati smiled. Indra was beginning to understand. ‘Yes! He has something inside him. He has something inside him, which you don’t. Think about what it is. Probably that will help you become as powerful as him.’

Indra looked at Brihaspati and did not speak for a long time. He knew his teacher had spoken the truth. He finally asked Brihaspati, ‘Sir! Tell me what it is that he has. Please!’

Brihaspati smiled again and shook his head. ‘I have taught you everything that I know.’ Indra’s shoulder slumped, when Brihaspati continued, ‘But, what don’t you go and ask Shukracharya? He is the teacher of all asuras and also the teacher of Prahlada. Probably he may be able to each you things that I could not!’

Indra went to Shukracharya and bowed before him, ‘Sir! There must be something really special about you! You have taught Prahlada something, which has made him even more powerful than me! Please tell me, what it is! I wish to practice the same and attain peace of mind!’

Shukracharya smiled. Though Indra and he had always been on opposite sides, he admired the fact that Indra had come to him and in all humility asked him about this. Besides he was teacher. He just could not turn away someone who had come to him seeking knowledge. He decided that he would impart the knowledge to Indra, whether Indra actually followed and practiced it, was Indra’s wish.

Shukracharya spoke, ‘It is his virtue! That is the reason, he is more powerful than you! He knows what virtue is and practices it daily, that is the reason he is more powerful than you! Though you know of it too, you have forgotten it!’

Indra frowned, ‘What is the nature of virtue?’

Shukracharya explained some more, but Indra still could not understand. Shukracharya said finally, ‘Indra! Why don’t you go to Prahlada himself? He knows this path well and will be able to guide you much better than I ever will!’

Indra was stunned. How would one go and ask one’s enemy the source of their power? ‘Sir! Why would Prahlada even tell me, how he is more powerful than me?’

Shukracharya smiled mysteriously, ‘That is his character! He will!’ Shukracharya said it with such a belief that Indra was stunned. As he bowed and walked out of the ashrama, however Indra was filled with doubts. Prahlada may not teach me, if I go to him as Indra….Probably if I go disguised as someone, he may be more open and I may learn more about his power….

Indra disguised himself as a rishi and went to his kingdom, Amarvathi which was now ruled by Prahlada.

Prahlada was busy with the administration of the three worlds, when a rishi walked inside his court. Prahlada was surprised. Though the man looked like a rishi, Prahlada could feel that the man was not what he seemed. Politely he asked the rishi whom he was.

‘I am a rishi, sir!’ The man said bowing low to him, ‘I have heard that you practice dharma and follow your virtues perfectly. I wish to know the nature of virtue, so that I may also be able to follow it!’

Prahlada looked at the rishi and his strange request. He thought for a while, ‘I am ruling the three worlds, sir! I am extremely busy and what you have asked me is no simple thing. I probably cannot devote too much time to teaching you.’

The rishi came forward with a desperate look on his face. ‘Please sir! I will stay with you and look after you! I will do everything you want me to do, but please teach me…Teach me whenever you have time. I will learn it. I will be a good student sir!’

Prahalda finally agreed and Indra became Prahlada’s student.

Slowly Indra won the favour of Prahlada. Prahlada started trusting Indra. Finally he explained to him the source of his power and prosperity. ‘It is my character, rishi! I have full control over my senses and my body and maintain my good behaviour under any and all circumstances. I never boast to others about how great I am. I obey my teachers and elders with my whole heart. It is my character, with which I won the three worlds!’

Suddenly listening to Prahlada, Indra felt like somebody had flicked a light in his head. He understood what Brihaspati and Shukracharya was trying to tell him. Character…character was all that mattered. When a man had a strong character and never went against it, he would…he would become exactly like Prahlada…

As Prahlada was talking he realized that the rishi had understood. He nodded pleased. ‘I am very happy with you rishi! You have learnt a difficult lesson in good time and have served me well, during this period! For this I wish to grant you a boon! Any boon that you seek!’

The rishi smiled at Prahlada and said quietly, ‘Give me your character, my king! That is the only boon I seek!’

Prahlada was aghast. The rishi was asking him the very thing which had made him. But he also realized that he was bound by his promise. He could not go back on it. He nodded his head. ‘Very well rishi, whoever you are, I gift you my character!’

The rishi bowed to Prahlada and walked away from there.

Prahlada was sitting alone and unhappy, brooding. He knew he had given away something which could never be measured, something very precious….As he sat, he felt a strong force leaving him. The light emanating from it was almost blinding. Prahlada asked the force as it was leaving him, ‘Who are you?’

A voice of a man with strong voice came back to him, ‘I am your character, your virtue! You gave me away to the rishi! So am I leaving you to go to him!’

Prahlada felt his heart racing and tried to shout and beg the force not to leave him. But before he could talk, the force disappeared from there.

As Prahlada lay weakly on the throne, he felt another powerful force leave him. ‘Who are you?’ He asked slowly.

‘I am good conduct! I used to live in your body for all these years, but I am bound by character. Where ever character goes, I have no choice, but to follow it. When character left you, I too will have to leave you!’

Prahlada was sweating badly when he felt another force move out of him. The force spoke to him even before he asked. ‘I am Piousness. I am afraid I cannot live where there is no character and good conduct. By giving them away, you have given me up too!’

‘No wait!’ Prahlada said weakly, but before anything else could be done the force vanished from there.

Another force emerged from Prahlada. Listlessly he asked it, ‘Who are you?’

‘I am Truth!’ came a strong voice. ‘I am afraid I cannot live without character, good conduct or piousness. ‘I too will leave you!’

Narayana, what have I done? Prahlada felt drained as he lay on the throne unable to move. Prahlada felt his energy drain out of him, when he saw another force emerge from him. 

‘I am Strength!' The strong voice proclaimed. 'But I am afraid I will have to leave you. I can reside only when Truth is there. I will follow truth.’ Prahlada watched with despair as the force disappeared from there.

Finally a beautiful woman emerged from Prahlada’s body. She looked so beautiful that Prahlada’s heart ached for a second. The woman looked at him sadly. Prahalda crocked. ‘Who are you?’

