Hindu mythology is celebrated worldwide for its captivating stories and scriptures featuring many warriors and gods. 7 Chiranjeevi name appeared in the ancient Hindu scripture. The 7 Chiranjeevi name helped to shape the greatest epics and scriptures of the Hindu religion.
Hindu mythology considers the 7 Chiranjeevi name as the most powerful warriors and gods. They were part of the biggest wars of humanity and also helped to mark the victory of truth over evil. The 7 Chiranzeevis possessed highly skilled abilities and divine powers from the gods.
This article will discuss the 7 Chiranjeevi name of Hindu mythology and help you get a brief idea of every character.
Who is Chiranjeevi?
There were many powerful gods in the Hindu Mythology who were able to bless anyone with the boon of immortality. There are 7 gods and warriors who are blessed with the boon of immortality. Those who were blessed with the boon of immortality are called Chiranjeevi.
The Word Chiranjeevi is made with two words Chiram and Jeevi, where Chiram refers to long and Jeevi means lived. One who lives till the end of earth or infinity is 7 Chiranjeevi Name. There are a total of 7 Chiranjeevi names in Hindu mythology.
The 7 Chiranjeevi Name of the Hindu mythology are:
- Raja Bali
- Parashuram
- Ved Vyas
- Vibhishan
- Hanuman
- Kripacharya
- Ashwatthama
1. King Mahabali:
Mahabali, also known as Bali, was the son of Devamba and Virochana, rulers of ancient Daitya, now Kerala. King Bali was the grandson of Prahlad who was the great devotee of Lord Vishnu.
During his childhood, Bali mostly lived in the shade of his grandfather Prahlad who taught him the lessons of morality and made him a good human. Prahalad also awakens the devotion to Lord Vishnu in the heat of Bali.
Bali was born in an Asura (Daitya) family still he was a great devotee of Lord Vishnu and also very knowledgeable and generous.
Story:
When Bali became the King of the Daitya Kingdom he wanted to spread his empire all over the world, when he was successful in it then he acquired heaven and hell under his empire. All the Devas of hell and heaven were annoyed by Bali’s control over heaven and hell and asked Lord Vishnu for help.
When King Bali was performing Ashwamedh Yajya he was doing charity to the people. Lord Vishnu also appeared there in the form of young Vamana and asked King Bali to give him land of three footsteps, King Bali laughed at it and allowed him to measure 3 feet from anywhere in his kingdom.
Then the Vamana increased his size and covered the whole earth in the first step and the heaven and hell in the second step and asked Bali where to put his third step as he covered all his empire in 2 steps, then King Bali asked to put his third step on his head. The third step of Vamana sends him to the Suthala, the highest heaven by pleasing his devotion.
The Onam festival of South India is celebrated to glorify the great ruler of the earth, King Bali. Lord Vishnu all bless him that he can visit the earth on this day to check the welfare of his followers and kingdom. This incident made him Chiranjeevi.
2. Parashuram:
Lord Parashuram was the son of Renuka and Saptarishi Jamadagni. He was the 6th incarnation of Lord Vishnu. As he was the celestial form of lord Vishnu he was born with special divine powers.
Parshuram was a great devotee of Lord Shiva, he pleased Lord Shiva with his true devotion and meditation and asked Lord Shiva to teach him the Dhanurvidhya( Archery) and war combat, bless him with the boon of immortality and an Axe (Pharashu) by which he gets his name of Parashuram.
According to the scriptures, Lord Parashurram was one the most powerful Chiranjeevi among all 6 Chiranjeevi. It is said that he is still alive in the current world and is waiting for Lord Kalki to be born on earth. He will teach and give him all the divine powers to defeat the modern evil, Kali.
Story:
Parashuram loved his father so much and always followed the path of his father. A Kshatriya King visited Maharshi Jamadagni’s hermitage, where food was prepared with the help of Kamdhenu, a divine cow from Indra.
Seeing the divine power and capabilities of cow Kamadhenu, Kartavirya Arjun demanded Jamadagni to give him the cow but Jamadagni refused as the cow was the only source to help him provide food. But Kartavirya Arjun forcibly took the cow with him and destroyed the hermitage.
When Parashuram returned to his home, his mother told him everything. Seeing this all Parshuram got furious and went to the Kingdom of Kartavirya Arjun. Parshuram demanded his cow back from King Kartavirya, who attacked him. Parshuram killed the king and returned the cow.
