chiranjeevi persons

󰟝CHIRANJEEVI

🙏The Chirnjivi or Immortals in Hinduism.🙏

In Hindu scriptures, there are said to be a group of Ashta-Chiranjeevis (Eight ‘Immortals’, Chiran- Long, and Jeevi- Lived). These eight immortals are said to still live on the

Earth in flesh and blood today, for various different reasons. Specifically, Chiranjeevis are those born human, but blessed or cursed with extremely long life.

So, let's us read about the immortals.

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There is a shloka in sanskrit, Known as Chiranjivi shloka

“Aswathama Balir Vyaso Hanumanash cha Vibhishana Krupacharya cha Parashuramam Saptatah Chirjeevanam”

“अश्वत्थामाबलिर्व्यासोहनुमांश्च विभीषण:कृपश्चपरशुरामश्च सप्तैतेचिरंजीविन:।”

Which means that Aswathama, King Mahabali, Veda Vyasa, Hanuman , Vibhishana , Krupacharya and Lord Parashuram are death-defying or imperishable personalities.Apart

from these seven, Markandeya, a great rishi Who was blessed by Shiva, and Jambavan, a strong and wellknown character from Ramayana  are also considered as

Chiranjivins.

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🔱 1) 🔴 Markandeyaji

Markandeyaji is a devotee of the Lord Shiv, and was granted immortality by him when Shiv and Yama (the God of death) fought to decide the Rishi’s destiny. A tale from the

Bhagavata Purana states that once sage Narayan visited Markandeya and asked him for a boon. Markandey prayed to sage Narayan to show him his illusory power or maya

since sages Nara-Narayan are incarnation of Supereme Lord Narayan. To fulfill his wish, Vishnu appeared in the form of a child floating on a leaf, and declared to the sage

that he was Time and Death. Sage Markandey entered into his mouth and save himself from the surging water. Inside the boy's stomach Markandey discovered all the worlds,

the seven regions and the seven oceans. The mountains and the kingdoms were all there. So were all living beings. Markandeyaji did not know what to make of all this. He

started to pray to Vishnu. The sage spent a thousand years with Vishnu. He composed the Bala mukundashtakam at this moment.

🔱 2) 🔴 Mahabali:

Mahabali or Bali was the “daitya” king and his capital was the present day state of Kerala. was the son of Devamba and Virochana. He grew up under the tutelage of his

grandfather, Prahlada, who instilled in him a strong sense of righteousness and devotion. He was an extremely devoted follower of Lord Vishnu and was known as a

righteous, wise, generous and judicious King.

Bali would eventually succeed his grandfather as the king of the Asuras, and his reign over the realm was characterized by peace and prosperity. He would later expand his

realm by bringing the entire world under his benevolent rule and was even able to conquer the underworld and Heaven, which he wrested from Indr and the Devs. The Devs,

after their defeat at the hands of Bali, approached their patron Vishnu and entreated him to restore their lordship over Heaven.

In Heaven, Bali, on the advice of his guru and advisor, Sukracharya, had begun the Ashwamedha Yaga so as to maintain his rule over the three worlds.

During an Ashwamedha yagna, Bali once was granting wishes to his masses out of his generosity. Meanwhile, Lord Vishnu reached there taking form of a little Brahmin boy

better known as his fifth avatar or Incarnation Vaman. The little Brahmin boy on reception asked from King Bali enough land to cover three paces of his feet. On acceptance

of his wish, Vaman grew to an abysmal size and in two paces, took away all the living world and also the three worlds in general.[heaven, earth and underworld figuratively].

Having left nothing else to offer, for his third and final step, King Bali bowed down infront of the Vaman realizing that he was none other than his Lord Vishnu and asked him

to place the third feet as this was the only thing that belonged to him.

Vaman then took the third step and thus raised him to 💫Suthala, the supreme form of heaven. However, looking at his generosity and devotion, Vaman on request of Bali,

gave him permission to visit earth once an year to ensure that his masses are well off and happy. It is for this reason, that the festival of Onam is celebrated widely in

Southern parts of India to welcome the arrival Onapottam, the symbolic form of King Bali.