‘I am Shree, the goddess of fortune! I give peace and prosperity in anyone’s body I inhabit. Unfortunately I can stay only where, Character, Truth and Strength stay! As they have left you, I am afraid I too will have to leave you!

When Shree left his body, Prahlada felt utterly drained. He  knew that everything that he ever wanted to have in his life was now gone....He could now nothing more than an empty shell.... 

He realized that character was the basis for everything.  Without it, a human was nothing. 

As he lay brokenhearted, he heard a strong voice inside him. My Prahlada! All your powers, need not inhabit in you anymore. You have ruled enough and taken good care of your subjects. Now it is the time, to rise and come with me …come to Vaikunta and become one with me…Prahlada knew it was the voice of the Dark Lord and felt peace spread inside him. He knew his purpose here was done and left to be one with his beloved Lord….

 - From the Mahabharatha

Arjuna and the Pasupatastra

Duryodhana, the eldest Kaurava was jealous of the Pandavas, his cousins. Time and again the only wish he ever had was to humiliate the Pandavas.

With the help of his scheming uncle Shakuni, Duryodhana invited the Pandavas to a game of dice. Shakuni was an expert in playing with loaded dice. Yudhishtara the eldest Pandava lost everything in the gamble..his money, his army, his kingdom... Yudhishtara even bet his brothers and himself and lost it all to Shakuni in the game.

Finally Yudhishtara staked Draupadi, the wife of the Pandavas...and lost her too....

Draupadi was humiliated in the Kaurava court.

Despite this, Draupadi argued brilliantly before the elders in the Kaurava assembly and won back all the riches that her husband had lost in the game of dice.

As they were returning back to Indraparastha, Duryodhana invited the Pandavas once again to a game of dice.

Though his brothers objected to Yudhishtara taking up the challenge, he convinced them citing reasons like honour and promise and sat down for the game of dice for the second time with Shakuni. However this time, the bet was different. If the Pandavas lost, then they would have to go on exile for 13 years. The last year of the exile had to be spent in hiding. If the Kauravas found the Pandavas during the last year, the Pandavas had to undergo another 12 years of exile and the thirteenth year in hiding....

Yudhishtara accepted. And lost the game....The Pandavas were sent in exile, their hearts burning with revenge.

After what Duryodhana and his brothers had done to Draupadi, all of them knew that war between the two sides was inevitable....it was only a matter of time....

So under the advice of Sage Veda Vyasa, Arjuna set out to the Himalayas to perform penance and obtain celestial weapons of the Gods.

As he went to the Himalayas, the other sages saw the dark warrior, dressed in rags carrying his weapons and sit down in a posture ready for penance.

They were surprised and hurriedly went before him, trying to stop him. 'This is not a place for weapons, my son! This is place for performing meditation and penance! This is a place of peace. Either leave your weapons or go somewhere else!'

Arjuna heard them, but he did not heed to any of them. He made a linga out of the mud and sat before it, deep in meditation....

Meanwhile Duryodhana, through his spies learnt that Arjuna was in the Himalayas performing deep penance. He was worried. Arjuna even on normal days was a formidable warrior, if he obtained the celestial weapons, he would become almost impossible to defeat....

Worried, Duryodhana went to his friend Mooka. Mooka was an asura who could turn his form at will....

Arjuna was deep in meditation, when he heard a loud snort. He ignored it and continued with his meditation. But then the snort grew louder...The snort was coming towards him...Arjuna could also hear the scream of the sages whenever he heard the snort.

As Arjuna was busy listening, he saw a huge boar run towards him. The boar was mauling a sage as it made its way towards him. In a flash Arjuna picked up his bow and let the arrow fly.

The arrow as usual was unerring in its aim. Mookasura who had disguised himself as the boar fell dead before he could come anywhere near Arjuna….

Arjuna smiled and was about to go near the boar when he heard a burst of derisive laughter coming from a woman. Surprised he turned and saw a hunter chief and his wife leading a group of hunters who were obviously chasing the boar.

Arjuna was also puzzled why the woman had laughed at him. He looked at the group waiting for them to speak.

'You are really a brave man!' She said mockingly, her eyes twinkling, 'You are shooting an already dead boar and claiming it as your kill!' The woman was arrogantly looking at Arjuna as she sided with the chief hunter who had a a bow in his hand.

For a second, Arjuna did not even understand what the woman was trying to say. Then he spied another arrow sticking out of the dead boar from the other side. Numbly he put together what the woman said...The woman thought her husband had shot the arrow before him!

Arjuna looked at the man and spoke quietly, 'I shot the arrow before you! The kill is mine!'

The hunter laughed as his men laughed with him. 'Your kill? How is that even possible? I am the best wielder of any weapon. And you puny human..' the hunter looked scornfully at Arjuna, 'have the audacity to come and tell me that you shot the arrow before me!'

Arjuna looked at the hunter in slow anger. 'The boar was coming for me! And I am Arjuna, the Pandava!' Usually when anyone else heard these words, they looked at Arjuna with surprise and wonder. However the hunter and his group looked decidedly unimpressed. 'Nobody can shoot arrows faster than me!' Arjuna said a little boastfully.

His statement was met with derisive laughter from the entire hunter group and finally Arjuna's anger broke through. 'You uncouth hunter! You think you can make a statement at your will and get away with it? ' Arjuna said angrily. 'I challenge you to a fight! Then I will show you who shot the arrow first!'

The hunter shrugged in a 'whatever-you-want' manner and grinned cheekily. Arjuna was more than annoyed. He was going to teach a lesson to the arrogant hunter...

And so the fight started...

Arjuna had utmost confidence in himself. He knew he could not be beaten by any other human other than Karna...But Arjuna was in for a surprise, it was more of a rude shock.

Not even one arrow of Arjuna was able to pierce the hunter. The hunter was able to effectively destroy the arrows almost as soon as they left Arjuna's bow...Arjuna on the other hand was bleeding heavily from the arrows of the hunter.

To his surprise, Arjuna found that his quiver which was blessed with inexhaustible supply of arrows was empty...Before he had time to even reflect upon it, the hunter started his attack again. Undaunted Arjuna pulled out his sword and the fight continued.....Arjuna, despite his anger at the hunter, could only marvel at the swordsmanship of the hunter.

