PARASHURAMA AVATARA - KARTAVEERYARJUNA

PARASHURAMA AND KARTAVEERYARJUNA 

LORD PARASURAMA

King kArtaveeryArjuna was also named 'sahasra bAhu arjuna' because he was given the boon of one thousand strong hands (tiraN toL Ayiram). When He took this amazing form, the arms looked like a war weapon of thousand mountains put together. This strong king ruled the Haihayas Kingdom from his capital mAhishmati on the banks of the river Narmada.

Once when kArtaveeryArjuna was having a bath with his wives and playing jala kreeDa with them in the narmadA river, rAvaNa was worshipping a shiva linga with the river water. A disturbed kArtaveeryArjuna spread his 500 hands to stop the water from being used and enjoyed his bath with the other 500 hands. He also imprisoned rAvaNa who opposed Him.

KArtaveeryArjuna once visited parashurAma’s father, Jamadagni’s Ashrama. Jamadagni was very hospitable to him. But kArtaveeryarjuna’s eyes were on Jamadagni’s gift-giving cow called kAmadhEnu. When he tried to take it forcibly with the help of his army equipped with weapons, Jamadagni was killed. An angry paraShurAma then killed the thousand armed kArtaveeryarjuna with his sharp weapon called ‘paraShu or vidyudabhi’, the axe. He also killed 21 generations of the cruel kshatriyas in order to save the world from tyrant kings. Because kartaveeryArjuna died in the hands of Lord ViShNu, he attained veera swarga.