Ashwatthama or Drauni was the son of guru Drona and he is the grandson of the Brahmin sage Bharadwaja. Ashwatthama is the avatar of one of the eleven Rudras and he is one of the seven Chiranjivi.After Arjuna and Karna, Ashwatthama killed most number of warriors in the Kurukshetra war on behalf of the Kauravas.

Krishna cursed Ashwatthama with leprosy and to roam the world for 3,000 years as an unloved castaway.

In another version, it is believed that he is cursed to remain alive till the end of the Kaliyuga. It is believed that Ashwatthama migrated to the land currently known as Arabian peninsula.

A doctor in Madhya Pradesh claimed to have a tough patient with a septic forehead. After several applications of a fail-proof potion, the wound was still fresh and kept bleeding. Amazed at this, the doctor said that his wound seems ageless and cureless. He added, by saying, “I wonder, are you Ashwathama”, and laughed.

When he turned to apply the next doze, he found the patient seat empty. The patient just disappeared into thin air - the story it was claimed was true.

Some Yogis like Pilot Baba also claim that they have met Ashwatthama who was living among tribes at Himalayan Foothills. It is believed that Ashwatthama offers flowers to a Shivling each morning.

Apart from this, according to locals a very tall man with noticeable dent in his forehead and in the middle of his forehead visits a restaurant owner once every year, somewhere on the foothills of the Himalayas.

Only once a year, he goes and eats "all" the food prepared by the owner and drinks a minimum of 100 litres of water. These "claims" have been made by locals who see the man every year.

The villagers on the other hand "claim" that the man after quenching his thirst and anger then quietly disappears in the forest only to "apppear" next year.

It is said that in the Dwayapar Yuga the average height of a man used to be anywhere between 12-14 foot and a man of this stature cannot be from this era. Also they had massive appetites and could live on food they ate once a year for the whole of next year.

However, even with all these stories, Ashwatthama sightings are very rare since he has the power to choose to be visible or remain invisible.

Jai Hind