Before long, Arjuna's sword lay broken in half and the hunter was looking at him with a jeering smile in his face.

In anger, Arjuna threw down the half broken sword and rushed at the hunter to fight with his bare arms. It seemed as if the hunter did not care whether Arjuna fought with weapons or his bare hands.

The hunter picked up Arjuna and threw him on the ground as if he was a bag of saw dust. Dazed, Arjuna slowly got up from the ground. Groggily he attacked the hunter again, but the hunter punched Arjuna straight in the face and in the abdomen. Arjuna collapsed and mercifully blacked out.......

Arjuna opened his eyes. More than seeing, he sensed that the hunter was still there with his group. The hunter ignored him and was talking with his men. Arjuna focused his eyes ignoring the pain and made a linga out of the mud before him and started worshiping...

Lord Shiva! Where are you now? A hunter with no special skills is making mockery out of me...I was so proud that I could not be defeated in battle by anyone other than Karna...My brothers rely on me for fighting the war for them...And here I am broken and hopeless unable to defeat even a hunter....Arjuna placed a garland on the linga and closed his eyes trying to concentrate on his prayers. Please help me Lord! Come to my aid!

Slowly Arjuna opened his eyes. Determined he looked at the hunter and blinked...For a second Arjuna could not believe what he was seeing...The garland...the garland he had placed on the linga was lying around the hunter's neck...

For the second time that day Arjuna felt numb...This time however his face broke into a happy whoop of joy! He now knew who the hunter was!

He fell at the feet of the hunter, feeling a little ashamed of himself that he could not even identify the three eyed Lord and his Goddess, who had come to meet him.

Lord Shiva embraced Arjuna. 'Your penance, meditation and concentration is amazing! I am very impressed!'

Arjuna felt a doubt nag his head as he asked the Lord in a quiet voice, 'But those sages....they said I was not to bring any weapons!'

Lord Shiva laughed, 'You are a warrior! You are performing penance for the celestial weapons!' Lord Shiva grinned. 'I do not think there is anything wrong in bringing weapons for performing a penance like that!'

Arjuna felt his heart racing, but he did not say anything. He wished....he wished that Lord Shiva would give him his heart's desire....

Lord Shiva smiled, 'You are definitely worthy of it, my son! I have never seen a more courageous warrior! You just did not give up, no matter what! I think you will definitely be worthy of handling the Pashupatastra!’ Lord Shiva nodded to himself and then looked at Arjuna, ‘Besides, my son, you are going to need the Pashupatastra to fulfill your purpose on the earth…’

Arjuna blinked as he looked at the kind face of Lord Shiva. ‘My purpose?’ Arjuna looked blankly. ‘What purpose? The only reaon I want the celestial weapons is in case war breaks out between us and Kauravas….I...’ Arjuna shook his head uncertainly as he looked at the Lord.

Lord Shiva smiled sadly. ‘There is no question of the war not happening! It will…it has to!’

Arjuna wondered what the Lord was trying to say, when Lord Shiva continued, ‘My son, the Dwapara yuga is going to come to an end and the Kali yuga will start….Before the start of the last Kali yuga, the arrogant warriors and the kings have to destroyed….they cannot be allowed to continue from the Dwapara yuga! That would be disastrous!’

Arjuna shivered as he looked at the three-eyed Lord. Lord Shiva looked at him with a melancholy smile, 'Many thousands of years back there were two sages who were also brilliant warriors. They were called Nara and Narayana!' Arjuna felt something deep stir within himself but he could not exactly put the finger on what it was. Lord Shiva continued. 'Throughout their life they destroyed the arrogant and the haughty demons, asuras, warriors and kings...' Lord Shiva looked at Arjuna straight in the eye. 'Their mission has continued even to this yuga!'

Arjuna listened without understanding. He knew this story was somehow important, but he did not know how.

Lord Shiva shook himself out of his reverie. 'But what is important right now...'He continued in a business like manner, 'is to teach you how to use the Pashupatastra!'

Arjuna watched with awe as the Lord taught him how to use the weapon and the shlokas to summon the weapon to him.

Looking at Arjuna learn how to use the Pashupatastra, Lord Shiva realized that Arjuna was the perfect student for handling the weapon. He would fulfill the purpose of his life...

[In Hindu mythology it is believed that Arjuna was Nara and Krishna was Narayana, in their previous births]

As Arjuna practiced the Pashupatastra, his eyes shone with a new light. It was the ultimate weapon of destruction, a weapon to end all wars….

Arjuna shivered again as he remembered the words of the Lord... There is no question of the war not happening! It will…it has to.

Somewhere deep down Arjuna hit realization Everything he and his brothers underwent, everything that had happened to Draupadi, all of it, was meant to lead to the war….the great war between his brothers and his cousins….a war to end all the wars and for the destruction of the warriors…all of them.

With the blessings of Lord Shiva, Arjuna gained complete mastery over the Pashupatastra....


The author thanks Mr. A. Narayanan for his review comments.

Krishna and Jara - The curse of Gandhari - Part 1 of 3

Bheema and Duryodhana were eying each other murderously their maces in hand. The maces met in mid-air with such a force that the other Pandavas could feel the air around them vibrate….

The other Pandavas were furious as they watched the battle. Duryodhana – the vile scheming, jealous Kaurava was the root cause of the war…The Pandavas had suffered much at their hands. Until now Duryodhana had been protected with his generals and his soldiers. But now he was all alone…..All alone to face the wrath of the Pandavas….He had to pay for all that he had done to them ….

The Pandavas knew that it was a fight to the death.

Krishna watched the battle thinking…..The purpose of my life has more or less coming to an end….The only things that remained now was to destroy my own clan before the complete onset of the Kali Yuga. And then there was this thing about making good a debt he owed to someone….Krishna shook his head. That was still a long way away. He had to focus on the battle at hand. Bheema was good with the mace but Duryodhana was a class apart. Krishna now knew why his elder brother Balarama, preferred Duryodhana to Bheema.

