अश्वत्थामा बालिर व्यासो हनुमानश चा विभीषण कृपाचार्य चा परशुरामं सप्तातः चिरंजीविनम् |
It means that Aswathama, King Mahabali, Veda Vyasa, Lord Hanuman, Vibhishana , Krupacharya and Lord Parashuram are Seven Immortals. It is believed that all those who take their names daily will surely live for 100 years and will not face untimely death.
It is also believed that those who worship their teachers or Gurus with the prescribed ritual and also worship these Seven Immortals on their birthdays will become immortal too. (I think this is the easiest prescription of Immortality ever invented...;) )
But who are these Seven Immortals? Let's know them better:
Aswathama
Aswathama, son of Dronacharya - the Guru of Kauravas and Pandavas - became fast friend of Duryodhana. During the battle of Mahabharat, it became difficult for Pandavas to subdue their Guru Dronacharya. Hence, they hatched a plan.
They killed an elephant named Aswathama and made Yudhishthir (who always spoke Truth) declare loudly that 'Aswathama has been killed.' This stunned the raging Dronacharya as he had granted the boon of immortality to his son. The moment he cast aside his weapons, Draupadi's brother Dhristadyumna killed Dronacharya.
When the news reached Aswathama, he vowed to take revenge of the deceitful murder of his father. He was further enraged when Bhim resorted to unfair means to kill Duryodhan in the end. However, he was very much outnumbered by Pandavas and their mighty army.
While he was trying to think of ways to end the Pandava dynasty at night of the eighteenth day of Mahabharat, he saw how an owl killed an army of crows at night. Hence, he prayed to Mahadev and sought his blessings and entered the camp of Pandavas and killed many great warriors on Pandava's side including Shikhandi, Dhrishtadyumna, and the five sons of Draupadi.
He was later caught by Pandavas. He fought hard and even used Brahmastra to kill Arjun's grandson and Abhimanyu's son Parikshit who was still in the womb. Krishna used his divine powers to revive the foetus and along with Draupadi meted out the toughest punishment to him.
It is said that though Aswathama is an immortal, he bears the curse of living a loveless and companion-less life till the end of Time. A gem on his head was grouched out and Krishna cursed him that the wound will never heal.
Aswathama is a living warning that those who live for Revenge and Rage alone, live a loveless and friendless life. They wish for death and even death refuses to give them reprieve from their distress.
There are many stories related to Aswathama appearances that do rounds from time to time. Raja Prithviraj Chauhan and parents of Bhagwan Swaminarayan are believed to have met Aswathama too.
King Bali
King Bali or Mahabali stands for Valour, Righteousness, Devotion and Charity. Grandson of Prahlad, this Asur King was an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu. When he conquered Heaven, Indra and other Devas request Vishnu to help them regain their kingdom.
Thus, Vishnu took Vaman (small Brahmin boy) avatar and asked for three strides of land from Raja Bali. Raja Bali pledged it to him. Then, Vaman strarted growing astronomically. He covered Earth and Heaven in only two strides. Since no place was left, King Bali offered him his head for the third stride.
Vaman pushed Bali to Patala where Bali is believed to rule forever. Vaman then granted him two boons - that he will guard the gates of his kingdom in Patala, and Bali can visit Kerala every year during Onam and see how his people are doing.
Some vedic texts also mention that Mahabali will be the next Indra after the term of Purandar (the current Indra) is over.
Ved Vyas
Ved Vyasa is the living embodiment of Erudition and Wisdom. He wrote Mahabharata, Srimad Bhagavatam and several Puranas. He is believed to be the ultimate visionary.
In Mahabharat, he played a key role and Dhritshashtra, Pandu and Vidhur are believed to be his sons.
Ved Vyasa is such a great sage that even Lord Ganesha (who was working as the scribe for him) had to stop and think to understand some of the verses of Mahabharat before penning them.
