What is "parashurama"

Parashurama ( Sanskrit: परशुराम IAST: Paraśurāma, lit. Rama with an axe) is the sixth avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism. He is the son of Renuka and one of the saptarishis, Jamadagni. He lived during the last Treta and Dvapara Yugas and is one of the Chiranjivi (immortals) of Hinduism. Parashurama, a Brahmin, received his famous axe after undertaking terrible penance to please Shiva, who in turn taught him Kalaripayattu (the mother of all martial arts).

Parashurama is most known for ridding the world of kshatriyas twenty-one times over after the mighty king Kartavirya Arjuna killed his father. As per the Mahabharata, Parashurama single-handedly successfully conquered the entire world and killed thousands of crores of kshatriyas. Parashurama conducted hundreds of Ashvamedhas and gave away the entire earth he conquered as alms to sage Kashyapa. He plays important roles in the Mahabharata and Ramayana, serving as mentor to Bhishma, Drona and Karna.

Parashurama and Indrajit ( Ravana's son) are believed to be the only humans who ever possessed the three ultimate weapons: the Brahmanda astra, Vaishnava astra and Pashupatastra. Parashurama was a disciple of Shiva and learned the scriptures and the arts of warfare from Shiva. He then acquired celestial weapons from Shiva and the other gods on Shiva's instructions. Shiva personally trained Parashurama for decades in the art of warfare.The Bhargavastra was his personal celestial weapon and vijaya was his personal bow which was gifted by Shiva. Parashurama also fought back the advancing seas to save the lands of Konkan and Kerala.

Parashurama is worshipped as mūlapuruṣa, or male ancestral founder by some Anavil , Dravidulu, Bhumihar, Chitpavan , Nambudiri Brahmincommunities. Along with the sages Vyasa, Kripa and Drona's son Ashwatthama, Parashurama is considered to be foremost among the rishis in the Kaliyuga. Parashurama will also become one of the saptarishi in the 8th Manvantara. Parashurama is a mighty Maharathi and he will reappear as the martial instructor of Vishnu's 10th avatar Kalki.

Parashurama (alternatively Parashuram, Parasurama, Parasuram, Parshuram, Poroshuram, Porshuram) can mean:

• Parashurama, a mythical warrior saint and avatar of Vishnu.
• Rajshekhar Basu, an Indian writer who wrote under the pen name Parashurama (alternatively spelled Parshuram, Poroshuram or Parashuram)
• Parshuram Upazila, an administrative area in Bangladesh (alternatively spelled Parashuram or Porshuram)
• Parashuram (film), a Kannada language film
• Parasuram Express, an express train that runs between the Indian cities of Mangalore and Thiruvananthapuram.
• Parsuram Majhi, a member of the Indian Parliament.