As Krishna saw he suddenly realized that even though Bheema had hit Duryodhana on the torso plenty of times, Duryodhana’s body bore no wounds….Bheema’s body on the other hand showed all the injuries he had received and Krishna also realized something else….. Bheema was tiring and tiring fast.

Krishna was puzzled with Duryodhana’s lack of injury, when it suddenly stuck him. He now knew what was making Duryodhana so powerful. Krishna now knew how he could get this over with, once and for all. Though it was not a fair game, Krishna knew he had no choice.

Bheema had just fallen back as Duryodhana had kicked him fiercely in the stomach. Gasping Bheema was trying to get up as he saw Duryodhana looking at him with a complete calm in his eyes. All the Pandavas bristled. They had never seen their brother lose. They were encouraging their brother to get up and fight.

Krishna was the only one who realized that Duryodhana had no interest in fighting. Krishna smiled sadly at Duryodhana. Duryodhana had committed many crimes in his life, but then he had many good qualities as well. His love for his friend Karna was one among them. Duryodhana was closer to Karna than he had ever been with his own brothers. Karna had been Duryodhana’s strength, his confidence, his arrogance….. Once Karna was dead, Duryodhana had lost the will to live, let alone fight. But Duryodhana still fought…Because he knew he had to take the war to its logical conclusion….

Krishna caught sight of Bheema as Bheema staggered to his feet. Krishna patted his thigh. ‘Remember Bheema. Remember what he did…’ Bheema’s eyes became murderous again as he remembered what Krishna was trying to tell him…This vile wretched creature had asked his wife Draupadi to sit on his thigh….Bheema shot up like an arrow as he watched Duryodhana with an angry look. I am going to make you pay….I am going to hit you on the very thigh that you asked my wife to sit on…Hitting below the torso during a mace fight was against the rules of the fight. But Bheema did not care. He was filled with so much anger that he thought he was going to explode. Attacking Duryodhana relentlessly, he pushed Duryodhana back As Duryodhana was in a corner, Bheema with one skilled movement brought down the mace with all his anger on Duryodhana’s thigh. Bheema watched with grim satisfaction as he saw Duryodhana collapse before him screaming and clutching his thigh.

Bheema looked venomously as he screamed. ‘This was the thigh on which you asked my wife to sit, didn’t you?’ Duryodhana tried to look back angrily at Bheema but he was filled with too much pain. He just collapsed on the battlefield among the thousands of other dead soldiers of the war, unable to get up….

‘LOOK!’ Bheema shouted at Duryodhana. ‘LOOK AROUND YOU!’ Bheema pointed to the horrible battlefield around him, ‘Look at how many people have died for your arrogance…take a long look around you and think about it as you also leave this world….’ Bheema looked at Duryodhana contemptuously as he turned back and walked away from there.

The Pandavas now left the battlefield with the eldest Kaurava dying in the battlefield. It was over….the gruesome, bloody war which they had fought for 18 days was over….all their demons buried…

Little did they know how much the victory was actually going to cost them….

Now that the war was over, the actual force of what they had done struck the Pandavas. They had killed their own cousins….all of them…As Yudhishtara was thinking about the next course of action, he began to tremble with fear.

Yudhishtara turned to Krishna, ‘Krishna! What have I done? The war….the war is one of the most terrible things ever….All of them…all the Kauravas are dead. What am I going to tell King Dhridarashtra? He may have been blind to the follies of his son and he would have even supported all the crimes which were carried out by Duruyodhana, but he is still our uncle, my father’s own brother…What will I tell him?’ Yudhishtara asked in anguish, ‘Shall I tell him that I killed a hundred of his sons…and that none of them who fought against us are alive?’ Yudhishtara then looked terrified as he moaned, ‘What am I going to tell Queen Gandhari….’ Yudhishtara was so broken hearted that Krishna held him shoulders tightly trying to calm him down.

The other Pandavas also heard Yudhishtara and all of them now trembled. More than Dhridarashtra, they feared facing queen Gandhari. She was the Queen Mother of Hastinapur, the mother of all the Kauravas. She was such a pure and good hearted woman that the Pandavas feared even going before her.

Krishna knew that not only were the fears of the Pandavas justified, it was totally probable that they would face a very huge calamity because of the anger of the grand old lady. She was a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva and had immense powers of penance with her. If she uttered even a single word out of anger at the Pandavas, they would be reduced to less than nothing…Krishna knew that Gandhari had to be consoled if the Pandavas were to enjoy the fruits of the war.

That night Krishna took the Pandavas far away from the Pandava camp, away from the misery of it, so that atleast for sometime, the Pandavas would feel happy….

Meanwhile at the battlefield as Duryodhana lay dying, Ashwattama came to meet him. Ashwattama was the son of Dronacharya, the teacher of the Pandavas and the Kauravas. Yudhishtara had lied to Dronacharya that Ashwattama had been killed by Bheema. After that Dronacharya lost the will to fight and gave up his weapons. As he lay meditating on the field, Dhrishtadhyumna, the brother of Draupadi, the wife of the Pandavas, killed Dronacharya!

Ashwattama entered the Pandava camp at night and killed all the sons of the Pandavas, their allies, friends everybody…. when all of them were asleep! All this happened the very night when Krishna took the Pandavas away from the Pandava camp….

The Pandavas came back to camp the next morning and were horrified. They were not able to believe that the people who had made the very victory possible were no more....

Slowly with a broken heart, they realized that they had won a bitter victory. They had won the war, but they had no one…not even one person to share it with….The only people left from the war were the five Pandavas themselves….

Like wounded men, the Pandavas made their way to Hastinapur to meet the blind king Dhridarashtra and his wife Gandhari. Krishna knew the dangers of this. Though Dhridarashtra was blind, he was powerful….phenomenally so. Krishna knew that the Pandavas, specifically Bheema was in a terrible danger around Dhridarashtra.

There was an iron statue of Bheema on which Duryodhana used to practice hitting with the mace. Krishna had the iron statue bought into Dhridarashtra’s chambers as the Pandavas met the blind king.

Yudhishtara came forward and spoke in a bedraggled manner. His voice clearly showing his misery at losing all his children and his fear of meeting the father of the sons, he had killed. ‘King Dhridarashtra! I have come with….’

