The Chiranjivi (; ) are a group of immortals who are believed to remain alive on

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

until the end of the current age known as the

Kali Yuga ''Kali Yuga'' (Devanagari: कलियुग), in Hinduism, is the fourth, shortest, and worst of the four '' yugas'' (world ages) in a '' Yuga cycle'', preceded by '' Dvapara Yuga'' and followed by the next cycle's '' Krita (Satya) Yuga''. I ...

, according to Hindu literature.

Etymology and scriptural context

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 A ''manvantara'', in Hindu cosmology, is a cyclic period of time identifying the duration, reign, or age of a Manu, the progenitor of mankind. In each ''manvantara'', seven Rishis, certain deities, an Indra, a Manu, and kings (sons of Manu) are ...

(age of Manu), an

asura Asuras () are a class of beings in Indian religions, and later Persian and Turkic mythology. They are described as power-seeking beings related to the more benevolent Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhist context, the wor ...

named Hayagriva attempted to become immortal by swallowing the sacred pages of the ''

Vedas FIle:Atharva-Veda samhita page 471 illustration.png, upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the ''Atharvaveda''. The Vedas ( or ; ), sometimes collectively called the Veda, are a large body of relig ...

'', as they escaped from the mouth of

Brahma Brahma (, ) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the triple deity, trinity of Para Brahman, supreme divinity that includes Vishnu and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity, Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 212– ...

. The scripture was retrieved by the first avatar of

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

(

Matsya Matsya () is the fish avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Often described as the first of Vishnu's Dashavatara, ten primary avatars, Matsya is described to have rescued the first man, Manu (Hinduism), Manu, from a great deluge. Matsya may be dep ...

). Other incarnations of Vishnu (

Narasimha Narasimha (, , or , ), is the fourth avatara of the Hindu god Vishnu in the Satya Yuga. He incarnated as a part-lion, part-man and killed Hiranyakashipu, ended religious persecution and calamity on earth, and restored dharma. Narasimha has th ...

and

Rama Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda' ...

) also later fought and killed

Hiranyakashipu Hiranyakashipu (, ), also known as Hiranyakashyap, was a daitya king of the asuras in the Puranas. In Hinduism, Hiranyakashipu's younger brother, Hiranyaksha, was slain by the Varaha (boar) avatar of Vishnu. Angered by this, Hiranyakashipu ...

and

Ravana According to the Mahakavya, Hindu epic, ''Ramayana'', Ravana was a kingJustin W. Henry, ''Ravana's Kingdom: The Ramayana and Sri Lankan History from Below'', Oxford University Press, p.3 of the island of Lanka, in which he is the chief antag ...

, both of whom tried to become immortal through obeisance to

and

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

, 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.

List

The extant ''Puranas'', the ''

Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

'', and the ''

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

'' generally describe seven immortal personalities in the

Hindu pantheon Hindu deities are the gods and goddesses in Hinduism. Deities in Hinduism are as diverse as its traditions, and a Hindu can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, even agnostic, atheistic, or humanist. Julius J. L ...

. Some scholars opine the count to be eight. Each Chiranjivi represents a different attribute of man, which as long as they live, will exist amongst humanity.Malayalam book Bharata Paryatanam (A journey through the Mahabharata) by Kuttikrishana Marar. Other individuals who are sometimes additionally included to the list are the following:

''Chiranjivi Shloka''

The ''Chiranjivi Shloka'' is a hymn that names the Chiranjivi and states the effects of their meditation: अश्वत्थामा बलिर्व्यासो हनुमांश्च विभीषण:। कृप: परशुरामश्च सप्तैतै चिरञ्जीविन:॥ सप्तैतान् संस्मरेन्नित्यं मार्कण्डेयमथाष्टमम्। जीवेद्वर्षशतं सोपि सर्वव्याधिविवर्जितः॥ The mantra states that the remembrance of the seven immortals (Ashwatthama, Bali, Vyasa, Hanuman, Vibhishana, Kripa and Parashurama) offers one freedom from ailments and longevity.

References

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