Lord Vishnu is one among the trinity of Hindu Gods. He is supposed to have taken ten incarnations, to extricate the world from the deluge of sin, each time. Parashuram is his sixth incarnation, born as the son of the sage-couple,
Jamadagni and Renuka. He exterminated the
Kshatriyas (race of kings) led by Kartavirya, who were oppressing the people.
Parashuram was asked by the holy rishis (seers) to make a gift of land to
brahmins in order to absolve him of the sin of killing the Kshatriyas. In consultation with the Lord of the Sea, Varuna and with his permission, Parashuram threw his sacred axe into the sea and raised up a piece of land that was to become Kerala.