‘Where is Bheema?’ The blind king spoke sharply. Dhridarashtra was adept at hiding his true feelings. He tried his best as he cut down his sharp voice and tried to make it neutral, ‘I wish to hug my brother’s son…now that the war is over!’ As Bheema came forward, Krishna pulled him back and stopped him. ‘Here is Bheema, your Highness!’ Krishna said as he went and stood behind the iron statue. Eagerly Dhridarashtra went forward.

As Dhridarashtra hugged the statue, the Pandavas were aghast….There was a loud crash and where a huge iron statue stood, there was nothing more than crumbled pieces of iron lying everywhere! For the first time, the Pandavas saw the unadulterated pure hatred in the face of the blind king as he crushed the iron statue with his bare hands.

But immediately after crushing the statue, Dhridarashtra collapsed as he fell to the ground. ‘What have I done? Oh my God, what have I done? I have killed my own brother’s son….Whatever he may have done, he was still my brother’s son…I…’ Dhridarashtra wailed, ‘I should have loved him…I should have loved all of you like my own sons….’ The blind king shook his head, tears falling everywhere, ‘I did not…I loved my own children more…I wanted them to be the kings after me…Oh Lord now what have I done?’

‘Your Highness! Bheema still lives! Please do not worry. Your Highness, please control yourself!’ Krishna spoke softly.

Dhridarashtra stared uncomprehendingly at Krishna’s words. He did not even have the energy to ask what Krishna meant by it. He looked like a man really lost. But slowly it seeped into his conscious. He had not done anything rash…He had not killed Bheema. Dhridarashtra felt a profound sense of relief flowing through him. In a moment of clarity he understood. He understood that in a way, it was his desire to rule the kingdom and inability to love his brother’s children as his own, which had led to this war. He had been responsible for this…And he had got what he had deserved. None of his and Gandhari’s hundred sons lived…They had all perished; because he had been weak…He had not stopped his son, when he should have….And so here he was…..

But Dhridarashtra knew something else now. However late, he could still make up for his weakness. He could be a good father now to the Pandavas, when they needed comfort from their own miseries….He wildly searched with his hands as he whirled around, ‘My children! Where are you? I understand everything now. Please come to me, my children! Even though you have won the war, you like me have lost all your children. Come and I will give you some comfort! Come and embrace me like your father…come!’

Krishna and the Pandavas realized the subtle change in the king. All of them realized that Dhridarashtra was no longer against them. The Pandavas hugged Dhridarashtra as Krishna watched calmly from behind them.

After taking leave of Dhridarashtra, Yudhistara and his brothers were actually shivering to meet Gandhari. Gandhari was further away from Dhridarashtra when she sensed the Pandavas approaching. No matter how much she tried she could not shake out the feeling of hatred. All of her hundred sons were dead. Bheema had killed them all….As Gandhari thought about it, her breathing became uneven. She wanted nothing more than to just….just smite down the Pandavas…They had brought her so much pain…so much anguish…She really hated them. In that one single minute, Gandhari opened her mouth to curse the Pandavas. She suddenly whirled when she sensed the calming presence of someone near her.

Gandhari curbed her anger with great difficulty as she sensed the man who had come near her. ‘Lord Veda Vyasa! To what do I owe this honour!’ She said haltingly.

‘Please my daughter! Do not curse the Pandavas! It is not the right thing to do!’ Veda Vyasa, the author of the Mahabharatha and the great Grandfather of the Pandavas and the Kauravas spoke gently. Veda Vyasa had sensed the anger of Gandhari and with his power of penance he had appeared in front of Gandhari before she did anything rash.

‘RIGHT? Right?’ Gandhari shrieked. ‘I do not have a single son left, all because of the Pandavas. And you are trying to tell me I am not right in cursing them…’ Gandhari laughed miserably, ‘What more can I do now?’

Veda Vyasa spoke calmly. ‘The Pandavas are not responsible for this war, my child. Then why are you blaming only them for it…’

Gandhari opened her mouth to retort angrily, when she felt another presence near her. She turned as she said, ‘Krishna! Have you come here as well?’ she asked sharply.

Krishna said gently, ‘Yes mother! I am here…’ Krishna had asked the Pandavas and Draupadi to wait outside while he talked with Gandhari.

Veda Vyasa asked Gandhari a simple question, 'Just before the war, your son Duruyodhana came to ask for your blessings, what did you do at that time, Gandhari?'

Gandhari was quiet unable to answer the words of the sage.

Veda Vyasasharply repeated his question, 'What were the blessings you gave your son, Gandhari?'

Gandhari sobbed as she mumbled listlessly, 'Whereever there was truth, victory would be there!'

There was a silence as Veda Vyasa spoke gently, 'Even you, one of the most powerful mothers did not wish your son to be victorious. You blessed the truthful side to win. Your words have not been in vain! The Pandavas adhered to their Dharma and fought for truth! They won!' Veda Vyasa said simply.

Gandhari was shaken. She remembered the times she had talked to her sons to stop their ways.....She started crying. Together Veda Vyasa and Krishna gently talked with Gandhari trying to calm her down. Slowly the queen forgot her anger. She took a deep breath as she turned to her guards. ‘Get the Pandavas. I wish to speak with them.’

When the Pandavas were inside, anger flared up again when he felt Bheema near her. ‘Bheema! You hit my son Duruyodhana, on the thigh, while fighting with the mace! Is this…’ Gandhari’’s voice chocked as she cleared her throat, her anger getting the better of her. ‘Is this how you fight a righteous war?’ She yelled.

Bheema quailed. He looked at Krishna and slowly spoke, ‘Mother! Duryodhana is the greatest mace fighter in the world.’ Now that the war was over, Bheema could see that Duruyodhana had been a better fighter than him. ‘There was no way, I could have defeated him, if I had followed the rules of the fight…’

‘Besides mother, your penance protected him!’ Krishna said softly. ‘More than anything else…The only place in Duruyodhana’s body which was not protected were his thighs…otherwise he could never be defeated…’ All the Pandavas looked at Krishna, realising now why Krishna had asked Bheema to remember hitting his thighs.

