Lord Hanuman symbolizes the qualities of an ideal devotee of God. The letters of his name can be interpreted as:
- H = Helpfulness (kindness)
- A = Adoration (devotion)
- N = Naturalness (sincerity)
- U = Understanding (knowledge)
- M = Modesty (humility)
- A = Allegiance (loyalty)
- N = Nishkama-karma (selfless work in service of God)
Who is Lord Hanuman?
Lord Hanuman was born in Anjaneri (now a hilltop temple). Anjaneri is near Triambakeshwar, Nasik – a pilgrim village in Maharashtra State.
He is the son of Anjani and Maruti, born with the blessings of ‘Vayu’, the wind god (also called Pavan). He is considered to be an avatar (incarnation) of Lord Shiva.
He is one of the seven Chiranjivis and the only learned scholar who knew the nine Vyakaranas. He learned the shastras from Suryadev, the sun god. He is well versed with the Vedas and other sacred books.
He has exhibited astonishing physical strength and worked many miracles. His valour, wisdom, knowledge of the scriptures and superhuman strength attracted everybody who came near him. He had extraordinary skill in warfare. He is the chosen messenger of Lord Rama and the minister & messenger of Sugreeva. Lord Hanuman is fast – the most agile and oriented god.
Hanumanji is the symbol of Devotion and Service.
Like Krishna, Rama is an incarnation of Vishnu whose elevated character and righteous actions are designed to inspire men to divine consciousness. In liberating his consort Sita from the demon Ravana (symbol of material illusion), Rama is greatly aided by the brave Hanuman.
Hanuman was the chief of the armies of Sri Ramachandra and took a prominent part in the war against Ravana, the king of Lanka, in the Indian epic poem Ramayana. Hanuman helped restore Sita Devi back to Sri Rama. Recognizing Godhead beneath the human disguise, Hanuman consecrates himself wholly to service of Rama.
He is generally depicted in kneeling pose of utter devotion and humility, he symbolized the strength and purity of the Perfect Servant.
Hanumanji is known by many names as Anjaneya, Anjani Putra, Bajarangbali, Hanuman, Mahaveer, Marutinandan, Pavanputra etc. Hanuman, worshipped for his strength, valor, agility, is a man of great teaming.
Hanuman carried Sri Rama and Lakshmana on his shoulder to Sugreeva, the king of all Vanars (monkeys) in Kishkindha and helped them to find Sita. Prior to the war between Sri Rama and Ravana, Anjaneya visited Lanka, met Ravana, created havoc and burnt down the city of Lanka (Lanka Dahan).
During the war, when Lakshmana was injured seriously, Sushena, the surgeon/physician of the monkey army, dispatched Marutinandan to bring herbal medicine, Sanjeevini, from the far-off Sumeru Mountain in the Himalayas, before sunrise. Flying over the Himalayas and unable to identify the particular herb fast, Hanuman uprooted and carried the entire mountain in time to save the life of Lakshmana along with the rest of the Vanar army. Hanuman was blessed by Sri Rama with immortality (chiranjeevi) at the end of the war.
Hanuman was a bachelor (brahamachari) and is worshipped in all the temples of India. Every temple of Sri Rama contains an icon of Hanuman. Worship of Sri Rama is complete only with the worship of Hanuman. There are various temples dedicated solely to Lord Hanuman also. Sant Tulsidas composed the 40 stanzas of Hanuman Chalisa in praise of Hanuman.
The worship of Hanuman symbolizes the worship of the Supreme Lord, for acquiring knowledge, physical and mental strength, truthfulness, sincerity, selflessness, humility, loyalty, and profound devotion to the Lord. Students pray to him for intelligence and soldiers for strength. In olden days, there used to be temples of Hanumantha, at the gates of forts. The gymnasium of wrestlers invariably have his picture.
Hanuman Jayanti is the birth anniversary of Lord Hanuman. One cannot understand Hindu Dharma unless one knows Hanuman.