Skip to main content

Immortals of India

We have all heard of the famous immortals of Hindu Mythology. Hanuman to Vyas Dev to Ashwathama. The Immortals of Hindu mythology are called Chiranjibi, meaning "one who lives forever". However, it is in Hinduism itself that it is mentioned that no mortal body can be immortal; they pass on after a certain time on earth. Even Brahma is not free from this cycle. His earthly body collapses. Then who are immortals? What does it mean?


First, let's start with the Trinity, Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwar. Brahma, the creator, resides in the minds of all creators. Scientists, Mothers, artists, everyone is a part of Brahma. He who creates. Brahma is immortal through every creation on earth. Vishnu is the protector and preserver. He resides in every mortal. They protect their families, their morals, and their cultures. All reflect the aspects of Vishnu. Hence is the common belief that Vishnu resides in all mortals. Hence, we touch our feet or Pranipat our elders to worship Vishnu in them. Shiva is the destroyer. He is alive through destruction. All things come to an end. Shiva is that end. He is immortal through the floods, droughts and earthquakes, through death and destruction. He is Mahakal, the ultimate destroyer. His wrath is the storms, earthquakes or floods that destroy evil and start afresh. He is immortal through destruction. They are all immortal through the ideas they represent and not in human bodies.

Now, the immortals of Hinduism. There are many immortals; however, seven are very famous. They are:

  • Bali, the demon king, son of Prahlad, a worshipper of Vishnu. He was a demon showing human aspects in his reign and judgment. It is believed that he ruled present-day Kerala, and on Onam, which is celebrated all over South India, he descends on earth to bless and meet his subjects. What is said here is symbolic. His ideas and judgment were more human-like than any other demon, and his Bhakti was immense. What made him immortal was, in fact, the ideals he propagated that, till today, influence the culture and heritage of South India. Through the pages of history, we see that although South India was initially deprived of well-built cities and advanced societies of the north, later on, southern dynasties created the greatest of cities and administrations there and also built numerous temples to Lord Vishnu. Thus, Bali is immortal through his people. He is the first of the southern kings to bring in change and show improvement of culture, like his northern contemporaries.

Parashurama with axe.jpg
  • Parasurama, the man with the Axe, is the sixth avatar of the Lord. He appears as an angry Shiva Bhakt in Ramayana and challenges Ram to break his bow. He realises that the person to carry forward the legacy and principles of Vishnu and preserve the society is here, and he decides to renounce his duties and let Ram continue. In the Mahabharata, he is older and teaches Kshatriya weaponry. He has no anger against Kshatriyas as stated in the Ramayana, and he teaches greats like Bheeshma, Drona, Drupad and Karna skills with various weapons. He even gives the knowledge of Brahmastra. His ideals are to protect the culture and roots of the civilisation. He is the founder of the ideals of Tyagi, Bhumihar Brahmins, Niyogi, Shukla and other such communities. His ideals are thus immortal through these cultural groups turned communities in the Kali Yug also and thus he remains immortal through their principles and traditions.

  • Hanuman, the ansh of Shiva, according to some, was the greatest devotee of Lord Ram, the seventh avatar of Lord Vishnu. He helped Ram reunite with Sita and guarded the couple with all his might. He was a monkey who thought like a human. His intelligence and powers stood out amongst his community of underdeveloped humans. He was such a devotee of the lord that he had asked Rama for the boon of immortality as long as Rama would be worshipped on the earth. Hence, Hanuman became a god himself due to Sita's boon, and he is worshipped all over the country as a devotee of Rama. Rama, being a god himself, is a major deity in parts of the country, and hence Hanuman remains immortal through the prayers of Rama and Hanuman Chalisa, read and reread every day by millions who worship them. Hanuman's immortality is thus reflected through the worship of Rama. Some people all over India, even today, claim to have seen Hanuman in different temples in human form. However, what they saw remains in doubt as images come all over the internet because Hinduism clearly states that no human form can be immortal; the soul can, however, remain immortal away from the body. A soul never dies; it just shifts from body to body.

