1 Meeting Lord Vishnu
"aśvatthāmā balirvyāsō hanumāṁśca vibhīṣaṇaḥ |
kṛpaḥ paraśurāmaśca saptaitē cirañjīvinaḥ ||
saptaitān saṁsmarēnnityaṁ mārkaṇḍēyamathāṣṭamam |
jīvēdvarṣaśataṁ prājñaḥ apamṛtyuvivarjitaḥ || "
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"aśvatthāmā balirvyāsō hanumāṁśca vibhīṣaṇaḥ |
kṛpaḥ paraśurāmaśca saptaitē cirañjīvinaḥ ||
saptaitān saṁsmarēnnityaṁ mārkaṇḍēyamathāṣṭamam |
jīvēdvarṣaśataṁ prājñaḥ apamṛtyuvivarjitaḥ || "
°°°°°°°
"aśvatthāmā balirvyāsō hanumāṁśca vibhīṣaṇaḥ |
kṛpaḥ paraśurāmaśca saptaitē cirañjīvinaḥ ||
saptaitān saṁsmarēnnityaṁ mārkaṇḍēyamathāṣṭamam |
jīvēdvarṣaśataṁ prājñaḥ apamṛtyuvivarjitaḥ || "
°°°°°°°
This mantra repeatedly echoed in the cave. And the one who was reciting it was a boy in his early twenties, with short black hair, a smooth brown skin, exquisite facial features, sharp eyebrows and starry eyes. He almost looked like a deity, but the only fly in the ointment were the beggar like clothes he was wearing and his malnourished appearance.
But it wasn't very strange considering the time he was living in - 428,899 CE.
Yes, the time when Kaliyuga is at its peak in which mankind abandons the gods, and morality is replaced with open hostility and depravity. This cycle is known as the Kali Yuga, named after its infernal nature and the demon which oversees such evil. The world has completely gone to hell under the rule of Kali.
And not long ago, Aryan was also no different from the other people living in this yuga.That is until he happened to enter this cave after he was pushed off the hill by his friend out of jealousy.
But out of luck or fate, he survived and entered this cave. Here he found a collection of ancient books called Vedas which enlightened him about the the lost knowledge, about the Gods.
Although he had never seen him himself, but through these books he found out about Kali, the ruler of this yuga.
The Bhagavata Purana describes Kali as a brownish-skinned asura (demon) with a dog-like face, protruding fangs, pointed ears and long green bushy hair. It states that the very day and moment avatar Krishna left this earth, Kali, "who promotes all kinds of irreligious activities", came into this world. It had been hidden all this time, ensuring that the Kaliyuga reaches it's peak. And when Kaliyuga finally reached its peak, it revealed itself.
Before entering this cave, he didn't know the story of Kali. Only knowing that he is the only supreme ruler. Although everyone hated him for making their lives hell, but no one can do anything about it because of his strength.
After reading these books, Aryan found out that the Kaliyug is already at it end. Kalki has already been born. Before long, there will be an apocalyptic battle between Kali and Kalki, resulting in the end of the world before the Gods restore earth and Satyuga starts.
Although it was a good thing that the end of Kali who caused all the suffering in the world is not far, Aryan was not happy. On the contrary he was crestfallen after knowing all this.
Because the problem is that after his previous defeats, Kali has become smarter.
A long time ago, Kali Rakshasa had incarnated as greedy, arrogant, wicked, and cruel Duryodhana, the eldest of the 100 Kauravas in the Mahabharata during the Dvapara Yuga.
At that time, by declining the peace talks offered by Lord Krishna, he had become responsible for the war of Kurukshetra in the Mahabharata.
Thereafter, when Lord Krishna had offered him and Arjuna a choice to choose either from Himself or His army for the war of Kurukshetra, Arjuna chose Lord Krishna, whereas Duryodhana went for Lord Krishna's army.
Duryodhana thought Arjuna to be a fool for choosing Lord Krishna over the entire Narayani Sena and thought now his chances of winning the war were bright. But as everyone knows, as an end result of the war, the Pandavas won over the Kauravas, and Lord Krishna's able guidance to Arjuna was largely responsible for Pandavas' victory.
Kali also learnt his lesson that it's difficult to defeat the gods so easily. So he made a plan.
This time around, he contaminated all of the humanity, making them his vessels.
So even if Kalki, the prophesied tenth avatar of Lord Vishnu manages to defeat Kali , he cannot kill Kali completely. To do that, he needs to destroy all the seeds left behind by Kali - which can only be accomplished by the end of the world.