Hanuman
Hanuman is said to be one of the Rudra avatars of Lord Shiva. He exemplifies Loyalty, Devotion, Virtue, Strength and Wisdom. He is also believed to dispel negative energies including ghosts, poltergeists and demons.
The immortal Hanuman is present as an ideal to mankind and is believed to have several miraculous and divine powers.
Vibhishana
Vibhisana or Bibhishana was the youngest brother of Ravana. As opposed to the popular belief, he was certainly not a weakling. He resisted peer pressure, social mores and family ties to stay at the path of righteousness. He did not indulge in sycophancy to make his life easier when he was living with Ravana and did not think twice about embracing the righteous (and enemy) King Rama - without any expectation of reward.
Rama granted him the boon of Immortality and made him the Guardian of Truth and Dharma on Earth. In Mahabharat, he is mentioned briefly as King of Lanka who welcomed Ghatotkacha - the son of Bhim who approached him as an envoy of Sahadev - with open arms.
However, he is perhaps the least popular of six positive Chiranjeevis because he was considered a family traitor for telling secrets of Lanka to Rama.
Krupacharya
In Mahabharata, Kripacharya played the role of Rajrishi. In that capacity, he was one of the Gurus of Pandavas and Kauravas too and later was Guru to Parikshit - the grandson of Arjun - who was the only one left to ascend the throne after the war was over.
While Dronacharya is certainly the more famous teacher of the princes of Hastinapur, he lost the right to immortality because he was not totally impartial. He favored Arjun while teaching and later sided with Kauravas in the interest of his son - Aswathama.
Krupacharya, on the other hand, always adhered to laws and ethics that defined his role. Even in the face or worst adversities, he always stuck to his principles. After the battle of Mahabharata, he began doubting his principles. Lord Krishna, then, reassured him that he has done well and made him the Guardian of Laws and Ethics on Earth by making him immortal.
Parashuram
The Master of Martial Arts, the 6th Incarnation of Lord Vishnu, Lord Parshuram denotes Raw Strength and Channeling the Anger to achieve Justice for the World. He stood up to the mighty oppressors and ultimately, learnt to make peace with the past.
Son of of a great sage Jamdagni, Parashuram got his name from 'Parashu' or 'Axe', which is his favored weapon. He is known to have gone around the Earth 21 times, killing Kshatriyas or Rulers who oppressed their subjects. He was the Guru of great warriors and warrior-gurus like Bhishma, Dronacharya and Karna.
Parashuram also appeared in Ramayana, at the time of Sita's Swayamvar, where he had a hot exchange with Lakshman over Ram breaking Lord Shiva's bow. Later, he came to know that Ram was Lord Vishnu himself and he apologized for his mistake.
All the land he had won from the evil kings, he donated to the priests. When he decided to build an ashram and settle down, he requested the King of Oceans to give him some land. This piece of land came to be known as 'Kerala'.
It is believed that Lord Parashuram is still doing his penance and will make an appearance at the end of Kaliyuga to become the teacher of Kalki - the last incarnation of Lord Vishnu.
Do note:
- Three of these personalities are associated only with Mahabharata - Aswathama, Ved Vyas and Krupacharya; two only with Ramayana - Vibhishana, and Hanuman (Hanuman appears in Mahabharat for a small episode with Bheem - the third Pandav and then again on the flag of Arjun during the battle); one both with Ramayana and Mahabharata - Parshuram (who was Guru of Bhishm Pitamah Bheem and again of Kunti's stranged son - Karna; and King Mahabali of Vaman Story fame.
- Only two of these personalities are regarded as Gods - Hanuman (who also represents Vanar or Monkeys) and Parashuram. Three are Humans, even if they are sages or great men. Two are Asuras - Vibhishana and Raja Bali who changed their destiny by adhering to the right ideals and sticking to the correct path. It shows that it is your action, and not your origin, that grants you ultimate reward and recognition.
- Only one of these personalities - Aswathama - represents negative quality and is here as a warning to us. Rest all the six represent different positive traits that should be idolized by all of us.
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