Vibhishana as King of Lanka.jpg
As the old king of Lanka
  • Vibhishana, the youngest brother of Ravana, was the one who defied his brother and supported Rama to bring back the kidnapped Sita. He chose Dharma over his family and became a devotee of the Lord. Although a Rakhshash by birth, he could distinguish between right and wrong and when he became king of Lanka, he drove his subjects to the paths of right, Dharma and worship. Thus, Rama, pleased with his contribution to society, offered him the boon of immortality to teach the children of the earth the ways of Dharma. So he remains immortal through the teachings of Dharma and Right judgment by individuals. On a personal note, I feel that he was the one to betray his own family for the throne; hence, his remaining immortal also depicts the fact that people who can choose Power and the throne over family are still there even today. The Mahabharata mentions Vibhishana being reborn as Yuyutsu in some versions. He was the only surviving Kaurava who joined the Pandava side of Dharma. In these versions, it is clear that Vibhishana, in his mortal self, died, and his soul is immortal, born time and again to show an example of Dharma being greater than personal attachments. However, my question lies in the fact that Dharma is said to be relative, and a person's Dharma is to support his family. In that case, how did Vibhishana or Yuyutsu choose Dharma?

  • Kripacharya, the military Guru of the Kauravas and Parikshit, was the adopted son of King Shantanu. He fought the battle from the Kaurava side, and his war tactics and skills were very famous. He also had knowledge of the Vedas. He is said to be immortal, and not much is known about the boon. He was there till the start of Kali Yug when Parikshit was the king of Hastinapur. He remained in the palace throughout his life and was brother-in-law to Dronacharya. He was immortal through his knowledge of weaponry that he shared with the Kuru Princes throughout his life. They were taught what he learned himself as a tradition that continued even till Parikshit's seven sons. 

Vyasa depicted in Angkor Wat
  • Vyas Dev, the writer of the Mahabharata and the divider of the Vedas, was born on Guru Purnima towards the end of the Treta Yug. He lived through Dwapar and towards the beginning of Kali. A grandson of Vasistha, son of Satyavati, he was extremely learned and skilled. He was the biological father of Pandu, Dhritarashtra and Vidur, hence the Kauravas and Pandavas are his grandsons. Many scholars believe that the term Vyas does not apply to one person. This community actually helped revive the Vedas in written form and helped to construct the Itihasa book Mahabharata. He is said to be immortal, and it is true. A person or community, Vyas is immortal through the greatest epic and his descendants, who are now the Karavas of Sri Lanka. 


  • Ashwatthama was the son of Dronacharya and Kripi, the adopted daughter of King Shantanu. He was born as a part of many divine forces as a boon to Drona, who loved him dearly. He was a Maharathi on the Kaurava side. He, on the eighteenth night of the war, when Pandavas rejoiced in their victory, went into the enemy camp in the darkness and killed Draupadi's five sons and her brother, thinking them to be Pandavas. He also later attacked Parikshit in his mother's womb to destroy the Pandava clan. However, Krishna stopped him and cursed him with immortality. He was cursed to suffer and be set free by Kalki. He will again be reborn as Vyasa in the next Mahayuga, and he will rearrange the Vedas, Krishna stated. Hence, people believe he still roams the earth in his wounded body, searching for peace and death. Many are believed to have spotted him at his birthplace in the dead of the night, where he roams. On a personal note, I believe what Krishna referred to was the suffering of his soul and not his mortal self. He is not reborn and his soul roams aimlessly in pain through Kali Yug for the sins he had committed, and his soul will be set free by Kalki.
Other notable immortals in Hinduism are Sage Markandeya, who created the Mahamrityunjay Mantra and was blessed with immortality by Shiva at the age of sixteen. Jambavan, the half-animal animal half-man man helped Rama with his knowledge to find Sita. The Saptarishis remain immortal as every family in India is their bloodline, Bhusunda, the crow community, Maru, a weapon of the Bhil tribes of India, who is worshipped as a God and Devapi, the elder brother of King Shantanu, who renounced the Kingdom and Throne and turned in to a Sage with acute knowledge of the Vedas.

Popular posts from this blog

The Reva Cries

Roopmati had watched the troops leave. She had stood behind the chief queen as she traditionally bid goodbye to her sons. She had waited for the Sultan to come to her. He did. He was confident that the sudden advancement of Akbar’s foster brother Adham Khan could be curbed. It was not war, just precaution. He reassured her. Malwa would never bow to the Timurids. And he would not let anything happen to her. To Her. Roopmati felt suffocated by her husband’s affectionate hug. She felt trapped in the scrutinising eyes of all the people in the palace. Angry, blaming eyes. She tried to pace herself and sing, but her voice cracked in fear. Her melody was drowned in tears. Every evening, a messenger would come to the chief queen with the news of war. Roopmati was kept in the darkness. She was not told about anything. She knew the rumours. She was a witch. A temptress who caused doom to the Sultan of Malwa. She was a spy of the enemy planted in his life to destroy him. She wondered if he came b...