So, ultimately, everyone will die. And no matter how Aryan thought about it, it was not what he wanted.
He was after all a human living in Kaliyuga, selfish.
He didn't want to die for the illusory great cause like the end of Kali and Kaliyuga.
But he also knew that the only place where he can find these answers is among this sacred texts. And after searching for a long time, he finally found a solution.
The mantra that he had been reciting just now.
The mantra states that the remembrance of the eight immortals (Ashwatthama, Mahabali, Vyasa, Hanuman, Vibhishana, Kripa, Parashurama and Markandeya) offers one freedom from all ailments and longevity.
In this age where mankind has forgotten about the Gods, even by religiously reciting their names with a pure heart can help you accomplish what took people unthinkable hardships in the previous yugas.
As Aryan completed another recitation of the shloka, something extraordinary happened.
A bright light appeared in the cave which woke Aryan from his meditation.
After the bright light slowly dissipated, he opened his eyes and finally saw .....
"Lord Vishnu! "
Aryan exclaimed in happiness and immediately prostated himself in front of him.
He had finally succeeded.
"Stand up son, I have heard your prayers. "
A gentle voice entered his ears and Aryan obediently stood up.
"It's been a long time since someone last remembered me on earth. You have managed to make me happy son. You can ask whatever you want son, I promise to fulfill your wish. "
"I am very happy that I managed to receive your recognition Bhagwaan. Although this in itself is enough for me, but I will be lying if I say that I don't want anything else. "
Aryan said feeling embarrassed.
"Hahaha, you are unnaturally truthful for a human living in Kaliyuga. "
"It's not that Bhagwaan, it's just that it's no use lying in front of you. You know everything, so it's pointless to lie in front of you. "
Aryan replied with a smile.
"Well, what is your wish then? "
"I know that after the decisive battle between Kali and Kalki, the world will end and that this is necessary for the Satya yuga to start. But..... I want to live Bhagwaan. "
Aryan said nervously as he finally revealed his wish.
"You know son, over the ages, a lot of people have asked for a lot of unreasonable boons from me and other gods. And although your wish seems simple enough, your wish is the most difficult to accomplish. "
Lord Vishnu spoke calmly.
"What? Then I... "
Just when Aryan got disappointed, Lord Vishnu continued speaking .
"But, I have given you my words after all. So I will definitely fulfill your wish. "
Lord Vishnu said with a smile.
"Really? Then will I be able to survive the apocalyptic battle and safely enter Satya yuga ? "
Aryan asked happily.
"That my son is unfortunately impossible. Satya yuga will only begin after every last seed left behind by Kali is destroyed. And this is inevitable so there is no way around this. So I will fulfill your wish in another way.
The Ashtachiranjeevi mantra you recited just now signifies Eight virtues and after you managed to summon me, you automatically managed to obtain eight Siddhis.
So now I will help you use one of those 'Siddhis' to reincarnate back in time - before the Kaliyuga began, in Mahabharat Kaal.
And to help you further, I will help you to convert the remaining seven sidhhis into your strength, so that you can make a name for yourself in that chaotic period. "
Lord Vishnu explained patiently.
Upon hearing his words, Aryan immediately recovered from his disappointment and became happy beyond words. But he still wanted to ask something.
"But Bhagwaan, how exactly will I get the powers you mentioned? "
Aryan asked curiously.
"You will get a system."
Lord Vishnu said with a meaningful smile.
"Huh? System? Like those in the novels? But how do you know about something like this... Oh, I forgot, you know everything. "
Aryan smiled helplessly as he realized his gaffe but soon turned his attention towards the system that Bhagwaan Vishnu just mentioned.
"Can you tell me more about this system Bhagwaan? "
Aryan asked with excitement.
"You will receive a Seven Deadly Sins system which will grant you seven unique abilities. But you won't be getting them directly. Instead, you have to earn them.
As for how, you have two paths. Among the seven fundamental sins of pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth - you can either conquer them by killing the person who is the representative of that sin in that age or you can be that person yourself, there by getting the ability corresponding to that sin but that way you will also be affected by it. So it all depends on what you choose."
"Although I don't completely understand it but still this is amazing. I..... "
Before Aryan could speak further, he was interrupted by Lord Vishnu.
"Alright son, I can't stay here for a long time as it will disturb the balance of this world. Now I will reincarnate you in the Mahabharat Kaal. And one more thing, your memories of this world will only recover after you reach adulthood ( 18 years old). And the system will also help you hide from the prying eyes of other gods including my avatar Krishna. "
Then before Aryan could take another breath, everything became blurry and he lost consciousness.
