The Chiranjivi (Sanskrit: चिरञ्जीवि,) are a group of immortals who are believed to remain alive on Earth until the end of the current age known as the Kali Yuga, according to Hindu literature.[1]
The term is a combination of chiram, or 'permanent', and jīvi, or 'lived'. It is similar to amaratva, which refers to true immortality. At the end of the last manvantara (age of Manu), an asura named Hayagriva attempted to become immortal by swallowing the sacred pages of the Vedas, as they escaped from the mouth of Brahma. The scripture was retrieved by the first avatar (Matsya) of Vishnu. Other incarnations of Vishnu (Narasimha and Rama) also later fought and killed Hiranyakashipu and Ravana, both of whom tried to become immortal through obeisance to Brahma and Shiva, respectively. In one sense, immortal can mean "to live eternally until the destruction of universes", i.e., all physical bodies are foretold to become immaterial at the end of time, along with the Brahma himself, with the destruction of the universe.[2]
The extant Puranas, the Ramayana, and the Mahabharata generally describe seven immortal personalities in the Hindu pantheon.[3] Some scholars opine the count to be eight.[4] Each Chiranjivi represents a different attribute of man, which as long as they live, will exist amongst humanity.[5]
| Ashwatthama | The son of Drona. Drona performed many years of severe penance to please Shiva to obtain a son who possessed the same valour as the deity. He is regarded to be an avatar of one of the eleven Rudras. He was cursed to be immortal by Krishna for the attempted murder of Parikshit, suffering from incurable painful sores and ulcers.[6] | |
| Mahabali | The king of the asuras, he was regarded to be a benevolent ruler. He overran the three worlds and overthrew Indra. He was exiled to the realm of Patala (the netherworld) by the Vamana avatar of Vishnu to restore cosmic order,[7] and was blessed with immortality by the deity. | |
| Vyasa | The sage and author of the Mahabharata. He represents erudition and wisdom. He is the son of sage Parashara and Satyavati, a fisherwoman.[8] He was born towards the end of the Dvapara Yuga. | |
| Hanuman | A great vanara devotee of Rama.[9] A brahmachari, he stands for selflessness, courage, devotion, intelligence, strength, and righteous conduct. | |
| Vibhishana | A brother of Ravana. A rakshasa, Vibhishana defected to Rama's side before the Lanka War owing to his devotion to dharma. He was later crowned the King of Lanka after Ravana's death. He stands for righteousness.[10] | |
| Kripa | The royal guru of the princes in the Mahabharata. Along with his nephew Ashwatthama, he was among the lone survivors of the Kaurava warriors who fought in the Kurukshetra War.[11] | |
| Parashurama | The sixth avatar of Vishnu. He is knowledgeable in all astras (divine weapons) and shastras (treatises). The Kalki Purana states that he will reemerge at the end of time to be the martial guru of Kalki. He is stated to instruct the final avatar to undertake penance to receive celestial weaponry, required to save mankind during the end times.[12] |
| Markandeya | A sage and the author of the Markandeya Purana. Fated to be an exemplary child who would die at the age of sixteen, his devotion to Shiva rescued him from an early death from Yama, the god of death himself. The deity blessed him with immortality for his ardent faith.[14] | |
| Kakabhushundi | A devotee of Rama, he narrates the story of the Ramayana to Garuda in the form of a crow.[15] | |
| Jambavan | The king of the bears. He was born from the yawn of Brahma and was already six manvanataras old during the period of the Ramayana. He assisted Rama in his quest to rescue his wife in the epic.[16] | |
| Agastya | A great sage. He is the composer of many hymns in the Rigveda and is regarded the father of Siddha medicine.[17] | |
| Narada | A mind-born son of Brahma and sage-divinity. He travels to different worlds and delivers tidings carrying his veena.[18] |
The Chiranjivi Shloka is a hymn that names the Chiranjivi and states the effects of their meditation:[19]