Chittorgarh: His Home

After a smooth 30-minute drive from Baasi down wide highways, a sharp turn led us through dense foliage, a narrow path seemingly swallowed by the trees. Our driver, playfully exasperated with my relentless questions, finally cheered, “ Madam Ji, aa Gaya Apka Chittorgarh .” For about five minutes, the fort itself was hidden from view, the thick foliage offering no clue to the legendary citadel’s whereabouts. Then, as the jungle slowly receded, I finally glimpsed a hill ahead. At first glance, it looked ordinary, but my driver leaned in and explained, “ Woh Raha Chittor Durg upar, aise Patthar se bana hai ke dikhta nahi jhat se .” I was surprised; for all my reading, no book prepared me for how well Chittorgarh blends into its rugged surroundings. Only by looking carefully could I spot the ruins and rooftops: a city on a plateau, veiled until the last moment. Goosebumps. I was, at last, so close to Pratap's Home. The Mystique of Chitrakut Locals believe the hill, Chitrakut , is the...

The Emperor's First Wife

  Ruqaiya Sultana Begum  was born to Babur's second surviving son, Hindal Mirza, and his wife, Sultanam Begum, in 1542 C.E., merely a few months after Hamida Banu gave birth to the heir Jalaluddin Mohammad Akbar. She was well-versed in Persian, Urdu and Arabic and was attracted to poetry and music. Being a proud descendant of the Timurid clan, most of Rukaiya's childhood was spent in Kabul, near the Bagh E Babur, built by Babur himself. From early childhood, she had seen the struggle of her family to regain their lost power in Hind. In 1551 C.E., just after her father died young at a battle for Humayun, leaving her and her mother in the harem of the emperor, it was Hamida Banu who wanted the marriage of Rukaiya to her first cousin, Akbar. Theirs was the first in-house marriage of the Mughals, soon to be followed by many more in the generations to come. At the mere age of nine, she had married the crown prince, and when Humayun won back Lahore, she was fifteen. At the mere age ...

A Chivalrous Emnity

“Ranisa. Hukum” There was a hint of urgency in the maid in waiting’s voice as she rushed to the clearing where the tents were set up. Rani Pur Bai Solanki, the second queen, frowned at her sudden, alarming voice. “Hush, Rama, the children are...” She checked the children’s tent, alarmed. They slept during the day and stayed awake at night, because the forestland was not safe, neither from animals nor the enemies. “Ranisa, forgive me, it's Kunwarsa... He is back... but...” Pur Bai’s face lit up with a smile of hope that didn’t last long. “But?” “What is it? What’s wrong?” The Maharani of Mewar had walked out of her camp, with the other queens in tow. The maid bowed before her. “It’s Kunwarsa.” “He is back?” She frowned. He was not supposed to be back so early until his father reached Dholan. “So is Ranaji.” The maid looked scared. “There is a court called in an emergency. I came to inform you that Ranaji wanted everyone to be present.” “Jija...” Pur Bai could see the tension mountin...

Bijolia: Her Home

Journey to Bijolia: Lost Kingdoms and Timeless Temples of Mewar Bijoliya translates to a stop between two cities. Nestled in Rajasthan’s Bhilwara district, Bijolia sits 55km from Bundi and 105km from Chittorgarh on the well-travelled Bundi-Chittorgarh road. Once part of Mewar, this seemingly sleepy town guards a rich and layered past: it was ruled from the 11th to the 13th century by the Punwars (or Parmar Rajputs) before falling under the Chauhan dynasty, who shifted the region’s capital to Bhilwara and constructed the imposing fort there. After a brief Chauhan rule, Bijolia was reclaimed by Rana Kumbha and became an integral part of the Mewar kingdom, with the Parmers serving as local Raos, representatives and stewards of the royal house. Despite its history and the famed Bijolia inscriptions (a treasure for historians), Bijolia has never found a seat on Rajasthan’s primary tourist circuit, especially if you’re venturing out by public transport or private car. While a handful of...