He is hailed to be a supreme example of the highest and the ultimate Sadhana of Nava Vidha Bhakti, namely Atmanivedanam. It is believed that Bali was a practitioner of the

Raja Yoga.

🔘💠🔘

🔱  3) 🔴Ashwathama:

According to The Mahabharata, Ashwatthama means “the horse-voiced”. It probably also means the one having strength of a horse. Perhaps the most interesting of all the

Chiranjeevis, And one of the most intresting character from Mahabharata. Ashwatthama was a great warrior and son of a legendary warrior and teacher named Dronacharya.

He was gifted with a gem on his forehead by Lord Shiva and was said to have divine powers. When the battle of Kurukshetra A.K.A Mahabharata War was almost over,

Ashwatthama who fought from the Kauravas, decided to murder the five Pandava brothers in their camp at midnight even though it was against the ethics of war to attack

after sunset. Mistaking the identity of the five brothers, Ashwatthama killed the sons of Pandavas while they were away. On their return, the Pandavas saw what happened

and were enraged with the incident and chased Ashwatthama to kill him. Ashwatthama seeked salvation for his crime but it was already too late.

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To defend himself, he decided to invoke Bramhashirastra  against Pandavas. In retaliation, Arjuna invoked the same as he too was the student of Dronacharya and could do

the same. However, on observing this scene, Lord Krishna asked them to revoke the weapons as it would have led to a cataclysmic event resulting in annihilation of earth.

Arjuna revoked his weapon, however Ashwatthama was unable to do so as he was never taught how to.

Out of spite/ helplessness, he directed the weapon towards a singular being which in this case was Uttara, the daughter-in-law of Arjuna and who was pregnant. The weapon

led to the death of the unborn child and thus the lineage of Pandavas came to an end. Enraged at this atrocious act, Lord Krishna cursed Ashwatthama as follows:

Lord Krishna Cursed him like this:

O! Ashwathama “You will carry the burden of all the people’s sins on your shoulders and will roam alone like a ghost without getting any love and courtesy till the end of

Kaliyuga, You will have neither any hospitality nor any accommodation; You will be in total isolation from the mankind and society; Your body will suffer from a host of

incurable diseases forming sores and ulcers that would never heal. May you, Ashwathama, lead the most wretched life anyone can ever lead. May you never receive love or

affection ever in your life unto the end of Time ”.

And thus Ashwatthama is destined to live a life of misery and pain till the end of this Kaliyuga.

🔱 4) 🔴 Vyas:

Vyas ‘व्यास’ is a central and revered figure in most Hindu traditions. He is also sometimes called Veda Vyas ‘वेदव्यास’, the one who classified the Vedas into four parts. His real

name is "Krishna Dvaipayana."

Ved Vyas was a great sage born in the later stage of Treta Yuga and who has been said to have lived through the Dvapara Yuga and the current Kali Yuga. He was the son of

Satyavati, daughter of the fisherman Dusharaj, and the wandering sage Parashara (who is credited with being the author of the first Purana: Vishnu Purana).

The sage like any other immortal is said to have a lifetime of this Manvantara or till the end of this Kali yuga. Ved Vyas was the writer of Mahabharata and the Puranas (Vyas

is also credited with the writing of the eighteen major Puranas. His son Shuka or Suka is the narrator of the major Puran Bhagavat-Puran.) and also the one who split the

Vedas in four parts. The splitting being a feat that allowed people to understand the divine knowledge of the Ved. The word Vyasa means split, differentiate, or describe. It can

also be debated so that Ved Vyas was not just one being but a group of scholars who worked on the Veds.

🔱 5) 🔴 Hanuman:

Hanuman is a Hindu god and an ardent devotee of Ram. He is a central character in the Indian ithihas Ramayan and its various versions. He also finds mentions in several

other texts, including Mahabharata, the various Puranas and some Jain texts. A vanara (monkey), Hanuman participated in Ram’s war against the Daitya (demon) king

Ravan. Several texts also present him as an incarnation of Lord Shiva. 

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Lord Brahma gave him these:

1. Invulnerability

The power and strength to prevent any war weapon from causing physical damage.

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2. Power to induce fear in the enemies and destroy fear in the friends

This is the reason why all the ghosts and spirits are believed to fear Hanuman and that reciting his prayer is considered to shield any human being from evil forces.

