Parashuramas Vengeance Against Kartavirya

Dadi**: Guddu beta, why do you think Parashurama was so angry at Kshatriya kings?

Guddu**: I don't know, Dadi. Was there a reason?

Dadi**: A very personal reason. Tonight I'll tell you about Kartavirya Arjuna - the thousand-armed king - and why Parashurama's rage burned against corrupt warriors.

Guddu**: A thousand arms?!

Dadi**: He was blessed by Lord Dattatreya with a thousand arms as reward for his devotion. Kartavirya Arjuna became incredibly powerful - he could even stop the river Narmada with his arms!

Guddu**: That's amazing power!

Dadi**: Power without wisdom is dangerous, beta. One day, while Parashurama was away from home, this mighty king came to the hermitage of his father, sage Jamadagni.

Guddu**: What did the sage have?

Dadi**: Jamadagni possessed a divine cow called Kamadhenu - a wish-fulfilling cow that could produce anything one desired. Using this cow, the sage generously treated the king and his entire army to a magnificent feast.

Guddu**: That was kind of the sage!

Dadi**: But instead of gratitude, Kartavirya's eyes filled with greed. He demanded that Jamadagni give him the cow.

Guddu**: After the sage had just fed him?!

Dadi**: The sage refused - the cow was essential for his sacred rituals. But Kartavirya didn't accept no for an answer. He ordered his soldiers to take the cow by force.

Guddu**: He stole from a sage! That's terrible!

Dadi**: When Parashurama returned and learned what had happened, his rage was boundless. He traveled to Mahishmati, the king's capital, and challenged Kartavirya to battle.

Guddu**: One man against a thousand-armed king?

Dadi**: It was a tremendous battle, beta. Kartavirya had numerous allies - kings from many kingdoms came to fight for him. One by one, Parashurama defeated them all.

Guddu**: How did he beat a king with a thousand arms?

Dadi**: During the battle, Parashurama cut off the king's ears - a great humiliation. Kartavirya, desperate, called upon Lord Dattatreya for help. But the deity refused to come because of the king's sins!

Guddu**: Even his own god abandoned him!

Dadi**: That's what happens when power corrupts, beta. Finally, using divine weapons, Parashurama sliced off all thousand of Kartavirya's arms and killed him.

Guddu**: So justice was done?

Dadi**: Not yet. While Parashurama was away after this battle, Kartavirya's sons came for revenge. They invaded the hermitage and murdered the old sage Jamadagni.

Guddu**: They killed his father?!

Dadi**: In cold blood, beta. When Parashurama returned and found his father's body, his grief turned into something terrible. He made a vow that shook the world.

Guddu**: What vow?

Dadi**: He vowed to kill every corrupt Kshatriya on Earth - not once, but twenty-one times. He would clear the world of warrior-kings who had forgotten their dharma.

Guddu**: Twenty-one times?! How is that possible?

Dadi**: Each time he killed them, new ones would arise from their descendants. And each time, Parashurama would return and destroy them again. Twenty-one cycles of cleansing.

Guddu**: That's extreme!

Dadi**: It is, beta. Some see Parashurama as a hero who punished tyranny. Others see his vengeance as excessive. The scriptures present both views.

Guddu**: What happened after?

Dadi**: When his rage was finally spent, Parashurama gave away all the lands he had conquered to Brahmins and retired to meditation. He sought peace after so much war.

Guddu**: Did killing so many people bring his father back?

Dadi**: No, beta. That's part of the lesson. Revenge can never truly heal grief. Parashurama's father remained dead. Only his own soul found some peace through completing his dharmic mission.

Guddu**: It's a violent story, Dadi.

Dadi**: Many ancient stories are, beta. They come from violent times. But we can learn from them: that power must come with responsibility, that those who protect must never become predators, and that even justified anger can consume us.

Guddu**: I'll try to protect, not harm.

Dadi**: That's my wise boy. Goodnight, beta.

Guddu**: Goodnight, Dadi!