When Gandhari heard Bheema praise Duruyodhana with utter sincerity, she cooled down. Slowly the love of the Pandavas won her over. She was magnanimous even to console Draupadi, who like her had lost all her sons as well.

The next day they all went to the battlefield to cremate the dead.

When they reached the battlefield, Gandhari sensed everything that had happened there. Countless of people dying, screaming, pain….Gandhari was shaken. All this for what? So much death and destruction for a piece of land…Would all the lands in the world now give her back even one of her sons…just one…Gandhari’s temper grew. As they arrived at the battlefield, slowly she walked around the battlefield sensing every single one of her sons lying there….so many soldiers dead…it was so meaningless and pointless…Wherever she went she was followed by the screams of her daughters-in-law as they had found their husbands in the battlefield. Gandhari watched with growing anger as she had a moment of clarity. The Pandavas had lost as much as her. They were not to blame for this, but then somebody else was….’KRISHNA!’ She screamed as her voice was heard above the loud cries of the others. ‘Krishna! Where are you?’ She sensed Krishna walk up towards her and for some reason, the image maddened her. ‘Look around you! So much death and destruction. All for what? It was so worthless…Their deaths so pointless…You! You are responsible for this! You are supposed to be the Avatara of the Great Lord. Is this your greatness?’ Gandhari spoke with such contempt that everybody looked at the blindfolded queen, aghast. Gandhari continued ferociously, ‘You could have averted this war, Krishna! You should have stopped all this from happening. You should have stopped the pointless and meaningless death of so many people…Why didn’t you?’ Gandhari shrieked. The fury of the queen was so terrible that everybody backed away from her…All except Krishna. He looked at her waiting for her complete. Gandhari continued her tirade, ‘Look at my daughters-in-law, they do not know whether to cry for their husbands or their sons…all of them are here lying here in the battlefield…dead, and because of whom?’ Gandhari said her voice dangerous, ‘You!’ Gandhari said softly, ‘It is because of you! Gandhari spoke venomously, ‘So listen to my words and listen them well! You and your people, will kill each other and die…every last one of you…’ The Pandavas gasped as Gandhari continued. ‘And you Krishna, thirty six years from now, when you die, you will have no one near you! No one to talk to and you will also die unattended like my sons! These are the words of the mother whose hundred sons you killed’ 

The author thanks Mr. A. Narayanan for his review comments.

Krishna and Jara -The curse of Gandhari - Part 2 of 3

Gandhari collapsed as she said those words, unable to go on. She felt dizzy as she felt all her anger leave her. Tears were now flowing openly from her face. Everybody looked petrified at the words of the queen.

Krishna however remained magnificently unperturbed. He lovingly held the queen, ‘Now that you have vented all your anger, do you feel better? And I am glad that you spoke your curse to me....Now my Pandavas are safe!' The Pandavas stood mute, overwhelmed by the love of the dark Lord.

Krishna took the queen and once she finished sobbing, spoke to her gently. 'Mother! You said I was the cause of this war! Was I?' Krishna's voice  was laced with sadness. 'Draupadi who is like your own daughter was shamed in your royal court by your sons! What were you doing then?' Gandhari stiffened when she heard Krishna's words. Krishna continued, 'The Pandavas, whom you should have loved like your own sons were cheated out of their rightful kingdom! What were you doing then? Your son Duryodhana tried to kill the Pandavas by burning them in a lac palace, what were you doing then? I came to your court and begged your sons to give me five villages to stop this very war! What were you doing then?' Gandhari let out a cry as she started trembling, unable to bear the words of Krishna. Every word of Krishna hurt her more than if Krishna had hit her. Krishna spoke quietly, 'You blindfolded yourself to the behaviour of your sons. Do you expect others to do the same?'Gandhari closed her ears unable to hear anything more from Krishna.

What had she done? Krishna had so desperately came to Hastinapur and asked for just five villages one for each Pandava to avert the war...Gandhari still remembered Duryodhana's haughty laugh as he scorned Krishna's offer. Oh my son! Why did you have to be so foolish? Look how much suffering you have caused by your hatred for the Pandavas. Why?

Gandhari stumbled and she would have fallen. But Krishna caught her. 'Your words will come true, mother! My clan would be destroyed just the way you wanted it to!' Gandhari shook her head unable to speak, words chocking her voice. 'I willingly accept your curse. All your sons...' Krishna said pointing at the battlefield, 'who have died here, have gone to the warrior's heaven. Be at peace now!' Gandhari did not have the courage to talk again. She desperately wished she could take back her words. But words like arrows once shot could not be taken back....

Gandhari's curse came true to devastating efficiency. The people in Krishna's clan, thinking that they were invincible, started becoming proud and arrogant. They did not respect elders or even sages.

On one such occasion, the great sages Vishwamitra, Vasishta, Vamadeva and a few others came to Krishna's city. As they were resting there, Krishna's people thought of an elaborate ruse to fool the sages. They dressed up Samba, one of Krishna's sons as a woman and presented him before the sages. 'My Lords! This woman is carrying a child. Could you please tell us whether the woman would give birth to a girl or a boy?'

As the warriors were sniggering, they missed the venomous look of the sages. A sharp voice came, 'This person shall give birth to a mace and that mace shall be the cause of the destruction of your race!'

The warriors were so drunk with their power and arrogance that they laughed not realizing how they had invited their own doom....

Much to the surprise of Krishna's men, the very next day Samba complained of stomach pain. Soon the pain was so terrible that Samba could not even stand up. His stomach was cut and much to the horror of everyone there, a mace was found inside the stomach. The warriors were in a fix. They were afraid to approach Krishna, afraid of what he would do if he realized how they had insulted the sages. So instead they went to Balarama.

Balarama yelled at all the warriors. But he knew that what was done was done. So in order to solve the problems, he had the mace ground into a fine powder and dissolved it in the sea. However no matter what he did, one small piece refused to be ground. Deciding that one small piece could not harm anyone, Balarama threw that piece into the sea....

The area where the mace was dissolved started developing a strange sort of grass around it, the likes of which had never been seen till date....The small piece of mace was swallowed whole by a fish.