Later in the absence of Parshuram the three sons of Kartavirya came to the hermitage and killed Maharishi Jamadagni. Furious at his father’s murder he pledged to kill all the Haihaya Kshatriya and their generation. He killed all three sons of King Kartavirya Arjun and later defeated and killed all the Haihaya Kshatriya alone 21 times.
3. Ved Vyasa:
Ved Vyasa also known as Krishna Dvaipayana was the son of Satyavati and Parashara born in the late Treta Yuga. He wrote the great epic of Mahabharat with Lord Ganesha on the order of Lord Brahma.
According to the ancient Hindu scriptures, Ved Vyasa is a post, during the Dwapara Yuga Krishna Dwaipayana was the Ved Vyasa of that time as he was the great intellect of Vega and Vedic Mantras. Ved Vyasa said to give the Vedic scripture knowledge and divine powers to the 10 upcoming forms of Lord Vishnu to save the earth from evil Kali.
Ved Vyasa created many Ved and Upanishads and 18 Puranas. It is said that Ved Vyasa is considered the father of Hindu literature. Hindus celebrate the festival of Guru Purnima to honour him because he was born on that day and became the greatest teacher of Hindus.
Story:
According to the great epic Mahabharata, Ved Vyasa was the son of King Shantanu and half-brother of Bhishma. During the early stages of Mahabharata, the two sons Shantanu, Vichitravirya, and Chitrangada died without children.
This incident made the bloodline of Shantanu about to end because the elder son of late Shantanu, Bhishma also vowed to live to unmarry the whole life of his dead father’s respect. Later Shantanu’s wife, Stayawati declared that Shantnu had one more son named Krishna Dwapina which she kept secret from everyone.
On the order of his mother, he performed the Niyoga relationship with the two wives of Vichitravirya and a maid and gave birth to three sons Pandu, Dhritarastra, and Vidhura, Who were the father and uncle of Kauravas and Pandavas. Ved Vysa later wrote the whole Mahabharata as he witnessed the whole story from beginning to end.
4. Vibhishan:
Vibhishana was the son of great SageVishrava and Kaikesi and the younger brother of Rawan and Kumbhkaran. He was the most humble, polite, and generous of all his brothers and sisters. As his mother, Kaikesi belongs to the Rakshasa family, Vibhishan and his siblings were half Rakshasa and half Brahmin.
Vibhishana was a great devotee of Lord Vishnu and always prayed to meet him. 7 Chiranjeevi name Vibhishana, a great intellect of Vedic scripture, also possessed skills in majestic powers and war strategies.
With long and hard meditation he and his brothers, Rawana and Kumbhkarana pleased Lord Brahma and Brahma asked them for their wishes, on which Vibhishana wished that he wanted to live in the Lotus feet of Lord Vishnu and to Worship him till infinity.
Story:
When his elder brother Ravana, king of Lanka forcibly took Goddess Sita with him to his King, Vibhishana advised him to bring Goddess back to Lord Ram and asked for forgiveness. But Rawana did not hear his advice and became furious with Vibhishana and asked him to leave the Kingdom of Lanka.
VibhiShana knew that Lord Ram was the incarnation of Lord Ram and went into Lord Ram’s Shelter. There he helped Lord Ram defeat Rawana by unveiling his war strategies and plan and helped plan the whole war strategy and army structure to defeat the huge and powerful army of Lanka.
After defeating Ravana Lord Rama made him the king of Lanka and said to serve the earth and teach moral lessons to the people till infinity.
5. Lord Hanuman:
Lord Hanuman was the son of Anjana andKesari. He was the celestial son of the wind god Pawan, which gave him the name of Pawanputra. As the celestial son of Pawan Dev, Lord Hanuman was born with divine powers and unmatchable powers and strength.
Lord Hanuman got his teachings from the sun god Surya Dev who taught him to use his power and also gave him the knowledge of Vedas and Puranas which taught him the lesson of Morality. Lord Brahma granted him the boon of invincibility against any weapon, and Indra bestowed upon him the ability to determine his own time of death.
Story:
When Lord Hanuman completed all his teachings and grew up, someone advised him to serve Lord Ram for his whole life. Lord Hanuman joined Monkey King Sugreev’s ministry and guided him to conquer his Kingdom.
During the Ramayana, he helped Lord Ram to find Goddess Sita and jumped over the huge ocean in search of Devi Sita and reached Lanka kingdom. Where he met Goddess Sita then burned the Whole Lanka kingdom with his tail killed one of Rawan’s powerful sons Akshay Kumar and marked a warning for Rawan.