Charumati's Love

T his is written based on folklore. This is a representative work of fiction and does not claim any historical happening in the conversations. This is to show the spirit of the women of Rajputana.  The year 1657.  Shah Jahan had taken ill and was rumoured to be dying in Agra Fort. He was about eighty, and the pressure of having an empire had taken a toll on his body. The seat of power was slowly shifting from Agra to Delhi since the prominence of the Laal Quila had increased, and if the news spread was to be believed, his sons were in a battle for the throne already. It was time each king chose sides once again. Dara Sikhoh was the eldest and the righteous Heir to the throne. He was believed to be a man who held high morals and was hence respected by both enemies and allies as well. Aurangzeb was his sibling and the youngest of the brothers. Short-tempered and cunning, he was always dreaded by the court. As Shah Jahan took ill, Aurangzeb took this as a golden opportunity to wa...

The Kaali Effect

 !!BOOM!!  The shopping mall echoed with a noise. The buzz grew silent. Fear crept in. Until somebody shouted, " It's just a Balloon!" The buzz grew again, the shopping continued, the romantic couples continued their walks, and the food court filled up with the aroma of the orders... A few decades back, people used to laugh carefree at a balloon bursting or a tyre booming in the streets or in various crowded areas. Now, in the back of everyone's head, a loud noise always brings the same thoughts... Another year, another city, another crowded place, Several innocent lives. They don't spare religious places either. For the sake of mankind? Religion? Politics? Power? They only know. Who are they? Nobody knows. It is said that the demon Kaali, who ushered in KaliYug, decided to reside in a few things. Addiction, Wealth, Desire, and Anger are some such things he resides in. This is KaliYug, where an innocent child's balloon makes adults fear the extremes. What is d...

The Warrior Bride

Kelwa/Kailwa is a small village situated around two hours away from Chittorgarh and an hour from Lake Pichola. It was mainly inhabited by the Rathores and ruled by the Chundawat clan, who were once the rulers of Mewar. One chief of Kelwa was Rawat Sihaji Singh Chundawat. He was a very close ally of Rana Sanga. His son Jaga Singhji also died fighting for Rana Udai Singhji in one war with the Afghans in 1555 AD. Kelwa’s heir was the minor child of Jaga Singhji and his widow, Sajjan Bai Songara Chauhan. Being from the clan of the Chauhan Rajputs, she was a warrior at heart. From the early age of about four, her only son was brought up under his uncle Naga Singhji to fight for his motherland and serve it like all other Mewaris. Fateh Pratap Singh Chundawat or Fatta (Patta), as fondly called by everyone, was a deft warrior even before he reached his teens. His name and bravery spread across the land to Rana Udai Singh’s ears in Chittorgarh. He was also the nephew of Ranaji’s close aide Rawa...

Nawab E Bengal

  Background: Nawab Alivardi Khan was ruling Bengal at the peak of Nawabi rule, expanding his strong empire. He had successfully suppressed the Marathas and had given a strong message to the British East India Company’s rising influence at Calcutta. Highly aware of the British Colonial policies across the globe, Nawab Alivardi Khan was strict with his policies and stronghold over Murshidabad, the then capital of Bengal (including present-day Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Orissa, and Bangladesh).  He had two daughters and no sons. Amina Begum was the elder one, followed by Ghaseti Begum. Amina had three sons with her husband and courtier, Ahmed Khan. The second son, Mirza Mohammad, fondly called Siraj-Ud-Daulah (light of the country)by his grandfather, was born in 1733C.E. He was his grandfather’s  favourite  because he was born while he won over the Marathas. Alivardi Khan never let the “fortune child” of the family out of his sight. Siraj grew up accompanying his g...

The Princess of Ayodhya

She sat in her mother's chambers inside the Inner Palaces, looking at the maids busy with their daily cooking and cleaning. Hurrying throughout the palace, they were making preparations to show some hospitality to the king of Anga Desh, who was arriving at the court tomorrow. He had something important to discuss with the king. Something of benefit to Ayodhya.  She was his only heiress. Yet she has lived a neglected life. She pined for his love, and he showed none to her. Her mother and stepmother loved her, brought her up, dressed her, braided her hair and taught her the lessons of life. She was entitled to all the luxuries of a princess, yet her father's unwanted child. Her anger grew by the day as her father became more and more eager for a son. There was a constant line of Rishis and Munis coming to the court to help and advise the king. As was the rumour among the servants, the King of Anga Desh was coming for the same purpose. The princess sighed. Nobody in the palace und...