Thirty-six years later, Krishna and his men had seen plenty of bad omens in their city. They knew that Gandhari's curse was coming to pass. It was at this time that Krishna suggested that they visit some temples so that the effect of Gandhari's curse would be reduced.

So all of them set out of Dwaraka. At night, the warriors suddenly started engaging in a drunken brawl. None of them realized that they were very near the place where the powdered mace was dissolved. Fighting and hitting each other, they fell on the grass. They pulled the grass out. In their drunken stupor they could not even figure out that the grass had suddenly turned into a mace!

Armed with the maces, the warriors started attacking each other. By morning, all of them had killed one another....Not one of them left alive. The only two exceptions were Krishna and Balarama.

As soon as Balarama saw the fight, he walked away from there. He sat in the ground near the sea in a cross-legged position, deep in meditation. He knew his time was up and by his meditation gave up his body. Balarama merged with Aadisesha, the thousand headed snake on which Lord Vishnu rests in Vaikunta.

In the morning Krishna saw that the entire place was bloody and horrific. He walked away from there....he kept walking alone with no friends and no one to talk to....Finally he found a low shrub and there he lied down in a yoga stance.

Krishna smiled sadly. He knew it was now the time to repay the debt of a very long time. He waited....Jara was coming....

The author thanks Mr. A. Narayan for his review

Krishna and Jara - The curse of Gandhari - Part 3 of 3

“A Vanara being slain by a prince...the prince was dark, looking almost blue..The prince who was hiding behind a tree had hit the Vanara with a bow and arrow. The Vanara was not even fighting with the prince, but was fighting with someone else...another Vanara...”.

Jara was disoriented for a few minutes wondering where he was.

Then slowly everything came back. The dream was so vivid, so clear. It was almost as if he had been there...Jara did not know what the dream meant, but he had had the dream often.

Jara sighed as he shook himself up. He was feeling hungry and had to find some food fast.

Soon Jara got ready, packed his bow and arrow. As he was packing the arrows, his eyes fell upon his favourite arrow. He smiled. Till date he had never missed with the arrow. The sharp metal from which the arrow was made was unlike any that Jara had ever seen.

But to be honest, Jara had not made the arrow, it had found him. A few days back as Jara cut open a fish for eating, he had been surprised to find the metal piece inside it. When Jara examined it, he found the metal piece so sharp and hard that he used it as arrowhead.  And it had never failed him till date.

Jara was walking in the forest listening, his bow ready. After straining for a few minutes he sighed. He had thought he heard something...but then it was nothing. Jara was really dejected. He had been wandering in the forest for hours now and still he had not found anything to eat. He had to find some animal and fast. Jara walked further on.

There!  Behind the shrub, Jara was sure he had seen a movement. He waited for some time observing, listening, there it was again....Jara knew that it could only be an animal behind such a low shrub.

Jara knew that he had to hit the animal or he would go hungry for the night. He pulled out his favourite arrow.

He twanged his bow and pointed at the shrub and pulled the arrow back, the bow stretched to the maximum, ready to let go....

When the arrow flew, Jara was sure, he would hit the target.

His smile turned to horror when he heard a scream from behind the low shrub. A human scream...He ran towards the shrub haphazardly almost falling down. Lying behind the shrub was one of the most handsome men Jara had ever seen. But the features of the man were contorted in pain.

Jara knew that the man was royal...a king....His colour...Jara blinked....The dying man's complexion looked so black that it was almost blue....

For a second Jara had a vision from his dream come to him. The man was the same colour as the man in his dreams. Jara shook his head. The man....Jara breathed in quickly. He suddenly realized whom he had hit. His vision blurred with tears and he was hyperventilating as he fell on the ground and picked up the dying body of the dark Lord. 'My Lord! My Lord Krishna! What have I done? How could I even do something like this....I can never forgive myself....'

Krishna looked at the weeping face of Jara and said sadly, 'No my friend. There is nothing to forgive. Now we are even. All of us, no matter who, is always bound by our Karma. It is the law of the universe!'

Karma? What Karma? Jara looked uncomprehendingly wondering whether the Dark Lord was delirious in pain. Krishna said calmly to him, 'Remember who you are my friend....Remember....Neither of us have always had the same body...I have gone by many names before this and so have you and we have met before....'

Jara shook his head disbelievingly. No...No it was not possible! But then Krishna...the dark prince, the Vanara....All these figures intertwined in Jara's head...

'Rama!' Jara spoke slowly afraid to voice his opinion.

Krishna nodded as the pain from the arrow threatened to overwhelm him, 'Yes my friend! You were Vali, the Vanara king. As Rama, I killed you when you were fighting with Sugreeva. Whatever my reasons for killing you then, it was not correct to kill you from a hiding place though I had no enmity with you...I did what I felt was the right thing to do....So now...' Krishna smiled a little hazily as he looked at Jara, '…Now we are even..!

For a second Jara thought he saw a mischievous smile in Krishna's face. But then he saw Krishna's face twist in pain. Jara sobbed unrestrained as Krishna took a deep breath and continued again, 'You will attain salvation for what you have done...be in peace now!'

Jara remembered all the details of his past life with startling clarity, but he was weeping. This was not right. He looked at the Dark Lord not wanting to leave him. Krishna smiled tiredly. 'Now my friend! Just remove the arrow and then leave this place. Go and perform penance...We will meet again in better circumstances....Go now!'

Not understanding, Jara pulled out the arrow from Krishna's body. Krishna gasped as blood oozed out from the wound. Krishna looked at the arrowhead and smiled to himself despite the pain...Now it was all over....

Jara left the Dark Lord as he ran far from there....He wanted to run away....and keep running.... as far away as possible....

As he was running aimlessly, he heard a deep voice within him …We are all bound by our Karma, my friend...whether we are God or mortal. I killed you though there was no enmity between us. Now it has come a full circle as you have now been the reason for me to leave the earth....And please do not be worried...My work here is done for now....Your role in it just marks the end of that role. And remember,my friend, you were just fulfilling the words of a grieving mother....