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3. Size Manipulation

Ability to change the body size by preserving its proportion. This power assisted Hanuman in lifting the massive Dronagiri mountain and to enter monster Ravana’s Lanka

unnoticed.

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4. Flight

Ability to defy gravity.

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🕉 Lord Shiva gave him these:

1. Longevity

A blessing to lead a long life. Many people report even today that they have physically seen Hanuman with their own eyes.

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2. Enhanced Intelligence

It is said that Hanuman was able to astonish Lord Surya with his wisdom and knowledge within a week.

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3. Long range flight

This is just the extension of what Brahma blessed him with. This boon gave Hanuman an ability to cross vast oceans.

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While Brahma and Shiv conferred abundant blessings on Hanuman, other lords miserly gave him one boon each.

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Indr gave him protection from the deadly Vajra weapon.

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Varun gave him protection against water.

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Agni blessed him with protection from fire.

Surya willingly gave him the power to change his body form, commonly known as shapeshifting.

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Yama made him immortal and made death fear him.

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Kuber made him happy and contented for the entire lifetime.

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Vishwakarma blessed him with powers to save himself from all weapons. This is just an add-on to what some of the gods had already given him.

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Vayu blessed him with more speed than himself.

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Others have also asserted his presence wherever the Ramayan is read.

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अमलकमलवर्णं प्रज्ज्वलत्पावकाक्षं सरसिजनिभवक्त्रं सर्वदा सुप्रसन्नम् |

पटुतरघनगात्रं कुण्डलालङ्कृताङ्गं रणजयकरवालं वानरेशं नमामि ||

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यत्र यत्र रघुनाथकीर्तनं तत्र तत्र कृतमस्तकाञ्जलिम् ।

बाष्पवारिपरिपूर्णलोचनं मारुतिं नमत राक्षसान्तकम् ॥

🔸🔸🔸

yatra yatra raghunathakirtanam tatra tatra krta mastakanjalim ।

baspavariparipurnalocanam marutim namata raksasantakam ॥

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Meaning: Bow down to Hanuman, who is the slayer of demons, and who is present with head bowed and eyes full of flowing tears wherever the fame of Ram is sung.

🔱 6) 🔴 Vibhishana:

Vibhishana was the youngest son of Sage Vishrava, who was the son of Sage Pulatsya, one of the Heavenly Guardians. He (Vibhishan) was the younger brother of the Lord of

Lanka, Ravana and King of Sleep, Kunbhakarn. Even though he was born in the demon race, he was alert and pious and considered himself a Brahmin, since his father was

intuitively such. Though a Rakshas himself, Vibhishan was of a noble character and advised Ravan, who kidnapped and abducted Sita, to return her to her husband Ram.

After defeat of Ravan, Vibhishan was declared as the King of Lanka [present day Sri Lanka] by Lord Ram and was said to have been given the blessing of a long life to take

good care of his kingdom of Lanka. However, Vibhishan was not a Chiranjeevi in real sense. By which I mean that his lifetime was only as long as the end of one Kalpa.

[which is still a pretty long long time.]

🔱7) 🔴 Krupacharya:

Kripa, also known as Kripacharya or Krupacharya is an important character in the Mahabharat. Kripa was an archer born to a sage and was a royal teacher of the Pandavas

and Kauravas before Drona (the father of Ashwatthama).He was such a great archer that no one could defeat him.

This created panic amongst the gods. 

He was known for his impartiality and loyalty for his Kingdom. Lord Krishna granted him immortality.

🔱 8 ) 🔴 Parshuram:

Parshurama is the sixth avatar of Vishnu, He is son of Renuka and the saptarishi Jamadagni. He lived during the last Dvapara Yuga, and is one of the seven immortals or

Chiranjivi, of Hinduism. He received an parashu(axe) after undertaking terrible penance to please Shiva, who in turn taught him the martial arts.

It is said that Parashurama will act as a teacher for the last and final Avatar of Vishnu known as Kalki and will help him in undertaking penance in receiving celestial

weaponry and knowledge which will be helpful in saving mankind at the end of the present Yuga that is the Kaliyuga.

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