Parashurama Avatar: Rama of the Axe, Jamadagni and Kartavirya Arjuna

Parashurama, “Rama with the axe” (the word parashu means axe), is the sixth avatar of Vishnu in the list of the Dashavatara. He is a sage and a warrior, a Brahmin by birth who carries weapons, and the only avatar in the list whom the tradition holds to be still living. He appears in the Ramayana and in the Mahabharata as a teacher and a witness, as well as in the Puranas as an avatar. This page tells his story, explains how traditions understand his place in the list, and covers the festival and temples. It is written for readers from every community, and it notes where a story has been read in different ways.

Where the story comes from

Parashurama is described in the Mahabharata, which tells of his battles, his gift of land to the sage Kashyapa and his role as the teacher of Bhishma, Drona and Karna. He is in the Ramayana in the episode in which he meets Rama after the breaking of Shiva’s bow. The Bhagavata Purana and the Vishnu Purana include him among the avatars and tell the story of Jamadagni and Kartavirya. The tellings differ in their details, and this page follows the common outline.

The story as the tradition tells it

Parashurama was born in the lineage of the sage Bhrigu, the son of the sage Jamadagni and his wife Renuka. As a youth he worshipped Shiva and received from him the axe that gave him his name, and the skill of war.

The king Kartavirya Arjuna, called Sahasrarjuna for his thousand arms, once visited the hermitage of Jamadagni and was fed by the sage with the help of a wish-granting cow. In the telling that the Bhagavata gives, the king grew covetous and took the cow by force. Parashurama pursued him and killed him in battle. Later, Kartavirya’s sons killed Jamadagni in revenge while Parashurama was away. The tradition says that Parashurama, in grief and anger, vowed to rid the earth of rulers who had abused their power, and that he fought them across the land twenty-one times. He then gave the conquered earth to the sage Kashyapa as a gift and withdrew to a mountain to live in penance.

Several regional legends complete the picture. In Kerala and along the Konkan coast, people say that Parashurama threw his axe into the sea and the waters drew back to reveal the land. In that tradition he settled families of learned Brahmins along the coast, and the Malabar and Konkan regions are sometimes called Parashurama Kshetra, the land of Parashurama. These are traditions of place and not records of history.

In the Ramayana, he arrives at the end of the wedding journey of Rama and Sita, challenges Rama to string the bow of Vishnu, and when Rama does so, understands whom he faces and withdraws to the mountains. In the Mahabharata he is the guru of Karna, who hid his birth to be accepted as a student, and, in the telling, was cursed by Parashurama on being found out.

How he is understood

Vaishnava teachers commonly describe Parashurama as an avesha avatara, an avatar in whom Vishnu’s power enters a living being for a purpose, as distinct from a full descent. This view explains why he can live alongside other avatars, and why he lives on after his work is done. The tradition lists him among the seven chiranjivis, those said to live through the ages.

The twenty-one campaigns are a hard part of the story, and readers handle them in different ways. Some take them as a record of the end of oppressive rule and a lesson that power needs restraint. Some read them as symbolic and not literal. Others note that the story has been used in modern debates about caste, and they set it in the context of the Puranas’ interest in the duties of rulers and sages. A page that explains a tradition can say that all of these readings exist without choosing one for you. Tradition places Parashurama in the Treta Yuga, after Vamana and in the same age as Rama.

The festival: Parashurama Jayanti

Parashurama Jayanti is kept on the third day of the bright fortnight of Vaishakha, Tritiya, the same tithi as Akshaya Tritiya. Many panchangs keep the two on the same civil day, though some choose a different day for the jayanti because it follows the evening rule for Tritiya. Check the calendar that your family or temple follows.

On the day, devotees fast or eat simply, worship Vishnu and Parashurama, and read from the Mahabharata or Puranas. Observance is strongest among Brahmin communities such as the Chitpavans of Maharashtra and Goa, many of whom regard him as a family deity, though people from many communities honour him.

Temples

• Parashurama Temple, near Chiplun, Maharashtra: a well-known shrine in Ratnagiri district, connected with the Konkan legend of the land drawn back from the sea.
• Parasurama Swami Temple, Thiruvallam, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala: an ancient temple linked in local tradition with Parashurama, and known for rites for ancestors.
• Parshuram Kund, Lohit district, Arunachal Pradesh: a sacred pool in the Himalayan foothills, where, by tradition, Parashurama washed away his sin after his battles. It is a pilgrimage site, particularly at Makar Sankranti.
• Mahendragiri, Odisha: a mountain in Gajapati district that tradition names as the place where Parashurama lives in penance.

Check the temple’s own notice before you travel.

Reading and reciting

The Vishnu Sahasranama names Vishnu in many forms, and the Achyutashtakam is a short hymn that can be recited on Vishnu days. For the Gita’s explanation of why Vishnu takes birth, see chapter 4.

The next avatar

The list continues with Rama, prince of Ayodhya. Return to the Dashavatara overview for all ten.

Frequently asked questions