Hanuman

Monkey-headed Hindu god. Hanuman
originally appears in the Ramayana, the
earlier of the two great Indian epics,
where he is described as a minister
of the monkey king Sugriva and a
devoted servant of Rama, the god-king
who is the epic’s protagonist. Despite
Hanuman’s seemingly minor place in
the Hindu pantheon, he is an enormously popular deity in modern India,
because he gives humans a god essentially like themselves (or as they would
like to be) but on a greater scale and
with greater capacity.
Hanuman is said to have been born
of a union between the wind-god, Vayu,
and the nymph Anjana. After his birth
the infant Hanuman is continually hungry, and one day he attempts to eat the
sun. Indra, the king of the gods and
ruler of heaven, is incensed at Hanuman’s
action, and strikes the infant with a
thunderbolt, breaking his jaw (hanu).
Vayu becomes very angry upon learning
of his son’s injury and ceases to perform
his usual activities. Since in Indian physiology winds are responsible for all internal functions—including digestion,
respiration, and elimination—Vayu’s
strike means that no one can live a normal life. After a short time the gods realize their predicament and beg Vayu for
forgiveness; he is placated when each of
the gods promises to give Hanuman a
divine gift.
By virtue of these divine gifts,
Hanuman gains great powers. He is
immensely strong, and his image portrays him with bulging muscles. He is
also skilled as a healer, both through his
skill with herbs and natural medicines,
and his magical abilities to protect people from evil supernatural beings.
Among his most unusual divine gifts are
the power to live as long as he likes and
to choose the time of his death.
His greatest virtue, and many would
say the real source of his power, is his
devotion (bhakti) to Rama. In the
Ramayana, Hanuman plays a pivotal
role in advancing the story. Hanuman is
sent out with a troop of other monkeys
to search for Sita, Rama’s kidnapped
wife, and after a long and arduous
search finally finds her imprisoned in
the kingdom of Lanka.
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Hanuman
Image of Hanuman, a monkey-headed god who is
a devoted servant of the god Rama. He plays a
pivotal role in the Hindu epic the Ramayana.
Hanuman plays an even greater role
in the Ramcharitmanas (a vernacular
version of the Ramayana written by
Tulsidas), in which he is transformed
from a powerful monkey servant to the
devotee (bhakta), whose only aim is to
serve Rama with loving devotion. This
devotion precludes any type of worldly
attachment, including marriage and
family, and Hanuman remains a model
for a religious lifestyle stressing celibate
asceticism. In Indian culture, celibacy is
perceived as a source of power, since it
prevents the loss of a man’s vital forces
that takes place with ejaculation.
Yet for Hanuman’s devotees, his
greatest virtue is not his strength, but his
ability to act as an intermediary to
Rama, who is usually perceived as far
more remote from human affairs.
Because Hanuman is also a devotee,
people feel an affinity and kinship with
him, even though his powers are far
greater than theirs. In fact, they believe
that messages conveyed by Hanuman
have a better chance of reaching Rama’s
presence and getting action. In a text
aptly named the “Letter of Petition”
(Vinaya Patrika), the poet-saint
Tulsidas appoints Hanuman as his messenger, in the full confidence that his
plea will be heard in the divine court.
Hanuman’s intimate access to divine
power, his own undeniable strengths,
and his perceived accessibility and sympathy have all combined to make him
one of the most widely worshiped
deities in India, and one who crosses
sectarian boundaries.
Because of his service to Rama, he
is usually counted as a Vaishnava or
devotee of the Vishnu. Yet in an
interesting twist, Hanuman is also
considered to be an avatar or ”incarnation” of the god Shiva, and is thus
revered by the Shaivites, Shiva’s
devotees. As a protective deity,
Hanuman is often worshiped on
astrologically inauspicious days, to
keep these inauspicious forces at
bay. His prodigious strength, celibate
lifestyle, and single-minded devotion
have made him the patron deity
of Indian wrestlers, who strive to imitate
him as they train.
Finally, he plays an important role as
a healer and sustainer. On one hand, he
is famous as an exorcist, helping people
get rid of evil spirits. On the other, he
preserves life for those who know his
special mantra, which gives them the
power—as he had—to choose their time
of death. Given his importance in modern Hindu life, Hanuman is only now
receiving the attention he deserves. For
more information see Sudhir Kakar,
Shamans, Mystics, and Doctors, 1982.