Jara knew it was Krishna. He felt a little peaceful. He would meet the Dark Lord, in a different place at a different plane of existence....But he definitely would...of that Jara had no doubt. Jara started his penance....

The author thanks Mr. A. Narayan for his review.

Vishwamitra and Parashurama

Do you know that Brahmarishi Vishwamitra is related to Parashurama the great warrior sage who is the sixth incarnation of  Lord Vishnu? 
Their story starts with a king called Gadhi. Gadhi had a beautiful and intelligent daughter Satyavati.
Once a great sage called Ruchika came to the kingdom of Gadhi. When he entered the kingdom, he saw Princess Satyavati who was out with her maids. The sage was mesmerised with the princess. 
The very next day he went to the King's court. 
'Your Majesty! I am Ruchika, the son of Sage Chyavana.' The king was thrilled in welcoming the sage. Chyavana was one of the most powerful sages in the world. 

As the king enthusiastically welcomed the sage, the sage told the king about his mission. 'I saw your daughter, Princess Satyavati yesterday....' The sage said with glazed eyes. 'She looks beautiful and is very intelligent. I am a sage....' Ruchika said confidently, 'By the power of my penance, I can keep your daughter very happy....If  you and your daughter have no objections, I would like to marry her....'

Gadhi was taken aback. He certainly did not expect his daughter, who had been born and brought up in a palace to live like the wife of a hermit, in the forests. But then he could not downright refuse a sage.
He looked at the sage slyly, 'Great sage! I am glad you want to marry my daughter. But before I give my daughter away, I request that you grant me a thousand white horses with one black ear!'

The king was confident that the sage would never be able to find more than ten such horses....

The unassuming Sage Ruchika left the kingdom and meditated on Lord Varuna. After a powerful meditation, Varuna appeared before him. Ruchika requested the Lord of the Ocean to give him a thousand pure white horses with one black ear. 
By the power of the meditation, Varuna gave the sage the horses.

Gadhi was astounded when Sage Ruchika came for the second time with a thousand horses. He knew he did not have a choice in this matter. He gave his only daughter in marriage to the rishi.

Much to the surprise of everyone, Satyavati adjusted to the life in the hermitage very well. She was loved by everyone in the hermitage and around it. However she had one worry which was eating her.

Ruchika saw his worried wife and spoke to her. 'Satyavati! I thought you were happy in the hermitage. Is there something wrong? You were happy...now...something is bothering you...'

Satyavati sadly nodded her head. 'You have been keeping me very happy here and I am happy beyond my wildest dreams...But you need to understand...I am worried about my father!'

Ruchika looked surprised at his wife, 'What is wrong with your father?'

Satyavati looked unhappily at the sage, 'My father...I am the only child of my father....And I am now in this hermitage....My father has no one who will look after the kingdom after him....'

Ruchika smiled at his wife, 'If you had told me this earlier, I would have solved your problem earlier...' By the power of his meditation he picked up two potions and handed them over to his wife. 'Give this potion to your mother! This potion has the power of the warrior's energy stored in it...The child born would be a powerful warrior and a good king...' Satyavati gladly nodded her head as the sage picked up the second potion. 'This my dear is for you...This has the power of the sages stored in it...The child which would be born from it, would be a powerful rishi...' Satyavati looked shyly at her husband as she took the potions.

She told her mother all about the two potions and gave the warrior's potion to her mother....However Satyavati's mother was doubtful...She did not believe the sage....I am sure that sage would love his wife more than he would care about me...I am sure the other potion would give a better child than the one he has given me....So Gadhi's wife interchanged the potions.

So Satyavati drank the warrior's potion and Gadhi's wife drank the sage's potion....

Born to Gadhi's wife was Kaushika. The story of Kaushika is very famous in Hindu mythology. He was the king who fought with Sage Vasishta for the heavenly cow Nandini. Kaushika was humiliated when he was defeated by the power of Sage Vasishta's penance. Disgusted Kaushika gave up his kingdom and decided to become a sage. Kaushika was no normal sage. By the power of his penance, Kaushika became Brahmarishi Vishwamitra.
True to the Ruchika's power, though the child was born as a king,the child grew up and went on to become one of the most powerful rishis ever....

As Satyavati had a child in her womb, Ruchika was surprised...The aura emanating from his wife was not that he had expected. He looked at his wife. 'My dear! The child....the child in your womb...It does not have the aura of a sage...in fact it looks like a warrior...' Satyavati was surprised as Ruchika using the powers of his mind sensed what Satyavati's mother had done.
Ruchika told Satyavati everything that her mother had done.

Satyavati looked at Ruchika, 'NO! I do not wish for the child to be a warrior! Please, change it...please, I do not want to be the mother of a warrior! I want him to be like you...a great sage one who is well versed in the Vedhas and the Scriptures...'

Ruchika looked at his wife and sadly nodded his head. 'Because you ask for it, I can only make sure that your child is not a warrior....But the power of the warrior cannot just go away....At the best I can just shift it by one generation....If not your child, then your grandchild will be a warrior!'

Satyavati agreed to it gladly. So Ruchika using the fruits of his penance, took away the warrior powers in the child. The child born to Ruchika and Satyavati was Sage Jamadagni. He was a great sage, who was one of the Saptarishis of the world....
However such a power could not be totally taken away. It was only shifted by one generation. Jamadagni's son was Parashurama, [In Sanskrit it literally means the Rama with the axe].

True to Ruchika's power, Parashurama though born to a sage was one of the greatest warriors in the world. It is believed that he was an incarnation of Lord Narayana, born to destroy all the kings in the world, because they had become haughty and arrogant.

Parashurama's fighting prowess is out of the world. It is believed that he got the world rid of the haughty and arrogant kings and warriors 21 times.
There were very few warriors who could match the power of Parashurama. Bheeshma, the grandsire of the Mahabharatha was one of the few people whom Parashurama considered his equal.
However Parashurama was stopped by another Avatar of Lord Vishnu - Lord Rama of Ayodhya.
When Parashurama met Rama, Parashurama realized that it was no longer necessary to destroy the warriors and kings of the world. After meeting Rama, it is believed that Parashurama left the realm of humans never to come back.....