During the battle, he saved Lord Ram and Laxman’s lives multiple times. When Meghnath badly injured Lord Laxman in the war, he purchased the whole Mountain of Medicinal herbs to save Laxman’s life. This incident led Lord Ram to bless him with the boon of Chiranjeevi (immortality).
Lord Hanuman was a very important character of Ramayana and a great devotee of Lord Ram. Lord Ram Lord him to protect the human race to infinity.
6. Kripacharya:
Kripacharya, son of Sage Sardawan and Janpadi, was found by King Shantanu in the forest and raised as his own. When Sardawan knew about his children, he went to the Shantanu unveiled their true identity, and brought Kripa back to the forest with him.
Kripa was born with some divine powers, his father Sardawan taught him archery and made him a great archer. His sister was later married to Dronacharya. He became the second teacher of Kauravas and Pandavas after Guru Dron. He was also a council member of the Kuru Kingdom and always helped the king In big and important decisions.
Story:
Kripacharya, a devoted follower of Lord Shiva, meditated in the Himalayas for years and Lord Shiva granted him immortality as a blessing.
Kripachrya was the royal teacher of Kauravas and Pandavas, he taught them many war combat and skills of the great archers. During the Mahabharata war, he fought from the side of the Kauravas and made the war challenging for the Pandavas.
Kripachraya’s loyalty toward the kingdom besides the evil or truth, earned him respect from both sides of the army. Many say that he will help Lord Kalki in the war against Kali.
7. Ashwatthama:
Ashwatthama was the son of Dronacharya, the Royal teacher of the Kuru Kingdom, and his mother was mother Kripi who was the sister of Kripacharya. He was born with a divine gem on his head which gave him some divine powers. His father Drona taught him the best archery skills and war combat to make him a great warrior.
Ashwatthama’s father, a royal teacher, brought him up like a prince. He was a good friend of Duryodhan and always teased the Pandavas. He knew how to use many divine powerful weapons.
Ashwatthama also has the power to translate the language of horses which he used in the field in a manipulative way to defeat the horse riders. His powers and strengths made him among the powerful warriors of Mahabharata from the Kauravas side.
Story:
After the Mahabharata battle, Ashwatthama killed the Pandavas’ five sons at night, mistaking them for the Pandavas to avenge his father.
When Pandavas returned to their shelter and found their sons dead they became furious and went to kill Aswatthama. Instead of feeling guilty he took his weapon on and challenged Arjun. Ashwatthama summoned the powerful Bharahamasta weapon to kill the Pandavas, but Arjun, who knew it too, summoned it in response. Before they leave the arrow Lord Krishan stops them both and orders them to drop their weapon.
Furious at this Lord Krishna cursed him that he would wander all alone on the earth till the end of kali yuga. Many say Ashwatthama is still alive on earth and waiting for Lord Kalki to free him from the curse.
Conclusion:
In Hindu mythology, many powerful gods and warriors fill the stories. Those warriors and gods who have been blessed or cursed with the boon of immortality are considered Chiranjeevi. There are 7 Chiranjeevi according to the Hindu mythology and ancient scriptures.
King Bali, Lord Hanuman, Ved Vyasa, Lord Parashuram, Kripacharya, Vibhishana, and Ashwatthama are all part of the great 7 Chiranjeevi. They helped to mould and fill Hindu mythology with fascinating stories.
Frequently Asked Questions
One who is blessed with the boon of Immortality is called Chiranjeevi.
King Bali, Parashuram, Ved Vyasa, Lord Hanuman, Vibhishana, Kripacharya, and Ashwatthama are the 7 Chiranjeevi of Hindu mythology.
King Bali was the grandson of Prahalad, the great devotee of Lord Shiva. Like his grandfather, he was also a devotee of Lord Vishnu. The festival of Onam is celebrated to glorify King Bali in the southern part of India.
Kesari and Anjana were the parents of Lord Hanuman. He is also said to be the celestial son of the wind God Pawan Dev.
At the death of his father Lord Parshuram pledged to kill all the Haihaya Kshatriya and their generation on the earth. He defeated and killed the Haihaya Kshatriya 21 times.
The 7 Chiranjeevis are waiting for Lord Kalki to be born and to help him in the modern war against the evil Kalki in the Kali Yuga.